NATT IS MAKING HER MARK
W
e sat down some weeks ago to talk with one of today’s hottest fashion designers, Natt Taylor. We set out to get some answers to questions that we thought you would like to know; questions about the fashion designing industry, her road to success plus some fun facts about her. What ensued from that conversation was thoroughly delightful. With her somewhat shy demeanor, infectious smile, eye for design and industry insight, it is easy to see why Natt Taylor is a designer to look out for. Jaquey Smith: Natt Taylor, Can You Tell Us About Yourself? Natt Taylor: I am originally from New Jersey and now based in Atlanta. I’ve been here for close to 20 years. I attended Morris Brown college and graduated with a degree in Accounting. I worked in corporate America for about 2 years and as time went on, I discovered that the corporate life was not for me. So I started making my own clothes and before you know it, my co-workers started noticing and even started placing orders. I realized I could make money by making clothes. With this in mind, I moved to New York and learned everything I could learn about fashion, the fashion industry, and how to run a business. I then moved back to Atlanta and made my fashion designing happen. JS: Can You Tell Us A Little About Your Modeling Days? NT: When I was younger, like 7-8 years old, I modeled with an organization called Little Stars and I was very much involved in that. I was modeling, doing fashion shows, and acting. I even did a photo-shoot with JC Penney. I really thought that this was the direction I was going to take. As I got older, I learned how to make and sell my own clothes and put them in fashion shows. People began to notice but I never had the mindset of becoming a fashion designer, let alone having it as a business. I did it because designing was my passion. JS: What Advice Do Have For Those That Would Love To Venture Into The Fashion World?
NT: The best advice that I would give to someone trying to break into this crazy industry is to start small. I think a lot of times as designers, we jump out and think we have to have these huge collections - 50 pieces on the runway! The reality is, if you have 50 pieces you then have to produce the majority of those pieces. When starting off, you don’t have the capability to do that. Even if you do, it doesn’t make sense because of the amount of money that goes into it. It’s easier and more manageable to start small and at the same time, find your niche. If dresses are your niche, then do 3 or 4 different styles. Your customers will have a chance to see your design style, aesthetics, your brand and then they’ll be able to grow with you . Maybe the next collection can be blazers or pants. Try this instead of beginning with everything. JS: What Would You Tell Your Younger Self? NT: I would tell my younger self to go to school to study fashion. I was pretty much self taught. Everything that I’ve done has been trial and error from beginning to end. I didn’t go to school for fashion. I went to school to study accounting and learned how to sew on my own. I took a sewing class in high school. After that, I pretty much bought McCall patterns and worked through them until they were in my head and I didn’t need to use patterns anymore. I probably would have majored in fashion but at the same time I never regretted studying accounting because if you actually want to start a business, you need to have the accounting knowledge as well. You also need to know about marketing and how to run a business . Accounting actually came in handy in my fashion designing business. If given the opportunity to go back, I would study both fashion and accounting. JS: Can You Tell Us About Your Mentors? NT: Absoulutely. I have some female mentors but most of them are not in the fashion industry. I decided to have lots of mentors from different business backgrounds because they can give advice from different perspectives.
JS: For The Natt Taylor Fans Out There Who Love Your Work, Tell Us Something We Don’t Know About You. NT: I love to sing and I must confess, a lot of people don’t know that. I wanted to become a singer at first, but fashion designing was just the one that worked for me. I’m also really very shy. JS: Tell Us About The Journey To BELK. NT: BELK has a designer competition every year. The first year, I didn’t actually apply for the competition...don’t know why. The following year, I applied and was one of the top ten selected. Out of the 19 semi-finalists, I was happy to be among the first seven to be selected to showcase and be added online. I was among the five designers to win the competition and part of that win was to have our collection in the store for Spring 2016. It did well. I think we sold out online. Especially the LOLA dresses – everyone loves the LOLA dresses. JS: Any Plans To Continue The Relationship With BELK? NT: We do have plans to continue with BELK and hopefully to move to other stores, such as Macy’s and Nordstrom, now that we’ve got the feel for the whole mass production process. There’s a big difference between boutiques and department stores. JS: So What’s The Future For Natt Taylor In The Next Five Years? NT: Right now, I am shifting to bridal. Weddings have become a little more of my thing – custom bridal and having a line of bridesmaid dresses. I’m hoping to get those dresses into some of the top bridal shops here in Atlanta. We will still do the “Ready-To-Wear” seasonal collections and maybe a couple of pop up collections as well but my main focus is going to be “Bridal”. JS: So Where Can We Find You Outside The BELK Stores? NT: Outside the BELK, we are exclusively online at
www.natttaylor.com.
Follow Natt on Instagram and Facebook: @natttaylor --- Jaquey Smith
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