May/June 2019 (Preview)

May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az ine 1

H

fund her projects

“ALL SHE NEEDS IS A LITTLE SUPPORT”

We need more than just flowers and a card on Mother’s Day. We need your support year-round!

WHY FUNDHERPROJECTS.COM? • We Understand and Value You • We Are Community Who Cares About Your Success • We Support Your Campaign from Start to Finish

WE EVEN SUPPORT NEEDS THAT HELP YOU SUPPORT THOSE PEOPLE AND IDEALS YOU HOLD DEAR BY OFFERING:

• Rewards-Based Crowdfunding • Support for Meaningful Causes • Virtual Baby Showers for Mothers without Means • Back-to-School Gift Registry

VISIT WWW.FUNDHERPROJECTS.COM

Have a project that never quite got off the ground due to lack of funding?

Fund Her Projects (FHP) is an innovative funding platform just for women. FHP is not your typical crowdfunding site, as it allows members to promote a wellintentioned cause and request needed items within the community.

2 HERS Mag azine | D epar tment

hers-magazine.com

H

Editor-in-Chief, Annette Johnson Associate Editor, Grace Kelley Fashion Editor, Dr. Courtney A. Hammonds Creative Director, Michelle Lynch Design Director, Joey Shepherd Page Layout and Design, Shelton Jackson Editorial Assistant, Brooke Allen Style Consultant, Selena Hulett Social Media Marketing, Mariah Mullen Online Editor, Keith Johnson Marketing Coordinator, Veronique Thomas Editorial Intern, Melissa Lawrence Contributors: Erin Delaney Janine Delaney Liz Frazier Tamara Hamai Merilee Kern Lata K. McGinn Ilana Muhlstein Christal Schanes Manish Shah Krystal White Cover Rebecca Crews Customer Service For subscription service or change of address, including email, contact info@hersmagazine.net or write to: P.O. Box 1071, Atlanta, GA 30301

Hers (ISSN 2372-3785) is published six times per year by Allwrite Communications, 3300 Buckeye Road, Suite 264, Atlanta, GA 30341 770-284-8983

May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az ine 3

+ CONTRIBUTORS

JA N I N E D E L A N EY Hailed the “Jump Rope Queen,” Janine is a Doctor of Psychology, a former professional ballerina and an exercise and nutrition specialist. She also holds multiple competitive titles. Her passion is to help others realize that being fit is not just about the way you look, but also about being healthy in mind, body and soul. At 48 years old Janine is proof that age is just a number. She encourages and inspires her 1.5 million social media fans through her daily exercise routines, unique jump rope style and motivational posts on her social media.

TA M A RA H A M A I Tamara Hamai, Ph.D. has dedicated her career as a researcher, consultant and teacher to improving human services for children and families. She founded Hamai Consulting in 2010, which empowers nonprofits to make extraordinary improvements in the well-being of children. Her work spans many topics, such as early childhood education, child maltreatment, parental discipline, community needs and assessment, and geographic information systems.

L ATA K . M C G I N N Lata K. McGinn, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist and co-founder of Cognitive Behavioral Consultants. She is also a tenured Professor of Psychology, director of the Doctoral Clinical Program, and director of the University-based Cognitive Behavior Therapy Training Program for Anxiety and Depressive Disorders at the Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology, Yeshiva University and Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Her research focuses on vulnerability and prevention of anxiety and depressive disorders. She has recently developed an intervention to prevent the development of depression and has tested the efficacy of this intervention in a NIH funded research study.

LIZ FRAZIER Liz Frazier is the author of “Beyond Piggy Banks and Lemonade Stands: How to Teach Young Kids About Finance,” a guide to help parents, caregivers and educators teach elementary school kids the financial basics. In addition to her CFP, Frazier holds an MBA from Wake Forest University, and is a member of the Financial Planning Association, and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors. She is also a regular finance contributor on Forbes.com, focusing on everyday personal finance that anyone can understand and use. Her articles provide real world, simple, accessible and entertaining financial advice.

MERILEE KERN As the executive editor and producer of “The Luxe List,” Merilee Kern is an internationallyregarded consumer product trends expert and hospitality industry voice of authority. She is a travel, dining, leisure and lifestyle expert who spotlights noteworthy marketplace innovations, change makers, movers and shakers. She reports on exemplary travel destinations and experiences, extraordinary events and newsworthy products, and also services across all categories.

I L A N A M U H L ST E I N Ilana Muhlstein is a registered dietitian. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of Maryland.

She sits on the Executive Leadership Team for the American Heart Association and leads the Bruin Health Improvement Program at UCLA. Ilana acts as a nutrition consultant for several companies, including Beachbody and Whole Foods Market.

She’s also a contributing writer for publications such as SELF, The Huffington Post and The Journal of Obesity.

C H R I STA L S C H A N ES

K RYSTA L W H I T E

Christal Schanes is an Emmy-winning TV/film hair stylist who is best-known for her work on “Saturday Night Live.” She established WIGwell, an initiative providing free custom wigs to women experiencing medically-related hair loss through her company, CHRISTAline Studios. Her company, which offers ready-to-wear and custom hair products and services, devotes 20% of its proceeds from the sale of every product to support its community giving endeavor. Each free custom wig is hand-tied from 100,000 human hairs, takes 125 hours to create and has a market value of $5,000.

Krystal White is the author of “The Letter Code: Deciphering Why You Love the Way You Love.” She is also a leadership psychologist with more than 15 years of experience working with individuals, organizations and communities. Dr. White holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, is a boardcertified child and adolescent psychologist and has completed a medical fellowship at Madigan Army Medical Center in developmental pediatric psychology. She also holds a master's degree in Christian leadership from Fuller Theological Seminary, and a master’s degree in mind, brain and education from Harvard University.

4 HERS Mag azine | D epar tment

hers-magazine.com

+ CONTRIBUTORS

SUBMISSIONS www.hers-magazine.com info@hersmagazine.net

May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az ine 5

6 ISSUES FOR

JUST $9.95

F E AT U R E S • H E A R T • F L AVO R • H E A LT H L E S S O N S • W O R K • P L AY W W W. H E R S - M A G A Z I N E . C O M 6 HERS Mag azine | H ER H ear t

hers-magazine.com

+ HER HAIR

SPRING & SUMMER HAIR TIPS

BY C H R I STA L SC H A N ES

M ay 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az ine 7

+ HER HAIR

S

pring and summer bring fun in the sun, but excessive exposure can damage your hair if you are not careful. A quick remedy is to use more leave-in conditioner or a cream styling product than you would in the fall and winter. A simple reminder: Your hair is just as thirsty as your body is in the sun!

Detangling sprays like Mane ‘N Tail help to rejuvenate luscious locks in the morning by protecting hair from looking or feeling too dry. Plus, it will freshen your hairstyle and define your curls.

Hair also needs more moisture, especially during the summer months. If you have natural curls or your waves are bounce-less, undefined or frizzy, it’s a good idea to quench your hair. For an added boost of moisture, try Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus Curl & Style Milk.

Warmer times of the year offer greater opportunities to swim in the sea, ocean and pool. Regular swimming results in greater hair dehydration from salt water and damages hair quality due to chlorine.

While salt water allows for beautiful hair outcomes from visibility to adding texture and a sexy beachy look, it’s important to counteract dry hair by using a gentle shampoo and conditioner/leave-in conditioner. Some products use straight Shea Butter or Coconut Oil and Vitamin E creams to rejuvenate hair’s moisture content. As I Am Coconut CoWash, Morracanoil Moisture Repair, Chi Aloe Vera & Agave Nector Leave-In Conditioner, Sun Bum Revitalizing 3 in1 Leave-in 8 HERS Mag azine | H ER F lavor

Conditioner and 10 Miracle Daily Conditioner are favorites to incorporate into your spring and summer haircare arsenal.

Another way to create “beachy” hair is to use a salt waterbased product, like Bumble & Bumble Surf Spray, in lieu of overexposure in the sea.

Protecting one’s hair is essential for swimmers who frequent chlorine-based pools. Without proper care, hair will turn green by the start of the fall season. This is a result of chlorine affecting the quality of the hair by damaging it from the inside. Implementing a pre-treatment and posttreatment strategy through regular use of a hair protectant (Malibu and Aveda) will help combat split ends and breaking of strands. If clean beauty is important, make sure to check out Ion’s Swimmers Leave In Conditioner, a 100-percent vegan-based hair care product or certified cruelty-free brand Love Beauty and Planet to counteract green swimmers’ hair.

OnlyBuyVegan.com is a reliable source to research and select vegan haircare products.

Speaking of clean beauty – choosing vegan-based, lowto-no alcohol and no parabens-based products – is a good practice to follow regardless of the time of year. An excellent resource to help guide your decision making is the EWG Healthy Living App, which rates the contaminant levels of ingredients of hair and skin care products. Protecting your mane by selecting healthier products results in healthier hair whether it’s winter, spring, summer or fall.

hers-magazine.com

+ HER PERSONAL GROWTH

Tips for Building Your Daughter’s Confidence

BY E R I N D E L A N EY

G

rowing up as a young female in the 2000’s is exhausting. With the addition of social media, more and more demands are being put on young girls to look “perfect.” As a result, there has been a dramatic rise of girls suffering from self-esteem issues. Any mother today will tell you it is a constant struggle to counteract the unrealistic pressures society puts on their daughters.

What’s important for mothers to realize is girls first start to doubt themselves as early as the age of 8. This means that the sooner in life a mother can help her daughter build selfconfidence, the more likely she will grow to be self-assured, and less likely to give in to the demands of society. Below are some tips for moms to help their daughters through this critical stage.

1. Be Specific

Compliments like “pretty” or “beautiful” are nice, but they tend to be so overused that they practically have no meaning anymore. In order to really make sure your daughter feel special and happy with herself, give her more specific compliments that relate to her uniqueness. For example, tell her like how she is stunning when she smiles or how her eyes twinkle. These few words can stay with a girl forever.

2. Avoid Comparison

The worst thing a parent could do is compare their child to another child or sibling, even if this means putting your child in a better light. Comparison feeds competition, and at this age, it’s important to teach your daughter to support her fellow females, not foster competitiveness. If you introduce comparison into your child's life now, then they will start to compare themselves

to everyone.

3. Encourage sharing

Make the time to spend quality time with your daughter and discuss not just how her day went, but yours as well.

Communication and trust are two-way streets. Encouraging sharing and openness from an early age will develop a trust between you and your daughter. That way, when the day comes she feels down or insecure, you will be the first one she turns to.

4. Be Understanding

Accept the fact that your daughter will go through periods of time when she feels really bad about who she is, and you will not be able to change it. When this happens, you have to try and understand why she feels this way, rather than discounting it. Telling someone who thinks they are ugly that they are pretty is not going to make them feel differently. The best thing you can do is comfort them and reassure them that things are much better than they think.

5. Don’t Shelter

Many parents take the approach to disallow certain things they feel will negatively impact their child’s self-esteem. This can backfire and prevent children from learning how to react to certain situations. For example, when it comes to social media, the earlier a child learns how to deal with not getting enough likes, or that most photos are photoshopped, the less likely it will play into their self-esteem as they get older. The earlier a child gets exposed to negative influences, the more time they will have to develop the confidence to deal with it.

May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az ine 9

+ FEATURE

TAMARA MOBLEY Thriving At Google With A Death Sentence

BY B RO O K E A L L E N

+ FEATURE

“Three years after coming on board here at Google, I was diagnosed with cancer,” says Tamara Mobley, Sr. Retail Account Manager at Google. After settling into her “dream job,” Mobley’s routine was suddenly halted when she was diagnosed with a rare blood disease called multiple myeloma.

When Google first contacted Mobley, 43, her first thought was, “What in the world could I possibly do for Google?” With her only job experience surrounding the field of radio, she was “surprised” when Google reached out to her for a phone interview.

“I was working in the radio industry doing ad sales…Google, at that time, wanted to transition into the radio space,” she said. “So, fortunately, I had the background for what they were looking for.”

After a couple of phone interviews, Mobley flew out to California for her in-person interviews. She underwent three months of interviews before being chosen for the job. Although

she had a strong background in radio, her inspiring work ethic was an added bonus. “I am very self-driven,” Mobley says. “I just like good results. I think if you work hard, if you go above and beyond, everything typically works out.”

Ever since being hired twelve years ago, Mobley has remained an account manager for Google. Her responsibilities include teaming up with top brands to “optimize their investments and help them achieve their business objectives.”

When working with a single company for years, one would assume adapting to work would become seamless. However, according to Mobley, as Google evolved, the products became more complicated through the years.

Adapting to a constantly shifting tech field was a big challenge for her. “[A big challenge is] trying to stay on top of the industry, staying abreast of all the changes and making sure that we can properly communicate that to our clients. And make sure that we are not just pitching what Google has to offer

but making sure that it's aligned with what our businesses want to achieve. I mean, Google, the name itself holds a lot of weight, too. So, you want to make sure that you live up to that.”

With the pressure that comes with being an account manager, finding a work and life balance was not an easy task for Mobley. “It's been hard trying to find that balance in terms of when to respond to an e-mail versus when that e-mail can wait. So, I would say finding that balance has been a challenge, but I've gotten pretty comfortable with it now,” Mobley said.

“I would find myself working late into the night, but I've learned that responding to an e-mail that night at 10:00 at night does not change [the outcome] if I were to respond at 10:00 in the morning. There's not much that can be done during that time. So, I've had to learn where to push my boundaries and where to relax them.”

Learning how to juggle work and life once she became a mother was May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az i ne 11

+ FEATURE

another huge obstacle in her life. Her two sons, now aged 16 and 13, had a big impact on her striking her work and life balance. “So, initially when they were younger, I probably did not turn the phone off as much. But now that they're older and they’re forming their little personalities and the homework is more challenging, I totally have to turn things off,” Mobley said. “So, when I go home, I don't take the computer back out until they are in bed. When I'm home, I'm home.”

When her sons were younger and she had just started her new job with Google, she “wanted to be great at both” being a mother and a vital employee. “I found out you can’t be great at both at the same time.

If I’m with them, I need to turn things off so I can be 100 percent present with then when I’m home,” she said.

With all of the obstacles she’s overcome in her work, not only being an African American woman in the tech industry, but also being a cancer survivor, her confidence in herself has kept pushing her forward.

When she was younger, she felt “intimidated” initially when she first stepped into a career in Google, but as she aged, her confidence gained her respect from her male counterparts.

“It is difficult, I think, to exist in the tech space without acknowledging and recognizing the benefits of having a diverse workforce,” Mobley says. “So, with Google, we're still relatively new in the [tech industry], but I think we've been able to do a lot of things that kind of change the perception of women, of African Americans, Latin folk, everybody in this space.”

Mobley’s cancer diagnosis came as a shock to her. She was at work one day and felt “exhausted,” but stayed and worked because of a presentation. “I just said, ‘Oh, my God, I don’t feel good,’ but I pushed through the presentation. I got back to my desk, laid my head down and my co-workers said, ‘You need to go home.’ But, when I went home, I ended up not coming back 12 HERS Mag azi n e | Feature S tor y

for five months…”

When she scheduled an appointment with her primary doctor, they immediately transferred her to a hospital where she received her diagnosis of multiple myeloma. Mayo Clinic states, “Multiple myeloma is a cancer that forms in a type of white blood cell called a plasma cell. Plasma cells help you fight infections by making antibodies that recognize and attack germs. Multiple myeloma causes cancer cells to accumulate in the bone marrow, where they crowd out healthy blood cells. Rather than produce helpful antibodies, the cancer cells produce abnormal proteins that can cause complications.”

Mobley said, “So, I went to the hospital on Monday and started chemo that Thursday, and I was in the hospital for about two weeks.

At that point, with 24hour chemotherapy, it was apparent that this was a very bad thing.”

She endured chemotherapy every week, except the last week of the month, and that was “her life.” Although her health quickly declined, Google was “great” during her cancer treatment. “I was able to juggle my client meetings.

My team has allowed me to work from Emory [Hospital]. I just did my work around my doctor’s appointments and [my] team has always been awesome about it…and that is part of the Atlanta Google culture. I don’t know if that would be accepted in other areas.”

Due to the rarity of multiple myeloma, when Mobley was diagnosed, clinical trials were her only hope for a cure. She finds “value” in clinical trials because, this past December in 2018, one of these trials cured her. “I’ve done several clinical trials. I know a lot of people kind of shrink to clinical trials because you feel like you’re a guinea pig, but I actually participated in a clinical trial this past December, and as of February, I have been considered to no longer have cancer for the first time in nine years.” hers-magazine.com

+ FEATURE

The trial focused on immunotherapy, which concentrates on building up her immunity instead of treating her. “Most people with these sorts of cancers die from an infection versus something else. So, I’m now considered what they call GMO, which is genetically modified, because they take your T cells, they send them off to a lab who re-engineers your cells, and they give them back to you so that your body can detect foreign or malignant cells and fight them off. So, I guess I’m GMO.” Although the trial had an amazing outcome, Mobley was still “nervous because it comes with a lot of risk, but it also comes with a lot of reward, potentially.” Meeting up with other patients who had good outcomes form the trial motivated her to try it out. “I think I was patient number two for this particular one at Emory, and I met with patient number one. You know, we had a good conversation.

So, they made me feel good about it. I'm not the youngest, but when it comes to myeloma, patients tend to be a lot older. So, I was actually a good candidate because I am on the younger side of it.”

After surviving multiple myeloma, Mobley is now an avid advocate for cancer patients.

She has partnered with the American Cancer Society, Winship Cancer Institute and the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.

No longer having to worry about surviving through her illness, she ensures to live her life to the fullest. “You know, I kind of scaled back and realized what's important and not to sweat the small stuff. Google will continue functioning and working in the time that I took off. Nothing ever stopped here, you think you're responsible for everything until you're gone, and then you realize that the sun kept coming up, the engine kept running. You know, not that you aren't valuable, but you realize that maybe I need to shift some priorities and just figure out what's really important. It helps me turn that computer off.”

May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az i ne 13

6 ISSUES FOR

JUST $9.95

F E AT U R E S • H E A R T • F L AVO R • H E A LT H L E S S O N S • W O R K • P L AY W W W. H E R S - M A G A Z I N E . C O M 14 HERS Mag azi n e | D epar tment

hers-magazine.com

+ HER SOCIAL COMMENTARY

What We Can Learn from Green Book's Oscar Win on How to Be More Anti-Racist

BY TA M A RA H A M A I

I

n the past several years, women have really stepped up and shown that they are a catalyst for change. Thousands took the streets for the women’s marches, and many participated in or supported the #MeToo movement.

Things are changing and women are leading the charge.

Themselves considered as minorities, women are also drawing attention for their apparent mistreatment of racial minorities.

Being dubbed names like “BBQ Becky” for calling the cops on black people for barbecuing in Lake Merritt Park in Oakland, Ca., white women are fighting for equality and respect while refusing others the same right because of their race.

When “Green Book” won the Oscar for Best Picture, that was supposed to demonstrate how far we’ve come in making racism apart of history, rather than the present, right? Wrong! On the surface, the film is every white liberal’s dream. A white man (Viggo Mortensen) becomes the chauffeur and bodyguard for a black man (Mahershala Ali). As they become close, the white man seems to become less racist. That might sound like a story of overcoming racism, except that it is still racist.

This plot perpetuates messages that allow deeply rooted racism to remain unchanged, while giving people with the power to make change the sense that there is no longer a problem to solve.

“Green Book” simplifies and obscures how racism really shows up, both historically and in present day. The underlying message of the film is that racism is a result of a white person’s individual lack of exposure to people of color, not the larger system through

which oppression is so deeply rooted and perpetuated. It presents stereotypical, aggressive racism, where individual white people say and do things against people of color. The power of real racism is in the systems through which racism operates. It lies in how the War on Drugs and law enforcement disproportionately target people of color for investigation and arrest. It also lies in the relative absence of grocery stores with fresh produce in communities of color, as compared to white communities.

Two people of different races having a cordial relationship does not, and cannot, singularly undo racism. Pretending that it is the responsibility of individual people to change their racist attitudes and behaviors takes responsibility away from our education, health, judicial, social and economic systems. It allows racism to persist.

The film also commits the racist offense of telling the story of racism from the white perspective. Co-written by Nick Vallelonga, the real-life son of Tony Vallelonga, the white character featured in the film, “Green Book” puts forward a white narrative. The family of Don Shirley, the black character featured in the film, were not consulted during the writing of the screenplay and have accused Vallelonga of falsifying information in the film. Telling a story that should promote anti-racism from a white perspective steals the platform from the people who are most affected by racism, people of color. People of color do not have the control or power to be able to tell their own stories. Typically, white people are celebrated as heroes for merely mentioning race, while people of color are punished, such as Colin Kaepernick.

M ay 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az i ne 15

+ HER SOCIAL COMMENTARY

On a small scale, the Oscars played out this same story. “Green Book” beat the “BlacKkKlansman” for the Best Picture Oscar.

“BlacKkKlansman” was co-written by two black men and two white men, and told the true story of Ron Stallworth, a black man who infiltrated the KKK with the intent to damage them.

The story goes further to tell the story of a white man “saving” a black man. Hollywood loves stories of white saviors. Remember “The Help,” “Dances with Wolves,” “Cool Runnings,” “Dangerous Minds” and “The Blind Side?” These movies, as with “Green Book,” show that people of color are only able to be successful with the assistance of white people. It is as if people of color are incapable of saving themselves. Every time we see a movie like this, or we see a white celebrity visit starving child in Africa, we are taught that white people are the wise and able rescuers, the owners of success. It does not help people of color achieve more, become self-sufficient or gain power. It keeps them oppressed.

We can do better, but how can we be better at being antiracist?

◊ Speak up when you see racism.

White people are the best people to challenge other white people’s racism. It can be incredibly painful and difficult for a person of color to stand up against the oppression they have experienced in their entire life. When you hear or see things 16 HERS Mag azi n e | H ER Les s ons

that you know are oppressive, say or do something to stop it, especially if you are white. It might feel uncomfortable to call out racist language or racist systems, but nothing will change if you don’t use your privilege to highlight the problem.

◊ Give people of color a voice.

Pay attention to whose story is being told and demand to hear other people’s stories. Our history books, films, books and art are overwhelmingly created and told by white people. Buy art and stories told by people of color, intentionally. If you are white, then use your privilege to help people of color get their stories in front of larger audiences. Sometimes, it is better to use your power to stay quiet, and also quiet other people with privilege, so that people from oppressed groups have the time and space to speak.

◊ Celebrate how diversity makes your life better.

Racism includes an underlying assumption that life would be better if the world was fully white and that people of color just need to be managed so as not to ruin things. Most people reject this notion but might unintentionally be perpetuating that assumption. Allowing people of color to be more equally treated does not take anything away from white people. Instead, you can live out your values by acknowledging and embracing hers-magazine.com

+ HER SOCIAL COMMENTARY

how people of color make your immediate environment and the rest of the world a better place. Small things, like delicious food, and big things, like the richness of speaking other languages and having different cultural and religious viewpoints, add to everyone’s quality of life.

◊ Seek out more information.

Search the internet for resources and start your own journey of learning. Seek out information published online, in books, in art and in media to learn how systems of oppression operate. Some good resources to start with include “White Privilege” by Robin DiAngelo and the “Me and White Supremacy Workbook” by Layla Saad. Also, stop asking people of color to explain racism, or their experiences with racism. When white people expect people of color to explain oppression, it is perpetuating the master-slave relationship. Also, many people of color carry a lot of trauma and stress from the racism and oppression they experience daily. They might not be ready or interested in discussing it with others.

Based on this film, if more white women made black friends, they would be less likely to call the police on black people who merely annoyed or offended them. Is the real problem that women like “Golfcart Gail” or “Cornerstore Caroline” doesn’t have any close black associates?

M ay 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az i ne 17

+ HER FASHION

THE SISTERS DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES CHATTING WITH THE LADIES OF NAKED WARDROBE

BY RU DY R E E D

T

hey say the best things come in threes, and for sisters Shida, Shideh and Shirin Kaviani, they are proving this saying to be true. The journey of their fashion company, Naked Wardrobe, began in 2012.

Self-admitted fashion addicts, the trio expressed their love for online shopping, and the thrill of having merchandise delivered to their door. Wanting to share this experience with others, the sisters decided that they would join the world of E-commerce.

With 7,500 dollars, they began buying merchandise from various wholesalers. At this point, the ladies didn’t have an office or storage for their inventory, so their business ran out of their parents’ home.

All three sisters combined create a very diverse work history background. Oddly enough, their histories worked as an advantage for them. Shida came from the world of PR. She was responsible for grabbing the attention that the brand needed. Shirin is the tech savvy sibling. She studied graphic design and calls herself a “geek.”

She was responsible for creating a fashionable website for potential customers to enjoy. Shideh is the only one out of the three with a background in fashion. She studied fashion design at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising.

She also received a bachelor’s degree in business management. Though she’s the youngest of the siblings, Shideh is recognized as the president of the company.

Deciding to go into business as entrepreneurs is a tricky and nerve-wracking task. I was eager to know what the Kaviani sisters’ parents thought about their new fashion endeavor. Each of the sisters explained that their parents stood behind their decision to take on this challenge. “At first, they were concerned, but now they are happy and proud,” Shida said. “They applaud that we found our own way.”

Now in business a little over six years, the trio has become a force to be reckoned with. Their hard work and long hours paved the way to success. It took roughly three months for their website to be created, and during that time under construction, the sisters hosted fashion parties. Similar to a Tupperware party, the ladies invited friends and acquaintances to their home or venue and showed off the merchandise they had to offer.

After a while, the ladies found the need to reconstruct their

+ HER FASHION

business. Instead of selling other companies’ merchandise, they began designing and selling their own. Proud of their curvy bodies, the ladies created pieces that catered to many shapes and sizes. Whenever they style images for their lookbooks, they are always adamant in casting body positive models from diverse backgrounds.

The sisters ensure 90 percent of the pieces are manufactured in the states, but their main goal is to make fashionable pieces at an affordable price. Their customers range in age from 14 to 88 years old. Naked Wardrobe also has a maternity section for the expecting mothers who still want to look good. “There is something for everyone,” Shideh said.

As business continued to grow, something else did as well — the power of social media. The sisters’ brand was heavily affected by the surge in social media popularity, and they became influencers. Now they are somewhat of celebrity figures.

Followers cling onto every word they say, purchase items they suggest and even go as far as changing their diets and eating habits to become more like them. Also, a number of other influencers took images of themselves wearing the Naked Wardrobe brand, and their exposure spread like wildfire.

“Everyone knows somebody,” Shideh said. “We’ve been lucky to get in touch with celebrities and their styling teams.”

The ladies of Naked Wardrobe now have some of the most well-known women wearing their merchandise. Clients include, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, Khloe Kardashian, and Kylie and Kendall Jenner.

While social media may be a great way of getting your name out there, it does have its particular setbacks as well — namely competition. As of today, Naked Wardrobe has more than 1.2 million followers on Instagram, and competitors want in on the action. So, in a dog eat dog world, Naked Wardrobe has to stay relevant. “We do our best to stay ahead of the game,” Shideh said.

“Being innovative is a very important factor. We are currently working on many new styles for our customers.”

The Kaviani sisters also shared that they will be opening a pop-up shop. Generally pop-up shops don’t stay around for very long, but I have a feeling this one just might.

May 2 0 1 9 | H ERS M ag az i ne 19

What do all writers need?

Something to write with, on, about, and We provide extensive editorial services from inception to production to marketing. We don’t let writers just publish anything because we care about your success.

Expert Author Services www.bookwritingpros.com 20 HERS Mag azi n e | D epar tment

hers-magazine.com