We would like to introduce you to Martaveous Holliday the Student-Athlete & Fashion Designer
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was born in Mississippi in a small town called Aberdeen. I stayed there until I was about seven years old with my grandmother and then I moved to Los Angeles with my mother. I would travel at least two to three times a year back and forth from LA to Mississippi. With my traveling, I really started to notice how different people dressed in Los Angeles compared to Aberdeen. By the time I was 10 or 11, I started wanting to dress myself. I always wanted to pick out my own clothes to wear and I noticed how my style was different than others around me constantly because of the cultural differences I had been around. I had a mixed style of some Mississippi and California. I ended up finding a love for fashion because of this. I would want my mom to buy me all of the new clothes and shoes that were popular. I would always see different clothing pieces and tell my friends and family what that brand could have done differently to make that piece better. They would always say I should make my own clothes because I had a natural eye for it but because I was an Athlete I never had the time. I always had football training, school and practice. But by the time I got to college, I was able to prioritize my time better even though I was still an athlete. I could rearrange my schedule how I wanted for classes and this helped a lot. I attended the University of Nevada Las Vegas my freshman year and after my football season a coaching change happened on the football team and I did not like the way things were going so I decided to transfer out to a local junior college. Santa Monica college was my first choice they had a great football program and communications study and I found out that they had a very prestigious fashion program and this is when everything change for me. I took several fashion classes and decided to start my own streetwear clothing line in 2016 called Lamar Léon. My concept was to bring a high fashion concept to streetwear. The name Lamar comes from my middle name Martaveous “Lamar” Holliday . Léon is an acronym for Learn, evolve, outshine, nationwide. I feel strongly about those things so it went perfect with my concept. My clothing line has now been running for three years and I am an upcoming senior in college at the University of La Verne. I managed to run my company and be an All American student-athlete at one time and my company is growing more and more every day.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
The biggest struggle I had was managing my money and time. Being a student-athlete and running a clothing line is difficult if you do not spend your time wisely. The first year I started my clothing line about six months down the line I had to stop due to the fact I didn’t have any more funds for my brand. I regrouped my money again and I learned in order to keep a new business running consistently you need to always manage your money. The biggest reason why new businesses fail is because of the lack of money management.
Lamar Léon – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am the founder/design director for my brand. I design all the clothing and I manage all of the social media accounts. I also manage the website myself. I am studying multimedia communications in college right now so I learn more and more about how to run a successful online company every semester. I am known for being a college football player and having/ making cool clothes. I think being an All American student-athlete and running my own clothing line is what separates me most from others. I am most proud of the success and support I have gotten from running my clothing line. I have had about eight different clothing pieces come out already and they have all sold out.
What role has luck (good luck or bad luck) played in your life and business?
I would say I am lucky to have a mother(Katina Holliday) who owns her own successful business. I have someone around me who can show me how to run a business and I am fortunate for that. My girlfriend(Savannah Dingman) who is a journalist/photographer. she helps me a lot with my photography and creativity when I am designing. I would consider these circumstances lucky. I have people around me who specialize in all the things I need to run my business and this is also what makes me successful.
Pricing:
- Red collection shirts $25
- Pac Hoodies/sweats $40
- Black flag 3m wind breaker $50
- Premium classic socks $8
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lamarleon.com
- Phone: 3102137224
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @Martaveous.Holliday
- Twitter: @Martaveous_h
Image Credit:
Savannah Dingman
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