Hidden Gems: Meet Nadine Jolson of Jolson Creative Studio and JCR8TVE Custom Sports-style

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nadine Jolson.

Hi Nadine, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
As an image consultant, I’ve always taken pride in my own personal style, and I’m also a huge sports fan. The problem was that I couldn’t find any fashionable sports merch that reflected my personal style to support my favorite teams and Formula One drivers.

Inspired by a fabulous Formula One creator on TikTok (shout-out to @SamOffTrack), I decided to start designing and making my own because I believe sports fans deserve clothing that’s as stylish and personal as the rest of their wardrobes.

In 1994, I founded Jolson Creative, a boutique PR and Image Branding agency in Los Angeles. For more than 30+ years, I’ve had the privilege of helping entertainment and lifestyle clients tell their stories and define and elevate their brands. It’s work I’ve truly loved.

What began as a fun creative adventure for me quickly turned into friends asking, “Can you make something special for me?” My BFF is a big LA Dodgers fan and season ticket holder and couldn’t find a stylish jacket with branding to wear to the games. We ordered a fitted puffer jacket from a great shop she loved, and I custom designed it with the Dodgers logos and her favorite Hello Kitty. She loves how it turned out and had me make a custom baseball shirt for her husband for Father’s Day.

I received my first official order from a fellow F1 Ferrari Club member after I posted a picture of the Lewis Hamilton (my favorite driver on and off the track) shirt I designed, “Through Goes Hamilton.” This week, I got an order from another member who sent me a black-and-white photo of a Pelé poster and asked me to design it onto custom t-shirts for his family. When asked if he wanted unisex shirts as the base, he said no- he wanted something special for his wife. I told him that’s exactly why I created this business – to make each order custom to the style, fit, and fabric they love.

I’ve turned all my husband’s favorite work shirts and sweatshirts into his company’s branded gear, and made some really fun F1 custom-designed merch with all his favorite current and vintage logos on cool, stylish, upscale sweatpants he already owned, and added our wedding monogram on PJs.

I love the process of picking upscale materials, styles, and fits to design onto and then sitting down to design. One of my favorites is the “It’s Lights Out and Away We Go” design I made, which I added 5 red crystals to indicate the lights at the F1 race. For my Hamilton pants, I chose an upscale yoga-pant style and love the font I used for the script and the Prancing Horse. I added a crystal for the eye:)

People have always commented on my personal style, and I genuinely love helping sports fans express their personal style through original custom apparel that feels authentic to them. It’s been incredibly rewarding to combine everything I’ve learned about wardrobe styling, image branding, design, and storytelling.

I was designing everything from custom jackets and elevated sports apparel to scarves, mugs, and accessories. Once I start creating, it’s hard for me to stop! My closet is getting full. I need to make more designs for others, as creating these pieces makes me ridiculously happy.

Jolson Creative Studio has become an extension of my Image and PR consulting business, and JCR8TVE is its signature label.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Building a business is never completely smooth, even after you’ve been an entrepreneur for a long time.

One of the biggest challenges has actually been giving myself permission to spend time building this new brand. When you’ve spent decades focused on clients, it’s easy to put your own ideas on the back burner.

Starting a product-based business also meant learning an entirely new set of skills—from apparel sourcing and production to Cricut design, photography, video content, and social media marketing. Thankfully, I love learning, so I looked at each challenge as another creative opportunity.

Like many small business owners, I’m intentionally growing at a pace that allows me to maintain the quality and personal attention that make custom work special. Every order teaches me something new, and that’s part of what makes this journey so exciting.

As you know, we’re big fans of Jolson Creative Studio and JCR8TVE custom sports-style . For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Jolson Creative Studio is where branding, creativity, and style come together.
JCR8TVE is the label I named for the original custom sports-style brand.
After spending more than three decades helping clients build confidence through branding, wardrobe styling, and professional and personal style, I decided I could create a new business. Now I get to bring that same philosophy to one of my favorite passions – sports!

Whether I’m developing a brand, styling a client, creating a marketing campaign, producing a red carpet event, or designing apparel, I’m solving the same challenge: helping people communicate who they are. Every piece begins with an original design, then is customized to reflect each client’s personal style and favorite sport or lifestyle brand. I work with them to create something that feels bespoke, personal, and special.

I’ve always believed people shouldn’t have to sacrifice their personal style to support the teams and athletes they love.

One business model that inspired me was Kristen Juszczyk’s Off Season brand story. Seeing someone reinvent sports apparel in such a creative way reinforced that fans were ready for sports style beyond traditional merchandise and could bring it to the biggest stage in sports.

I still have my primary Image and PR clients that I love collaborating with on their projects and businesses, and I don’t see myself giving that up anytime soon.

Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
People sometimes assume entrepreneurs are fearless risk-takers, but I don’t really see it that way. I’ve had my own business my whole career.
I believe in taking thoughtful, calculated risks.

Starting a new creative business venture in my 60s might surprise some people, but to me, it felt like the natural next chapter. Over thirty years of branding experience gave me the confidence to trust my creative and business-savvy instincts and experience and not hesitate to invest in creating and managing this vision.

I’ve learned that the biggest risk isn’t trying something new. It’s wondering, “What if it succeeds…and why not me?”

Pricing:

• Because every JCR8TVE piece is custom designed, pricing varies depending on the garment and complexity of the design. Typical custom apparel ranges include: • Custom T-shirts: starting around $80–$120 • Sweatshirts and hoodies: approximately $100–$200 • Specialty apparel and one-of-a-kind custom projects: quoted individually Every project begins with a conversation to understand the client’s style, favorite teams or brands, and the overall look they’re envisioning.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jolsoncreative.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/JCR8TVE and www.instagram.com/JolsonCreative
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NadineJolson

Image Credits
Headshot of Nadine Jolson – photo by Vivien Best
All others courtesy of Jolson Creative