Today we’d like to introduce you to Cevana Palmer.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I feel like my videography story could be traced back to the good ol’ Myspace days. I remember being in high school visiting different people’s profiles, discovering music and content people shared. It’s pretty funny to admit this but one of my good friends showed me this girl’s Myspace page who created videos of her and her friends getting into random shenanigans around the Bay Area (where I grew up). Her name was…Kreayshawn haha it’s funny to admit! This person who went viral almost a decade later for her Gucci Gucci song was the one who inspired me to get into film which kick-started the clothing brand I currently own with my brother called DIPPED.
My life could have gone on a completely different path if I hadn’t seen her work at such a young age. I was pretty inspired and fortunately, my mom was able to get me a small point and shoot camera. I started filming my friends and family going on random adventures to San Francisco. I learned Movie Maker and started editing the footage to music I was into at the time. This was way before Youtube had their music licensing restrictions so I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to create videos to songs that I was really into. With little music licensing restrictions, I was able to share videos (as crappy as they were) to a bigger audience.
I finished high school and went down south to Cal State Fullerton for college. I played sports my whole life so I decided to get a degree in Kinesiology. While working on my degree, I continued to film random adventures. This is where the story of DIPPED begins to come into play. I was never extremely close with my brother but two years later when my brother decided to join me at Cal State Fullerton, everything changed. After pulling through 2 difficult years of college feeling pretty alone, I finally had family by my side and a great friend.
My brother was inspired to create a clothing line from an experience he had at a Johnny Cupcake Pop Up Shop in San Francisco. He described the energy and excitement of everyone there who waited in line to buy products and said he had never experienced anything like it. He was inspired to recreate that feeling and I was on board to help make it happen. We were broke and in college so we struggled to invest in products but one way we thought we could start branding and at least get the name out was through our video work. We would build relationships with artists from filming their performances and would slap our logo at the beginning and end of every video. Early on we had the opportunity to work with amazing artists who have seen a ton of success over the years and are still going! We worked with DJ Dahi who at the time had a few placements on Kendrick Lamar’s Good Kid, M.A.A.D. City and SiR who is one of the newest additions to T.D.E.’s lineup.
Through our video work we were able to build solid relationships in the creative community and develop our vision for the brand. Once we were able to invest more into the products we grew our product line from T-Shirts to include long sleeves, hoodies, crewnecks, etc. The momentum felt great but we knew we still needed a lot of work. It took us a long time to figure out how we could communicate what our brand was about. We weren’t skate, surf or sports based…we were just us and we had to figure out what that meant. We realized as creative freelancers that a lot of people get discouraged to pursue their nontraditional career paths and that any bit of encouragement goes a long way. We created a video series called #InDaScoop that spotlighted a variety of creatives and freelancers and helped share their stories. We also would host events called Ice Cream Socials and more recently The High Five Initiative which includes artists displays and performances.
With time we fine-tuned our brand message and discovered DIPPED is about being all in and 100% immersed in your passion. It’s about being committed, bold, often vulnerable but certain. We want to be that reminder that you can do it too. Whatever your idea of success is, you can have it too.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It hasn’t necessarily been a smooth road but I’m not mad about it. I’m super grateful for everything good and bad because it’s made us the people we are today. I think for us, two challenges that come to mind right away are consistency with sharing content and networking. Networking has been a challenge because our main home base is back in the Bay Area so staying active and present in “the scene” out here in LA while balancing our actual jobs and life has been a continuous thing we’ve had to work at.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about DIPPED – what should we know?
I’m proud that we haven’t quit. It’s so easy to give up on something that you’re not getting quick results on but we continue to grow and learn. It’s just my brother and I running this business so to look back at what we’ve been able to create makes me happy and it makes me proud that this is apart of my journey and story in life. We have friends that have quit their jobs to pursue a career that’s not traditional and tell us that we inspired them to do that…it’s almost unreal to hear that! It makes you realize that you really don’t know how much of an impact you can have on other people’s lives. I think this brand is so much bigger than us.
As for what sets us apart, I think my brother and I are a factor. We genuinely care about others and try and help friends/artists we believe in as best as we can. I also think the fact that I’m a videographer helps. We’re able to create content quickly and in house.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
I think continuing to practice better habits, staying consistent, and always striving to learn more are most important to our success. Let’s get it!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://alwaysdipped.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/staydippedco/
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