Today we’d like to introduce you to Sonya Booker.
Sonya, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started SBB with an income tax check ten years ago from my job as an administrative assistant to my step-dad. He’s the mayor of the city of Canton, Ms. I honestly feel like if I didn’t work that job, I would’ve never wanted more out of life. I knew I was settling and I’ve always envisioned myself since a young girl as a leader and growing up to become an impactful self-driven woman. Ten years ago in Mississippi, our choice of fashion was very slim. It was either department store clothing or thrifting for me. I was well-traveled and on many of my journeys, I would pick up fashion trends from different places and would add my own personal twist to my ensemble and when I would come back home and go out people would stop me instantly, asking where could they purchase my outfits.
One day it hit me. I had to figure out how to be a fashion forecaster for central Mississippi and local southern states. I also realized that the day after payday, I was always dead broke from shopping on payday lol. I knew if I was willing to spend an entire paycheck on fashion, then it had to be a million other women doing the same thing. So, I did some research and with the help of my best friend Justina, who owned a boutique in northern Mississippi at the time I was open for business in the small town of Canton, MS in August of 2010. I outgrew three storefronts before I decided to transition online because the news about a young black girl supplying on trend styles and pretty much pioneering the boutique game at the time spread like wildfire. I would have girls driving from all over the south come and shop with little ole me.
Then I started selling out of items as soon as I would stock the shelves. In order to keep up with the supply and demand, I packed up all of my belongings and moved to Los Angeles. My move to LA pushed my company to new heights. I was now the owner of a multimillion-dollar company in heart of dtla. Who would have thought a girl from Mississippi would own a fashion company in LA of all places. Crazy right? My move to LA has been an emotional rollercoaster. I’ve had some crazy highs and some sobbing lows but I wouldn’t trade my job for the world. I now also design my own small capsule collections and release them about 2-3 times per year. Every collection drop, we have been blessed enough to sell out and I couldn’t be more thankful to God and our loyal customers who have stuck by us through every season the last ten years. I also wouldn’t be able to accomplish any of my success without the SBB TEAM! Julissa, Roxy, Nubian, Monet, Phoenix, Millie, Melanie, Mia, Mirna, Natwassie, Steph, and LuxeLife!
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 has definitely not been a smooth road. I’ve been through a lot as a business owner. Growing up, I was never exposed to seeing Black Excellence when it came to entrepreneurship. I didn’t personally know of a black-owned company especially a female black-owned company that reached the status of being a multimillion dollar company. When I realized I made my first million, my parents nor anyone around me except my boyfriend at the time knew. I think people thought I was going through another career phase to be honest lol. I wasn’t fully prepared to handle a lot of the responsibilities when it came to handling my accounting. I was juggling too many hats. At one time, I was playing every position on the field.
When that happens, it leaves a lot of room for errors. I had people steal from me, overcharge me for minuscule things, not filing proper tax documents. I’ve worked with companies that switched up rates mid-production that were quoted prior to collaborating. So in 2018, I had to revamp and basically start a clean slate due to my negligence and ignorance as the owner. I had to hire a trustworthy CPA and other trustworthy individuals to help fine-tune SBB. I’m happy for my setbacks because my strength comes from those setbacks, those closed doors and those losses. Once you buy enough lessons, you don’t have to worry about the same problem arising.
Please tell us about Sonya Bee’s Boutique.
Sonya Bee’s Boutique was created to empower women globally of all shapes and sizes and to be confident in themselves and who they are. We provide these strong women with quality and unique styles without the hefty price tag. We aim to have new arrivals drop weekly. Our goal is to ensure that all of our SBB babes are confident and ready to take on the world in whatever they have on. My job as the buyer for SBB is very important because I’m in charge of keeping our customers in the latest fashion threads so they can be the trendsetter within their circle, among co-workers or colleagues. I handpick every style that is posted to our Instagram (@shopsonyabees) where we now have over 690k followers. I’ve had the honor of dressing Grammy-nominated singers to well-known celebrities.
It may seem like a lot of pressure but I’ve been buying clothes for over ten years now but I’m most proud of the fact that I’ve had a hand in supplying looks for thousands of ladies from their high school graduations to bridal showers and now baby showers. I honestly feel like I’m a part of their family in a weird way lol. It’s such a blessing for little girls who look like me that now can also look up to me and know that with faith anything is possible. You have no limitations when it comes to manifesting the best out of life, no matter the hand you was dealt. I wouldn’t trade my job or my journey to success for the world.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Growing up, I was very athletic so my weekends were filled with tournaments with whatever seasonal sport I was playing at the time. My family was and still is very close so we had a lot of backyard cookouts filled with the blues blasting from stereo system like many southern families. I’ve always loved to make people laugh and just have a good time and experience overall when their in my presence. So if you grew up with me then I’m pretty sure you have beautiful memories of us laughing until we couldn’t breathe. I’ve never really held grudges which is a gift and a curse. I just never have been able to stay angry at anyone for too long.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.shopsonyab.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/shopsonyabees
Image Credit:
Steph Paul, Monet Jackson
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