Community Highlights: Meet Danielle Drake of Danielle Parish Drake Bridal

Today we’d like to introduce you to Danielle Drake

Hi Danielle, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
From a young age, Danielle Parish Drake felt that Faith and Fashion would be central to her life. Born at Riverside Hospital in San Pablo and raised in Richmond, California, she was nurtured in a multicultural family with Christian values rooted in the Apostolic Overcoming Holiness church.

“My father is Black and my mother is Filipina,” Danielle explains. “Growing up as a Preacher’s Kid in a culturally rich environment, I embrace my identity as both Black and Filipina, alongside my deep faith.”

At the age of four, her family relocated to Hawaii, settling with her grandparents in Wahiawa on Oahu. Danielle fondly remembers, “It was a quintessential Pinay (Ilocano) household with traditional dishes like rice, chicken adobo, and lumpia.”

Though her passion for Fashion Design was evident from early on, Danielle’s path to the industry wasn’t straightforward.

She pursued a BA in Political Science at USC and initially planned to juggle Seminary School with Fashion Design School. However, she chose to move to New York City and enrolled at Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York.

In New York, she found opportunities to explore her fashion interests. Danielle took additional courses at the Fashion Institute of Technology and interned with a skilled Senegalese tailor in Harlem. Reflecting on her time in New York, she says, “I had the chance to work on and attend Fashion Shows during New York Fashion Week.”

While her initial experiences in fashion were promising, Danielle wasn’t quite ready to fully embrace her passion at the time. After earning her M.Div. from Seminary School, she transitioned into a role as a Hospice Chaplain and Bereavement Coordinator. Here and there she would design things, was apart of a modeling and acting agency, took headshots and found out she was pregnant, lol. So that was put on pause. She was even a costume designer for some dance films with The Cutting Room through Jamila Glass and helped to style an album cover for Melaina Williams. But, eventually she settled into married life and fully embraced motherhood with two daughters and led a life grounded in faith, with her fashion design aspirations quietly lingering in the background.

However, the events of 2020 brought about a profound shift. The pandemic served as a wake-up call for Danielle, prompting her to reassess her priorities. “I found myself thinking, ‘If I were to die tomorrow, what would I regret not doing?’” Danielle reflects. It was during this period that she began working on her own bridal gown for a vow renewal, which sparked the idea to create a bridal line inspired by the remarkable women in her life.

This pivotal moment led Danielle to wholeheartedly commit to her fashion design dreams. She launched her inaugural bridal collection, aptly named “Inspirational Women.” Today, Danielle is the Founder and Creative Director of Danielle Parish Drake Bridal.

Operating out of La Puente, CA, her brand intertwines Faith and Fashion, with a commitment to ethical practices. A portion of each sale—10%—is dedicated to supporting Hope For Children’s Ministry in Zimbabwe and aiding orphans and survivors of Domestic Violence.

Danielle’s impact extends globally through her collaboration with Chika’s Closet, an African Day Wear Fashion label owned by Onleilove Alston, a fellow Seminary School alumna. This partnership allows Danielle Parish Drake Bridal to work with skilled tailors and dressmakers in Lagos, Nigeria.

Danielle’s unique integration of Faith and Fashion distinguishes her brand from others. By choosing Danielle Parish Drake Bridal, customers can not only look beautiful but also contribute to meaningful causes. Additionally, we have a wedding venue on Oahu, the Garden of Aloha so please come through and visit us.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Like with most creatives in Los Angeles, CA, nothing really comes easily. You find yourself sleeping on couches, eating peanut butter and putting five dollars in the gas tank praying to make it to the next place just to live as a starving artist. I thank God for my husband, Joseph Drake, my family, my church, and my friends who are like family, because without them I honestly wouldn’t have made it.

I also lost my dad John Lee Parish and my aunt Elizabeth Leyes in 2016, and then my grandmother Eugenia Castillo in 2019, five months after my first daughter was born. Then the pandemic happened and we had to evict people from our property in Hawaii because of the eviction moratorium.

Then, in 2022 right before my husband and I closed on our home my oldest daughter and I were in a major car accident and we could of really been very hurt but we survived. One thing about life, it’s going to be lifin’ and when you are following your destiny and pushing for your goals in faith the enemy will always throw rocks, obstacles and challenges on your path. Also, to whom much is given much is due. I’ve been blessed many times over in this life and I would be amiss to not state that I do have God’s favor.

Additionally, hard moments make hilltop moments in life, all the more worthwhile and it makes pushing for goals in life more important. Because we are here for a short time not a long time and my goal is to leave a major legacy for my children’s children. So I’m not playin’, I’m here to get everything God has for me.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
My husband Joseph Drake and I run Danielle Parish Drake Bridal. We are the only Black Ethical Bridal line in the world, since the last time I checked. We are a multicultural company with roots in both Black and Filipino cultures, and we are proud to be Black-owned, Asian-owned, and globally focused. Our mission is to empower women and collaborate with the broader African diaspora.

As Maya Angelou wisely said, “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” My father, John Lee Parish, often reminded me, “Pretty is as pretty does.”

These words have taught me that true success is not defined by appearance or status, but by the positive impact we have on others. It’s what we do for others that truly defines our success.

While achieving sales is important, real success is measured by how we uplift ourselves and others. This is the essence of legacy and the true meaning of incorporating God into Fashion.

Danielle Parish Drake Bridal is an Ethical, Spiritual, Cultural and Elegant Bridal line specializing in exquisite and unique Bridal wear and custom gowns. It a mesh of the red carpet – inspired by Los Angeles, high fashion – inspired by New York, and nature- inspired by Hawaii. Our gowns are couture and you won’t look like everyone else.

As mentioned earlier we are an ethical brand where 10% of our proceeds go to support orphans in Zimbabwe and Domestic Violence survivors through Hope for Children’s Ministry just in case you want to love on the globe on your wedding day. This is what sets us apart. Companies may do collaborations with charities but we are built on this and incorporate ethics into our mission. We also employ women-owned brands from Nigeria thus impacting the world for good.

I am most proud of our collaborations as such a young brand. We are a select vendor with Black Bride Magazine (Black Bride Bridal Suite) a magazine I used to read and love as a child. We are also a select vendor with Munaluchi Bride and apart of the Muna Coterie, a multi-cultural Bridal powerhouse. Additionally, we are also a select vendor with Sinta Weddings, a pinay (Filipino) collection of Filipino Wedding Bridal brands and companies. Finally we were also featured as one of the finalists in the Sweet July Black Female Owned 2023 National Black Business Month Campaign.

Our brand offers exquisite gowns you can rent or purchase or custom-made gowns you can have for your wedding or any exquisite red carpet event. We also offer flower girl dresses. We can do in-person fittings or virtual fittings so if you are in LA or Paris you can wear a Danielle Parish Drake Bridal gown. Additionally, my husband and I own a Wedding Venue on the island of Oahu, the Garden of Aloha for weddings or private events. It has two lush green gardens. You can find us on the Wedding Wire and the Knot. We are taking bookings for 2025. We love to help you look like a princess on your wedding day and also help you have an exquisite wedding overall. If you are not getting married but know someone who is we offer referrals so please follow us for all the wonderful upcoming news.

Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
Danielle is a happy mommy to two wonderful young girls and they keep her on her toes, she if forever grateful to have become a mommy. Additionally, keep an eye out for Danielle in the author category she has something brewing in the background. One thing for sure you can’t keep Danielle in a box.

I used to worry that I didn’t always fit in, but I’ve been able to learn to stand on my ten toes and own who I am and what I’m about.

Pricing:

• Gown Pricing Varies
• Wedding Elopement $3,500
• Wedding Ceremony and Reception Starts at $5,500

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.shopdpdbridal.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shopdpdbridal
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shopdpdbridal
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@dpdbridal
• Other: https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/garden-of-aloha/dd2e559ab7c9610f.html

Image Credits
Sheldon Botler
Christine Sadoy