Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexandria Norman.
Hi Alexandria, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I originally was on a completely different path. Did I know myself? No. Did my purpose, message, and passion change as I evolved? Absolutely. I started off designing tailored athletic leisure wear with a designer echelon feel by the name of “Bellen Brand.” My first location for Visionary Studios (Arts District) happens to be the same location that my first Bellen Brand design studio unit was born from. During the beginning of my Bellen Brand days, I was young and didn’t have my business etiquette mastered yet. I was learning through trial and error. I was doing all of my own production out of this one unit with a very small team of three people. Then, there was a point in time where the owners told me that I had to leave the unit at the end of the month. As a single mother who just gave birth to a newborn son whose father was facing life in prison at the time, I couldn’t afford to lose that space. I was dealing with challenges that wouldn’t allow me to quit – so I kept at it and made the most out of the resources I still had access to.
After years of choosing to stay dedicated to my hustle and find a creative way to make a living for my family, I kept the first Bellen Brand design studio unit and eventually took over the entire suite in the Arts District (now four units) and began renting the units out to creatives needing space to account for the rent. During the process, I learned I had a new passion. Giving creatives a home. An affordable home their entrepreneurship can thrive in. A place of love and support. A place I always longed for as a young entrepreneur myself. This is where Visionary Studios started. Almost eight years later, two locations and over 20 tenants. Visionary is a safe space. A community. And flourishing economy within itself.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has been furthest from smooth. I often don’t talk about my struggles because they can hurt; they’re private, and I believe in the energy I put out about those struggles being able to potentially negatively affect those around me. I had my son at 19, where I had to learn how to become an adult and parent at the same time. When my son was one year old, his father was placed in prison – for a year, he had life and eventually took a deal for 18 years. Raising a son as a single mother isn’t the easiest of everyday tasks. One of the biggest obstacles of being a single mom is oftentimes cultivating financial stability for the family. Not to mention juggling learning who you are and raising another human to be the best they can be at the same time. Though there are times when single mothers have the luxury of leaning on the elder men in their family to help support them and their son, my father had recently passed away on 12/22/22 after years of battling addiction and health issues. I took care of him financially and physically for the past seven years after his strokes first began. Despite the struggles, I’ve always been a person of love. I’ve never let situations, connections, pain or disappointment stop me from fulfilling my life’s purpose. Being a single mother and matriarch for my family, I couldn’t stop. I’ve been broke, had my car re-poed, been in and out of depression, temporarily lost in phases, but I never stopped going forward, and I pride myself in that.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Visionary Studios LLC?
VISIONARY STUDIOS is a HOME FOR ALL CREATIVES that provides affordable creative office spaces for BUSINESSES and ENTREPRENEURS – cultivating opportune environments to NETWORK and FLOURISH in one collaboration at a time. As the founder and owner, I’ve been able to uncover a niche for helping artistic business professionals, starting in Los Angeles, and now with a persistent vision to soon provide VISIONARY STUDIOS hubs all across the U.S that are open 24/7 – bridging the gaps and helping bring valuable resources and fruitful collaborations amongst creatives within inner-city communities. All of the Visionary Studios across the board will exist to give all creative entrepreneurs time, space, and resources to evolve their businesses. In turn, this creates positively amplified networks amongst like-minded individuals with an infectious draw to such a hub as Visionary Studios. We abide by a mission of creating opportunities and fulfilling fruitful visions within our tribe.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
I wouldn’t be where I am If I wasn’t a risk taker. A visionary. How strong is your faith? If you don’t try, you genuinely don’t know. If you don’t fail, you can’t be grateful and appreciate your losses just as much as your wins. I’ve learned all the lessons that helped me succeed by failing, learning from my mistakes or missteps, and trying again, but better each time. I’m more afraid of being stagnant than failing. I’ve never had a lesson that didn’t become a blessing – that’s perspective.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://visionary-studios.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/visionarystudiosla/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/visionarystudioscrenshawdistrict/
