Today we’d like to introduce you to Brianna Wise.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Brianna. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I’m a stylist based in Los Angeles, California.
I’ve been styling for 10+ years now and am also a creative consultant for fashion brands and online tech companies. My resume consists of working with actors and actresses, NBA players, NFL players, NYFW runway shows, music videos, editorials for magazines, commercials, short films, and clothing brands.
In 2019, I wrote a book and created an online course about the journey to becoming a styling because I felt there are so many people who would love to pursue styling or fashion as a career but have no idea where to start. This spring/summer I will be teaching a workshop in Los Angeles, at SEW FYI, showing aspiring “fashion-preneurs” how to get their finished product(s) off the ground running in today’s market.
As my career took off, I received so many questions from other aspiring stylists regarding how to get into the industry, the types of styling jobs there are, how to set rates, where to find clients, the list goes on.
My heartfelt for each and every message I received because I understood not only the question but the frustration behind them.
I realized the fashion community doesn’t talk about their story, their journey which helped them develop the mindset shift, tools, strategies, and resources needed to get them where they currently are.
This is SO important because it makes a successful person who they are!
A strong, resilient, driven, ambitious, and fierce entrepreneur.
Fashion has a way of making things seem so beautiful and instant but what really matters is the core. The heart. Being beautiful, vulnerable, and strong from the inside out.
There are many people who reached the top of their career but it was a Process.
After graduating from college, I KNEW I wanted to be a stylist! I knew I wanted to help people from the inside out through fashion but had no idea the journey would take me to Los Angeles, CA.
I’m from Baltimore, MD. which is only 3 hours away from NY so I’d travel back and forth on a Megabus 🚌 2-3 times a week just to intern. But, when I ran out of money from interning I was back at home searching for a job.
Then, I moved to LA which allowed me to make amazing relationships, however, because I was still interning I ran out of money and had to move AGAIN.
There was a lot of figuring it out all by myself.
I needed a plan, some direction. So I began reading personal development, entrepreneur, and businesses books. Also, got a mentor and coach to guide me, setting a path to my end goal!
The strategies and tools that I developed gave me clarity, and with a plan mapped out, I moved back to LA for the second time. This time, I made it and one of the main keys was consistency with my business and trusting myself.
As I began mentoring, consulting and styling for brands and fashion houses I realized how much I really want to help other stylists and fashion-preneurs along their journey, reaching their end goal by empowering them, pushing them in love, and guiding them with hidden tools and resources I have found that helped me so much, such as:
How to build your book.
How to find resourceful contacts in the industry.
How to find showrooms and brands.
How to develop your niche.
How to brand yourself.
How to set your rates.
How to find clients.
How to organize invoices and paperwork.
How to mentally prepare yourself as an entrepreneur to succeed.
I believe my tough journey happened for a reason and I’m so blessed to be exactly where I am right now.
I know with everything in me, it’s to share my knowledge and resources with you.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The road to becoming a fashion stylist and creative brand consultant wasn’t easy. After moving to NY for a fashion internship with the designer Peter Som’s fashion house, then LA the 1st time, working on celebrity runway shows and PR events, I ran out of my savings. I thought doors would open immediately after interning. The experience was great but because they were full-time internships they didn’t cover bills. Oprah once said, “Do what you have to do until you can do what you want to do”. That’s exactly what I did. I moved home for the second time, worked in health insurance for Blue Cross Blue Shield, saved up and moved back to LA 5 years later. I took a job for a creative company who developed concerts for the biggest artists in the world and worked as a stylist.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Styled by Brianna Wise, Full Force LLC and Becoming A Stylist – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My business has been called Styled by Brianna Wise since I started as a stylist in 2009. One of my close friends was drafted into the NBA and continuously asked me to style him. I always say he gave me the push to look at styling as a career, being my 1st personal styling client. Styling him expanded my knowledge of all the types of jobs available to stylists which is when I began styling runway shows, entertainers, athletes, commercials, and clothing brands.
While working my 9-5’s I needed to keep my creative flow so I developed an online boutique with my mom and aunt and a streetwear line with one of my best friends who is an actress. With all my experience, knowledge and desire to help people, I created my 1st company Full Force LLC, building e-commerce websites for fashion brands, creative consulting how to develop their foundation, branding, and the best ways to create content to market themselves.
Now I am adding teaching. I finally feel this is my true purpose. It is where my heart and passion has brought me. I want to help as many people as I can find their way to creating their dream job. This is how BAS (Becoming A Stylist) came about. Since I was a little girl, I always knew I wanted to help as many people as I could through fashion but had no idea what that meant or how. Now, I feel I’ve found the answer.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
December 2019, I launched my 1st book and online course “Becoming A Stylist”. I am so excited to be able to help people all over the world who really just need someone to talk to, some guidance, and a little push to get them in the right direction. I will be teaching a workshop entitled “Creative Branding Your Fashion Business” at Sew FYI in Los Angeles and my overall goal is to help 2000 people through my online course, book, and workshops in 2020!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.becomingastylist.com
- Phone: 4105308413
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/styledbybriannawise
- Other: www.styledbybriannawise.com
Image Credit:
Black Dress, Photographer Brian Freeman @bfreeperiod, MUA Tiazia Coleman @iamtiazia; White top and red outfit Photographer Corey Omar Spencer @coreyomar
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