Meet Treasure Mallory of Nikki&Mallory

Today we’d like to introduce you to Treasure Mallory.

Treasure, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Nikki&Mallory is a blessing in disguise. I always tell people, “when you’re down to your very last, you have 2 options; to give up or to get innovative”. As much as I wanted to give up, I chose to get innovative.

After finding myself completely bored with “cubicle life” working in all facets of the entertainment industry and later, losing my identity as a struggling actress – my big hair, unapologetic style + free spirit attitude was clearly destined for something more than the norm.

I’ve always had a creator’s spirit whether it be with style, design and fashion, do it yourself projects before the term DIY even existed or simply writing poetry, dancing and being completely infatuated with anything of artistic expression. It was that spirit that secretly gave me the desire to have a business of my own, yet, I had NO CLUE what the heck I would do or where to start. While my passions became evident to everyone around me, I was too busy overshadowing my natural gifts (to create) with other interests.

But, life has a funny way of showing you when you’re going in the wrong direction while forcing you back on track. I went from living a life of comfort and financial stability to having almost nothing. Everything I worked so hard for was now gone… my career, money, opportunities, apartment, sanity and all of what I considered to be my happiness – gone. “When you’re down to nothing God will show you how abundant you truly are with exactly what you have”. Those hidden talents that I ignored, turned out to be my lifesaver. Literally. I went from almost giving up to getting innovative.

With no money, I enrolled in a Fashion Design program to kill time and figure things out. Little did I know; it would become the creative outlet I was silently yearning for. My gravitation towards ‘the back of the class’ is where I taught myself how to construct handbags to compliment every outfit I designed. I didn’t understand this gravitation but when 1 bag turned into 10, with random people asking to buy even though I had no desire to sell, I knew I had something great.

That hobby became my greatest passion & that passion is now a business of my own.

Has it been a smooth road?
Smooth road?! [Laughs] What is that? You know, I’ve always had to work very hard for anything I’ve wanted in life. I was also raised to understand that “anything thing worth having, doing or overcoming, will not happen without a fight” and there’s nothing smooth about a good fight. Being an entrepreneur is a real-life beast. A beast that you have to constantly punch in the face, feed, teach, mold, love and give your all to even when you don’t feel like it. I’ve never worked as hard for anybody as hard as I work for myself. But, because I genuinely love what I do, and I’m so vested in my art, I try to focus more on how smooth the road will eventually be vs. how smooth it isn’t now.

I run my entire business and make each piece by myself so I would have to say my struggles have been knowing when to sit down, learning how to create balance, understanding that my business is NOT for everyone and that success, value and significance come with time.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Nikki&Mallory story. Tell us more about the business.
Nikki&Mallory is a line of eclectic handmade leather goods where “Bohemian Chic + Contemporary Vintage Collide”. I am the owner, creative director and designer for this business; specializing in custom-made pieces to compliment one’s authenticity. Nikki&Mallory is me in a nutshell. Descriptive of my 2 distinct personalities. I create everything from scratch because authenticity can’t be duplicated. My bags are crafted for the wanderers, dreamers, nomads and free-spirits in mind as they remind me of my off-beat, go against the grain self. I’m known for my minimalist yet artistic approach to designing handbags. I feel like a woman’s bag is a subtle or bold way to tell her story; whether it be for that day, that week or just in that moment. A woman’s bag says more about her character than people care to believe.

With that said, I’m very transparent in my journey as a solo designer so my goal is to motivate, inspire and empower women through my work while giving them a sense of power, fulfillment, confidence and fearlessness when it comes to who they are, how they look and their choices in life.

What I’m most proud of as a company is that I’m a woman of color who took the initiative to just go for it. Despite my obstacles, struggles, lack of – despite the doubts of others and naysayers, I set a goal to be a self-taught handbag designer/business owner and worked my butt off until I made it happen.

I think that’s what sets me apart from others. The fact that I’m a solo designer gives me the flexibility to create what I want. I’m not afraid to step outside the box, go against the grain and just create art. I’m not trying to fit in or follow anyone’s mold – I truly just want people to appreciate a good artistic approach to a quality handbag without feeling like they must conform to mainstream trends to do so.

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Some changes and big shifts. I’d love to travel the country at some point and collaborate with other, overlooked artisans who create for a living and combine forces. Maybe learn some of their skills, incorporate that in my works and vice versa.

Expanding my team is a definite and branching out to get my designs into major department stores would be ideal. While branching out into manufacturing handbags. I think store fronts are boring (for me at least) so, it would be a dream to take my business on the road and start a mobile boutique.

Leather crafting is such an art to me being that I’m self-taught so, starting up some leather craft classes to teach people how to construct, sew etc. is in the works.

I’m not one for discussing my goals so I’ll stop there. I’m just grateful for the moment and hope to continue to excel and be great.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nikkiandmallory.com
• Email: info@nikkiandmallory.com
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/nikkiandmallory
• Facebook: http://facebook.com/nikkiandmallory
• Twitter: http://twitter.com/nikkiandmallory

Image Credit:
Nicole Lennox Photography, AWildJoyee Photography

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