There aren’t many young girls who can turn nothing into something over a short period of three months. At the end of her freshman year at St. John’s University, a young woman decided she was going to become a stylist and a businesswoman.
Using the law of attraction effortlessly to bring her success, Ijeoma Anozie, a 19-year-old psychology major at SJU, came up with ideas and planned how she would carry them out.There’s something about this Houston native’s work ethic that separates her from the rest, which makes us excited to see what she does with it in the future (instagram: nappystylist).
Nneka: “So, we know you’re into fashion, but what would you classify yourself as?”
Ijeoma: “At the core of everything, I’m a personal Fashion Stylist. Even though I make tops, I wouldn’t consider myself a designer. It’s all about creating a look. My tops have a high-fashion feel that come from a simple [fur] fabric. The tops I made wouldn’t have the same effect if it was just made out of cotton. Girls with chest or no chest feel sexy in it, and it changes the dynamic of the look completely. That’s just what fur does.”
Nneka: “How long have you been interested in fashion?”
Ijeoma: “Since 6th grade. My first experience in fashion was in costume design for my 6th grade play. It was kind of a big deal.”
Nneka: “How would you describe your personal style?”
Ijeoma: “Girly-tomboy, but not in the sense that I ever wear girly clothes. It’s not like I’m girly one day and then boy-ish the next. It’s tomboy-ish with a very small twist of femininity. It’s the girliest version of a boy in my opinion.”
Nneka: “Who is your biggest inspiration fashion wise?”
Ijeoma: “My mom, then Missy Elliot. My mom has a classic feminine style while Missy is boyish and crazy. That’s exactly me.”
Nneka: “How did you know you wanted to combine fashion and business together?”
Ijeoma: “I noticed people making a lot of money doing what they like to do and what they’re good at. It suddenly hit me that I don’t have to do something I don’t like just to get by. It inspires me to have my own brand and store after college.”
Nneka: “If you could do anything in fashion other than the business side of it, what would you do?”
Ijeoma: “I would be in marketing. It’s basically about choosing what the hottest thing from shows and what people are wearing on the street and capitalizing on that buzz it as much as you can.”
Nneka: “You’ve gotten a little buzz yourself, from models to dogs wearing your tops. How did you make it all happen?”
Ijeoma: “It feels like it happened on accident! I never expected people to take me that serious [which is isn’t a good thing]. I never thought people would show me so much love. You just have to be very serious about your craft and shove it down people’s throats. I made $200 my first time making these tops, my second time is over double that amount! You just have to go for it.”
Nneka: “The Funky Jungle Chick tops are pretty cute. What’s next for you and your brand?”
Ijeoma: “A lot of men have been hitting me up because they’re sad they haven’t been able to wear my tops, so I wanna make stuff for them too. As I said before my personal style is really tomboy-ish, so I also wanna incorporate that look along with unisex items that both girls and boys can wear. Winter’s also coming up, which means it’s layering time. My style also involves some pretty crazy patterns, so expect that too. Sleeves and craziness involved—that’s all I can say!”
