Today we’d like to introduce you to Norma Baker.
Norma, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
All my life, I had the desire to create. I have never wanted to be anything other than a Fashion Designer. My parents knew that as well and always signed me up for art class. My parents were very supportive in the arts as my mother was a sketch artist, as well as her mom, a seamstress. When I attended college, I had to stay local in Chicago as I couldn’t afford to go away. Then, during the 2nd semester of Junior Year, I had to sit out for financial reasons. This was my first real encounter with adulthood. It was very depressing but it taught me a lot. Very happy for that experience as it made me who I am today. During that time, I worked for temp agencies and got to meet a ton of great people and listen to other people’s stories. I was able to gain life experience through listening and avoiding the mistakes others before I made. I took that information and ran with.
When I returned to a different school, the one I graduated from, I was a totally different person. I was excited to be back and this time did not take it for granted as I previously did. I took it so far as to make the Dean’s list at The International Academy of Design & Technology in Chicago and graduated Cum Laude. Never thought this previous “Straight C” student would say that! During college, the 2nd time around, I would use freelance design opportunities to learn different design techniques. Not only would I receive a grade but I would receive a commission from the client. It was a “win-win” situation for me and my teachers loved to see me think outside the box. Designing for clients actually earned me a name in Chicago with Prom clients. Word of mouth and recommendations were the key to my new business done out of my parent’s basement.
Though I stayed home for college and really wanted to go away like my friends, that did not deter me from working full time while in school full time. I saved full checks while working and living at home with my parents and saved up $4k to move to New York City. No one thought I would leave but I packed up a giant suitcase of clothes and headed out to the rest of my life. I had no idea what was in store for me but it was going to be epic is all I knew. When I made it there, I slept on my brother’s couch in his studio apartment in Manhattan. Fun fact, my brother is the Hot Topics Producer for the Wendy Williams Show! Staying at his place was a godsend, there, I was able to walk to interviews and save money. I found my apartment and my job all in the same weekend! The story of the first job, well technically the 2nd job but I, again, made my way to the temp agency as always and told them what I wanted to do. They kept offering me Accounts Payable jobs as I had a background in it. I kept turning them down as that would defeat the purpose of me moving to NYC to be a big-time fashion designer.
One day, the recruiter called me very excited, she said she had a one-week assignment in HR in a Fashion House. I was then so excited too! I befriended the three young ladies I was working within the office and they got me my first receptionist job with a division of the company. I loved that job and it made me feel like The Devil Wears Prada. By no means was it glamorous and by all means, it was a design job in NYC and boy was it glamorous! During my time in NYC, I had other freelance positions with individuals and companies until I left in 2010 for Dallas, TX which ranked 3rd in The US for fashion. I worked for Tandy Brands and continued to work with personal clients. I made my company official in Dallas and continue to grow Njoi Designs.
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 Njoi Designs has been fun but definitely not smooth. Since making my company official in 2010, I have come across tons of roadblocks that were really just prerequisites. I learned as I went, which made the journey rich in knowledge. I have learned so much and it actually baffles me when another entrepreneur asks a question and I have an answer.
Most of the prerequisites were filing official paperwork and with the right place, company or department. It can be made easy if you have the money to get a company that files for start-up companies. Unfortunately, if you have no start-up costs, like me, you will need to do the research to implement the task yourself to cut cost in any way and still get the end result. With a startup, you will need to be a one (wo)man army until you get to a place you can delegate to someone other than yourself, which means your personal life can suffer. That too needs nourishing, which sometimes gets in the way of time set aside for your company. May it be work, school, family or friends, spending time with that other “thing” can play a factor in your company and can eventually become a roadblock, but you have to stay on task and water the company like a plant if you want it to grow. With sacrifice, always remember, it will be greater later but do your best to balance.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Njoi Designs – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Established in 2010, Njoi Designs is a Fashion House with a focus on apparel. The designs incorporate fashion and comfort, often designing with stretch garments to be worn with undergarments. The different divisions of Njoi Designs are women’s apparel, accessories, home goods, illustration, alterations (for men & women) and home wall decor. I typically do anything artistic someone may need. Njoi Designs is known for prom season as that was the start of the business during my college days. I focused on evening wear doing commissioned work for a grade.
As a company, I am most proud of trying. I hear so many talented entrepreneurs not trying and their gift stays hidden. I am proud that I have stuck with my love for so many years even if I am not close to my end game. I am also proud of getting my trademark for my name after so many times being rejected, again, I tried. I am proud of illustrating books for authors, which led me to make my own self-published coloring book as a campaign to fund a pending invention I created a few years back.
I think what sets me apart from others is I believe “what God has for me is for me.” I do not believe I have any competition. I feel like everything I do is different because I made it and because I made it, it is different. I look at everything in that way, for example, God made identical twins but they are still different. Same as working with a color allowance, the color is the same but if you break it down to numbers or pixels, they can be slightly different, like a fingerprint. When I do pop-up shops with other vendors, I am set apart with my advertisement that most items are handmade by me from the clothes to the accessories.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
In the near future, I have my biggest selling event yet, I will be a vendor at the Houston Ultimate Women’s Expo on September 14-15, 2019 at the George R. Brown Convention Center. I am super excited about it! For the event, I am doing a few different ideas like T-shirts and possibly jeans.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.NjoiDesigns.Style
- Phone: 972-984-NJOI
- Email: NjoiDesignsCo@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/njoidesignsco/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NjoiDesigns/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/NjoiDesignsCo
Image Credit:
Photography and merchandising, Laura McQuay
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