Today we’d like to introduce you to Heather Frierson.
Heather, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Fashion has always been a big part of my life even as a little girl. I used to tell my parents that once I got my degree in Fashion Merchandising, I would be moving to New York City to work as a buyer in the fashion industry. Then, finally, after earning my degree in fashion, I moved to Austin, Texas, and began working as a retail manager at a high-end department store with the hopes of working my way to NYC to fulfill my dreams. But in 2003, God began to reveal that He had a different plan, one that I didn’t quite understand at the time. He took me out of fashion and thrust me into full-time Ministry working at my church in Austin, Texas.
However, as God began revealing gifts and talents I never knew I had, it became clear there were so many women just like me, who had gifts, talents, dreams, and passions left untapped and unrealized. Out of that realization, my mission and passion for life became to help every woman know and understand that God had a specific plan and a purpose for each and everyone!”
Today, almost ten years later, Created Woman is a non-profit leadership ministry with a mission to equip and empower women to be who they are created to be and we do that through mentorship, programs, gatherings, resources and relationships. We also just launched CW Collective which is a fashion lifestyle brand designed and curated for the classically edgy and socially conscious woman. A percentage of sales go back to the non-profit, Created woman.
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?
Not! One of my favorite quotes is, ‘Your purpose in life will never change, but your strategy will constantly change’ and man has that been true for CW. We launched first as a for-profit magazine which was really fun but super hard. After a few years, I realized that Created Woman was truly a ministry for women so we switched our model from for-profit to non-profit and that was hard.
Learning how to develop and launch an NP was and still is a huge undertaking and so many mistakes were made along the way. But, one of the many things I’ve learned is to always ask for help. I don’t need to be an expert at everything, but I do need to have experts around me. That has been a valuable lesson for me and one that I share with everyone who is building anything. Ask, get help and hire an accountant!
Now with the clothing line, I have to go back to a field I’ve been out of for almost 15 years and although it’s a lot of fun, so many things in the fashion industry have changed and it’s like I’m back in school all over again!
We’d love to hear more about your business.
I am known as the fashion and faith girl and it’s what sets us apart for sure! Both of my business, the non-profit and for-profit, combine faith and fashion to help women find their life’s purpose and understand their value both inside and out. I’m most proud of our mission to help women and their voices be heard in such a unique way. When women know their purpose, they become leaders in the community, church, business, and families. They employ others, help the hurting, reach back to the next generation, and continue the cycle of pointing people back to Jesus. The impact reaches further than just her own life and this generation.
What were you like growing up?
I was a lot like my eight years old now, ha! I was headstrong, loud and loved to be with my friends. Not much has changed! I always loved fashion, being creative and as I got older in high school, I loved Jesus. That kept me out of a lot of trouble for sure! My days were filled with dance classes, drill team, softball, church and friends. I was always on the go and super independent. I see a lot of those same qualities in my daughter and so as. You can imagine, our house is loud!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.createdwoman.net & https://www.cwcollective.net
- Email: hello@createdwoman.net
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cw.collective/ & https://www.instagram.com/createdwoman/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/createdwoman/ & https://www.facebook.com/CWCollectiveShop/
Image Credit:
Maryna Marston of Square Earth Studio & Kelly Rucker Photoagrophy
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