Today we’d like to introduce you to Vernard Kennedy.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Vernard. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Being an African American male where I am from in Atlanta, you are very at risk. With statistics, you have already lost and you are automatically put in a place where you have two decisions. Those two decisions are jail or either death. I didn’t want that out of my life being that I see struggle everyday in my community and am apart of it. I am very focused on a mission to Impact the world and I won’t let that determine where I am headed.
Therefore, I came up with my streetwear clothing line “Fly Under Pressure”. The meaning behind the name is that when you are faced with adversity like poverty or anything in life you should be fly and overcome adversity to succeed. The fashion industry has always been a way that I could express my art and struggle with it also being something I loved to do. I have always been known for mix matching clothes and was always excited about showing everyone the outfits I had put together. In high school is when I really noticed my talent but I still hadn’t made it my passion until the summer of my sophomore year at Georgia State University. I had used money from my summer jobs to buy a heat press machine to start my business.
Later, I gathered up a couple of my high school friends who I knew would be supportive and liked clothes just like me. It took us late nights and early mornings to figure out the machine but once we got started, we hit the ground running. We started off by passing our shirts out for free just so it could make its way through the streets of Atlanta. This idea worked out perfect and by the end of the summer, we had everyone in Atlanta wearing our clothes. We were shocked but excited at the same time that we had people actually wearing our clothes. Ever since we have been staying consistent with dropping our clothes and having a meaning behind them. We just recently dropped the spring collection and have a lot of luxury pieces that have had the people going crazy. Our goal is to attend a New York Fashion Week show this year to experience the different designers and how they express their art through clothes. We have grown a great fan base and plan to grow bigger and bigger everyday so that our legacy won’t be one that is forgotten.
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?
Staying in one of the worst communities in Atlanta it could be rough when you only see poverty but you can’t let that have you stuck. You have to try and make the best out of your situation to live a better life then what you are given. However, when it comes to clothes, it took a lot of experimenting which cost us a lot of money but we know that it would be a good investment for us.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Fly Under Pressure – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
As a business, we provide the masses with streetwear clothing that has meaning. We know the importance of making every piece meaningful, not just slapping a logo on a garment and calling it a line. This is what makes our line powerful and something we have been told before by customers. However, I design all of the clothes.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Our plans are to do a fashion show this summer for our first year anniversary. After that, we plan on having more pop up shops around the nation for people who would enjoy our clothes.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1584 Belmont Ave Sw
- Website: https://flyingunderpressure.bigcartel.com/products
- Phone: 7705729952
- Email: vernard4kennedy@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/flyunderpressure?utm_source=ig_profile_share&igshid=sq58kp02z0tr
Image Credit:
Jaycee The Kid (photographer)
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