Today we’d like to introduce you to Erica Blakely. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Blakely Bespoke is much more than just an appealing fashion product, we are a social enterprise looking to impact the lives of the neurodiverse and various groups of drastically underemployed people across the country. We make a patented, limited-edition French cuff that attaches to any shirt you already own. Blakely Bespoke is the epitome of innovative charm and affordable luxury for the modern customer with impeccable image and style. Our cuffs provide customers a bespoke tailoring product at an affordable price. Confident of the value of her design, Erica effectively introduced and carved out a new category in fashion accessories.
Erica Blakely, CPA is a highly respected and influential female entrepreneur and dynamic trailblazer in the men’s fashion industry. Born in Chicago as an only child of two hard-working parents, Erica knows firsthand what it takes to become a tenacious leader while constantly raising the bar of success! As a Certified Public Accountant, Erica holds a Master’s of Science Degree in Accounting and Financial Management. She has owned and operated her own CPA firm for over 20 years. In this capacity, she has managed a multitude of projects for some of the largest worldwide Fortune 500’s companies. Given her passion for entrepreneurship and reputation among small business owners, she is affectionately known as “The Entrepreneurs’ Accountant.”
Although Erica has enjoyed a successful career as a leader in accounting and finance, like so many others, the global Covid-19 Pandemic created a life-changing transition in Erica’s business which led her to launch Blakely Bespoke.
The inspiration behind Erica’s cuffs is no other than her own father, who she remembers to have had a fancy for dressing sharply every day. She has memories as a child when she would approve of her father’s clothes before he left for work. Many years later, Erica began to see the rising fad of shirts with contrasting cuffs. After a thorough discussion with a friend, she found herself buying a sewing machine and taking sewing classes that eventually led to the birth of Blakely Bespoke.
In 2015, she has granted a utility patent for her attachable French-cuffs. Statistically, in the last decade, less than 5% of utility patents issued in the United States were issued to women, historically making Erica one of the elite few!
Ties are slowly disappearing from the wardrobes of people in boardrooms and red carpets. Cuffs, on the other hand, remain a constant staple among men’s wardrobes. Our patented cuffs can be worn on any occasion, from business meetings to casual daily encounters and formal gatherings.
Blakely Bespoke is so full of promise and potential as a fashion brand. She also sees herself hiring hundreds of military spouses, single moms and retired women all over the country. Her facility in Atlanta will be a safe place that employs neurodiverse people in the city. The philanthropic mission is at the forefront of the company.
Whether you just want to add some length to a shirt or you want to change the shirt style completely, we make bespoke style easy and affordable, essentially doubling your wardrobe overnight. Our cuffs are unisex, French-cuffs are not just for men anymore, and customizable.
Have a particular style already? Something in mind? We can help you there too, customizing our cuffs to feature any of the following:
* your signature
* your organization’s logo
* your fraternity or sorority letters
* your favorite team’s logo
Whatever fabrics and colors you’d like to use, we can accommodate you. The possibilities with Detach it are endless.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The journey has been a struggle. I am a CPA by trade and have spent well over 20 managing my firm. This product was created in honor or my daddy. I tried to run my CPA firm and do this part-time, periodically or as some may say a side business.
My challenges start with having a product no one has ever seen, it’s not easily identified and requires explanation. That is of course because I have a utility patent and no one has ever seen it. Additionally, I am a woman with a traditionally men’s product so the conversation is different.
Society is becoming more casual and trying to get people to see that French-cuffs are not just for suits and formal things anymore is a challenge. So it’s a new product and a mindset shift all together.
My greatest challenge has been in manufacturing. While I have a very simple product to manufacture, but the detail needed in making the product are very manual. I have tried large manufacturers across the country, even ones that sew for places like Macy’s. I always get about 25-30% of products that I can’t sell from everyone I have tried. The last of the six companies I tried literally wanted to double the cost of labor after the first batch. So I decided to open my own facility to solve the problem but also feed my servant’s heart.
While I could certainly go overseas to have the product made for a few dollars, that is just not what God told me to do. I want to be impactful in my own community first.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I have owned my own CPA Firm called Your Select CPA for over 20 years in Atlanta. The bulk of that career has been serving the large corporations in financial reporting support. I am most proud of my free Facebook group in which I teach over 3500 entrepreneurs accounting for their small/side business. Everyone can not leave their job, but starting that business can make a difference in your life. I love helping people see the difference a few extra hundred dollars a month can make the difference in their life. I give people the knowledge and understanding they need that empowers them to make beneficial financial decisions for their family. I am known as the Entrepreneurs CPA and want entrepreneurs to know they don’t always need a CPA.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
There are two things I feel are important to this…
One major thing for me was recognizing that you have to master one thing at a time. While my CPA firm was very successful and busy, initially this was a business I did not devote a lot of time. I was confident in my product, and everyone loved it. I sold out at all my trade shows and could never meet the demand. If I had a dollar for every time I was told to go on Shark Tank or manufacture overseas, I would have thousands for sure. But that was not my journey. I knew I wanted to impact lives but I now know this product was birthed for me to do just so. But I had to dedicate 100% to this for it to come to fruition. Master 1 thing at a time……….and then go build other sources of revenue, not all at the same time.
2nd – At the end of 2016 my husband and I were robbed and he was murdered. I spent years right after that caring for my mommy with Alzheimer’s and then Covid took 90% of my CPA firm contracts. So all of the PTSD from the robbery/murder, then watching my mommy die and then my business was more than I could emotionally handle. That lesson was learning to give grief its time. The stages of grief are necessary, I had to get into that depression stage to get to the acceptance. Now, while my life is forever changed, it doesn’t have to stay on hold. I honor my husband and my parents in continuing their legacy. I can’t do that not dealing with my emotions…….so the lesson is you must get through ALL the stages of grief in to be emotionally healthy. Emotional health is critical to success in business.
Pricing:
- Basic sets $59
- Silk sets $65
- Embroidery starts at $15
- Reversible sets $69
Contact Info:
- Email: erica@BlakleyBespoke.com
- Website: www.BlakelyBespoke.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/blakelybespoke
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/blakleybespoke
- Twitter: @BlakelyBespoke
- Youtube: @BlakelyBespoke
