Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Lawhorn.
Hi Ashley, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My story began in Detroit, MI, where I was born and raised by my hardworking mom and my stepfather. At a young age, my creativity was an outlet for me. I would write stories and found writing to be a great source of communicating my thoughts, ideas, emotions, and how I saw the world around me. I was introduced to the idea of pursuing fashion when I was eleven years old. I am a product of Christian-based faith. I went to church with one of my aunts and my cousin.
At the service, a prophet prophesied over my life. I was too young to truly understand the magnitude of the prophecy at that age (even to the point I had recorded over the cassette tape with one of my favorite songs at the time, Humpty Dance, lol), but it did stick with me. I held tightly to that memory and truly, after that, I intentionally pursued it. I began practicing sketching and all but my creativity did not manifest in drawing because I was not good at it. My lack of sketching skills and the thought that I didn’t know enough to leave a mark in fashion left me aimlessly pursuing that prophecy, so I backed off of it. No matter how often I tried to shift my purpose, I was always right back to trying to find my strength in fashion. Fast forward to graduating from high school and having to select a college to attend. I wanted to be bold and overcome the self-doubting Ashley. I chose to go to college outside of Michigan. I figured if I made a bold enough choice it would lead me closer to my desire of becoming prominent in fashion. Alabama A&M University has a fashion program, yet I had let the opinions of others sway me to go against what I desired. In hindsight, I also believe I let the security of what I knew I could do outweigh what I hadn’t done. The writing was safe, so I went with a different major. I moved to Huntsville, AL.
I am known to keep a job. I worked during my time in college. When I moved, I had been a customer service associate for Marshall’s. I continued working with them for eight years, even traveling back to Detroit to work the summers there while I visited home. I left Marshall’s for my first management position in retail at Body Shop clothing store. This move was pivotal to my journey because I had finally found where I was talented in fashion. I was great at visual merchandising. I had the vision. I could sell a wall of looks by how I styled and merchandised the clothing and accessories to tell a story. I hadn’t even heard of a visual merchandiser until I worked at Body Shop. I was reignited to pursue my fashion career hands-on.
It took years of working for other companies and feeling underpaid and underappreciated that I finally took my hustle, nature and skills to create my own company. Kuhrizmuh LLC is the baby I birth from my ultimate dream in collaboration with my desire to uplift women who struggled with self-confidence, self-esteem and other visual plights that hinder our greatness. I still have a lot I wish to accomplish with my brand, but I am proud of how far I have come from that eleven-year-old girl who didn’t understand her strengths.
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?
My journey was not a smooth road. It was more of a rollercoaster ride. The greatest struggles were truly internal. I was conflicted with who God said I am versus who I saw. I didn’t believe I deserved success; I didn’t think I was anything special. My perspective of myself hindered me. I let my failures (which I now see as redirections) lead me to believe I could never reach success the way I dreamt it. I thought I would have to settle for mediocrity because of the hands I was dealt. One strength of me that was always hidden in plain sight is that I am naturally persistent. I will try and try and try and try again. Even if I fell, I would be down for a day, month or year, but at some point, I would get up and try again. I hold my head high and try again. In private, I may shed tears of my disappointment, but when I grab that door handle to walk into the world, I picked myself up. That’s the power of persistence and grace. Allow yourself grace to be human but pick yourself up and keep going!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Kuhrizmuh?
Kuhrizmuh LLC is a women’s clothing boutique. We carry sizes small to 4X. Every woman has influence, and we encourage our influencers to embrace their individuality and be bold in their influence. “Embracing Body, Influencing the Masses, Defining Kuh-Riz-Muh.”
We set ourselves apart by being true to who we are and what we stand for. Body positivity, being of high self-esteem and individuality. We don’t believe in the saying “I don’t have anywhere to wear that” if we going outside, we showing up! Lol, don’t be surprised if you see me dressed and face beat because if that’s what I wanted to do today, then I do just that. The opinions of another need not hold the weight of who you decide to show up as. As long as it is who you wanted to be. You are wearing exactly what you should be. Confidence.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
One of my favorite quotes is “you gotta take risks.” Risks are absolutely necessary. Success doesn’t breed in comfortability. I am always taking risk, From choosing my inventory to how I will market it. It is all risk. Launching this business, writing my book “Mirrors: Shattering The Mirrors of Self Hate and Embracing the Reflections I See,” was my most recent risk and it has been risky. I have to sit back and await the opinions of people who may or may not know me after reading my story. I have even had people related to me lash out, offended of the perspective I have of my experiences. At the end of it all, I am still proud to be courageous and stand firm in who Ashley Chenyelle Lawhorn is. It’s liberating.
Contact Info:
- Email: contact@kuhrizmuhfashions.com
- Website: www.kuhrizmuhfashions.com, www.Ashleychenyelle.net
- Instagram: @kuhrizmuhfashions
- Facebook: Kuhrizmuh LLC
Image Credits
Photos by DonyeWest Models Charisma Monroe, JeDiva, and Dani Lynn
