Daily Inspiration: Meet Candice Ireland

Today we’d like to introduce you to Candice Ireland.

Hi Candice, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’m trying to decide if I should give you the long version or the short version. Lol, I guess I’ll meet somewhere in the middle. I’ve always been obsessed with style and fashion. I started dressing myself at a very young age and my Mom was all about me expressing myself. If I wanted to wear shorts and boots or mix prints, she was ok with it. I think that freedom opened up my curiosity with fashion and style and telling a story through my clothing. Fast forward to college, even though I knew I loved Fashion I ended up majoring in Psychology and working in Banking after graduating. Definitely not the path I saw for myself. Needless to say, I hated it. I knew I had to make a major change to be happy so I applied to the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC, I was accepted and packed my bags within weeks of getting the Acceptance Letter! Being in New York and attending FIT was life-changing. I learned so much and encountered so many unique and inspiring people while there! Upon returning to Atlanta, I decided to keep following my Fashion Dreams. At the time, my goal was to get into Retail Buying and that’s exactly what I did.

During my time in NYC and after returning to Atlanta, I would style friends and family as a side hustle. I loved it but never thought to make it a career. Not yet at least. After years of Buying and feeling like something was still missing, I took a leap of Faith and my brand, The Candice Ireland was born! I was already doing the work but my brand/business just needed the final touches. Once I started taking myself seriously, things just started falling into place. My previous clients stayed on board, new clients began to find me, and people were referring me left and right. Things have literally taken off and I’m beyond grateful. I have a lot of work to do but all the late nights are worth it because I’m doing what I love. As a Style Coach, I offer a wide range of services from Virtual Styling, Personal Shopping, Photoshoot Styling, and Mood Boards, to name a few. I also create custom packages to tailor to my client’s specific needs. What I do is more than just pick out clothes for my clients. As a style coach, my goal is to make people feel empowered by their wardrobe and identify their own personal style. I like to partner with my clients and through feedback, reflection, and communication, create a clear vision of THEIR style so their wardrobe can tell their story before they even speak.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t been a smooth road at all. The biggest hurdle was me. It’s so easy to doubt yourself and like most people, you never feel ready to take the leap. There were fears of failure, fears of not being good enough, fears of not having enough time, and the list goes on. I got to the point where I decided to pray on it constantly and I asked God for confirmation that it was time to step out on Faith. As soon as I did that the confirmations came and haven’t stopped. From constant bookings to random messages from people I know and strangers saying they notice my hard work and they love it and encouraging me to keep pushing, to unwavering support from my husband, to this interview, the confirmations just keep coming! Another hurdle was money. When you’re in the styling business, people expect you to front all the costs in most cases. That was another thing that kept me from starting my business sooner. Instead of continuing to let that stop me I just found a way around it. I’m a visual person so I offer virtual look books for my clients before any clothing is purchased. It streamlines my services and my clients love it! Once I decided I was going to do this my mindset now is to figure out how I can get over any hurdle regardless of what they may be.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m creative all around! I’ve owned a boutique, I make candles, I create logos, I paint, and I design clothes but my FIRST LOVE is styling. Styling is my specialty and I believe in Styling with a Purpose. Storytelling through a curated wardrobe is my expertise. I believe your clothes should speak for you before you even speak. As I stated earlier, as a style coach my goal is to make people feel empowered by their wardrobe. I find joy in putting looks together and now I’ve made it my business to help others identify their personal style. I believe what sets me apart is my professionalism. I take professionalism very seriously. Even if you’re a friend who has become a client, I extend the same professionalism that I would to someone whom I’ve never met.

I also believe me going above and beyond sets me apart from others. I like to offer an unforgettable experience. I put a lot of work into my virtual look books because it’s something that my clients can keep that will always remind them of my brand and the experience they had with me. I’m most proud of the fact that I’m finally doing what I love. As a wife and Mom of two, having your own business consists of full days and late nights. It becomes overwhelming but with every client I’m reminded of my why. This is for me. I tend to put others before myself but it’s finally my time and I don’t take that for granted. I’m proud of myself for finally putting my wants first. Not that anyone was keeping me from that. I was keeping myself from that and I’m proud I finally took a chance on me.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Professionally, seeing the confidence on my client’s faces once we’ve selected pieces just for them makes me happy. Once we’ve created the look they envisioned for their photoshoot. Once they are complimented on their new look. That’s what makes me happy. I got into this business because of my love for Fashion and Style. I’ve always gotten questions about where I got certain clothing items or comments on how I put a look together. I dress for myself because my clothing speaks to who I am. I wanted others to have that same experience. I wanted others to be able to use their clothing to tell a story. The fact that I’m doing that makes me happy.

Personally, my family and traveling. My family is my world. I have a wonderful, loving, supportive husband who loves to make us happy. He will do any and everything to make sure we are ok and to see a smile on my face and I don’t take that for granted. My children are my everything. I tell people all the time, they drive me crazy but I love their crazy. Lol, I am a mother to the sweetest, most caring, most affectionate, most polite little ones in the world. They make my day and give me the drive to stay up until 3 am working and wake up at 530am to do it all over again. Another personal joy is traveling. Traveling is how I reset and it’s also one of my main ways to keep my creative juices flowing. Experiencing new cultures and people and places is something I need in my life.

Contact Info:

• Email: info@thecandiceireland.com
• Website: www.thecandiceireland.com
• Instagram: @thecandiceireland
• Facebook: @thecandiceireland
• Other: Pinterest: @thecandiceireland
• LIKEtoKNOW.it: @thecandiceireland