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Today we’d like to introduce you to Grace Ntumba.
Hi Grace, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My name is Grace Ntumba and by God’s Grace, I am an Inspiration and force to perceive. I’m a young entrepreneur, media influencer and German/ Congolese fashion designer. I’m known for creating an affordable Unisex fashion brand called “Made By Grace”.
I was born and raised in the north of Germany. By ethnicity, I am African with the origin of Congo. I studied in Germany and got my secondary school Diploma in 2012. Right after that, I did a three years apprenticeship as a management assistant for International trading at a leading home interior company in Germany. In 2015 I successfully got my Diploma as a management assistant for international trading by the International Chamber of Commerce.
From there, I changed the direction of my career and switched my workplace from an office table to an airplane. In 2015 I did another apprenticeship as a flight attendant at Germany’s biggest airline, where I lived out my passion (traveling the world) in combination by building my fashion brand MADE BY GRACE, which is an official registered and patented Company in Germany and New York City since 2019.
Through my Job, I have met many people around the world in recent years, who have told me their life stories in conversations. Although all these stories were different, they all had one thing in common and that was the lack of self-love and doubts that came from different situations in their lives. In addition, I noticed that in our generation a lot of people have lost their self-confidence because of social media because they compared their lives with others. They think they are nothing, they can’t do anything, but they forget that we all have different lives and everyone has their own time. What God has done for others, he will do it for you too. Many also don’t think they are beautiful enough because they compare their looks with others. But if you know who you are and know that you were created by God’s grace, then you know that you are enough because God does not make mistakes. When you are aware of all this, this self-confidence spreads into all areas of your life and you automatically walk through life with a completely different attitude towards life. For me, it was clear that I have to create something that reminds people of this. Even though I didn’t study fashion design, I knew that I could only transmit this message through clothing. With a lot of work, a lot of research, I managed to build my fashion label.
When I had the vision about the name of my brand, I knew which message my brand should represent, I knew I will only be able to represent the message through clothing and nothing else. But at that time, I was not a Designer. I didn’t even knew how to draw. I asked myself plenty of times if I can really do that. I remember that day when I was reading the Bibel and came across my favorite bible verse in Ephesians 3:20 which says: Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us. That’s when I knew I will face this non-existing talent. I had to bring it to live! To bless and inspire the world! I told myself that I was not going to rest, I was not going to give up. I kept going and pushed myself to the Max! Now… four years later it’s unbelievable how far God brought me! Don’t be afraid to start working on your Dreams! What you lack in talent can be made up with desire, hustle and giving 110% all the time. Become a hard-working person with a dream and vision! Connections to people in the fashion industry to get help? I didn’t had them! I started with nothing from zero. Google was my best friend! All the knowledge about fashion design, Fabric, production companies and all the Tools that I had to know about to be able to start a fashion brand, I learned them by myself. I was also extremely blessed to find a production company that taught me a lot of things too.
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?
When people actually knew how often I fall & failed before they met me, they would understand that my shine does not come from nowhere but from all the dust I’ve been brushing off before everybody started seeing „ ME“ I failed once…twice…Or maybe three times…Honestly too many times to keep counting… I’ve been through it all. Starting by not getting support from my former inner circle as expected. What I understood is that most people won’t support you until they see it’s “ popular” to support you.
The moment you will start to elevate in life, you will start losing a lot of people. But it’s important to keep in mind that we were not raised by our parents to follow! We were raised to lead! I never gave up and that’s all that counts for me! My Scars today are battle trophies that shows God had a plan for me and I would say I WON!
I’ve been really blessed with amazing and successful Business Partners like my Photo/ Videographers Kevin M. Johnson ( KMJ), Sam Kiala (OGP), Heirentreprise, P. Mubenga and Victor Indianov, that i like to call ” Master Minds” because they helped me to visualize my vision by supplying their creative intelligence through different projects the way everybody out there is seeing it today. So yes, I took losses for a BIGGER WIN by having a solid support system & Team.
In addition i am also very grateful for the big support that Made By Grace has today, from great and well known Personalities/ Artists/ Gospel Artists like Albi X, Daniel Mwanza, Deborah Lukalu, CalledOut Music, IDPizzle, Gloire Grace, Josue S. Domingos and many others. It is an honor that my brand is represented by them worldwide today.
I started MADE BY GRACE 5 years ago at the age of 23 as an undercover project. I remember those sleepless nights while traveling around the world, sitting on my bed all night long applying the stuff I was reading on Google and in my old Business school Books to help me build my company. Because one thing y’all need to know is: I didn’t had an ounce of idea how to build a business or a clothing brand. The only thing that I knew was the vision and the message behind the brand’s name.
I never even imagined how much my life will be changed for the better but I’m truly grateful and thankful to God for blessing me. I‘m not embarrassed by anything I‘ve been through. It might be “Tea for some people but it’s a Testimony“ for me. So all I did was focusing and following my calling. I was always telling myself that champions have to do things that are hard in the beginning so that it is easy for them later on. Many people think that to become an entrepreneur, you only need to prepare yourself financially. But I am firmly convinced that mental preparation plays a very important role for this path of entrepreneurship because you will go through things that you have never experienced before. You will have to do things that you have never done before. You will have to leave your comfort zone and take a lot of risks, this also includes being able to take failures and keep going. For me, entrepreneurship means “Passion” – The suffering without suffering!
In the beginning, countless of people been always asking me “Are you making a clothing line?” Everybody gotta a clothing line these days. Yes, everybody‘s a Photographer, everybody does hair, everybody does makeup, everybody does everything… But everybody don’t have my vision! That’s how I was responding to everybody. I mean every market is oversaturated if you really think about it…. but why even think about it? Just focus on what you were called to do and do it. If I had let their opinions stop me, I honestly don’t know where I‘d be right now. I understood that God didn’t give them MY vision. So I will just continue to work hard on my Dream until one day they’ll see and understand my vision too! The bottom might be where I started but it doesn’t have to be where I will stay. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
MADE BY GRACE is an established unisex fashion brand. Our aim is to provide premium designed clothing for the fashion enthusiast and the modern believer. The focus is laid on fashionable unisex designs and highly qualitative fabrics featured with luxury accessories.
Founded in 2019 by me Grace Mayimona Ntumba. As a young entrepreneur I was desired to create a gender and age-neutral brand. MADE BY GRACE is a fully incorporated company based in Germany and NYC. The motivation for the establishment of the brand is to communicate a message of empowerment through clothing. We want to transmit the message behind the brand on national basis, but also fully establish in the international market as well. The products are designed and developed in Germany and then produced in Hongkong, where they are hand-made under our supervision, to ensure premium quality of fabrication, colors and proportion.
The intended message behind MADE BY GRACE is that everything was made through and by God’s Grace. It promotes self-confidence and belief, firstly in God and secondly in yourself. By wearing our clothing we want everyone to remember that it’s not people or society who validate them. Moreover, we already have been validated by GOD’S GRACE. We are enough! By Gods GRACE we were created with unique attributes. Therefore, everything we need in order to succeed is already in US! There is nothing that GOD and WE can’t do! As a consequence, literally everyBODY can rock our brand with confidence!
Our collections prove that when you step out, you stand out in validation of being a trendsetter of executing self-confidence with no limits. Wearing Made By Grace will make your every step an empowered statement of self-confidence.
Inhale Confidence. Exhale Doubt.
For us, it’s not only about Design, Fabric and Quality but the message Made By Grace promotes. Our Faith is etched into every piece of our clothing. Love yourself, believe in yourself, and never let the opinions of others affect your confidence. The impressive power of diversity is to open minds, uplift spirits and reunite the world to represent Faith, Confidence and empowerment.
Made By Grace is not just a clothing brand! It’s Empowerment! It’s a Statement! It’s a Movement!
Our products can be ordered through the website www.madebygrace.eu or through our MADE BY GRACE App which is available on Google Play Store and App Store (FOR FREE). We ship internationally.
How do you think about happiness?
One of the things that makes me happy is making a difference in other people’s lives by inspiring them. When my help contributes to success at the end of the day, coupled with my learning experience, I sleep well at night and wake up with renewed vigor to face life’s challenges.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.madebygrace.eu
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/madebygraceofficial?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/madebygraceofficial/?modal=admin_todo_tour
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/MadeByGraceApp1
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrfIjk6ozTmlkagvWHPzRyQ
- Other: https://www.pinterest.de/madebygraceapparel/
Image Credits
Sam Kiala (GP) Heirentreprise Kevin M Johnson (KMJ) Steve Lorcy
