Today we’d like to introduce you to Niree French.
Hi Niree, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I am a 27-year-old entrepreneur and founder of a non-profit organization. I started my non-profit ‘Inspirational Girls’ while I was a Sophomore in undergraduate at Tuskegee University. This program is geared toward African American women and mentoring those in the local community as well as campus. Our motto is: “Empowering our sisterhood one girl at a time.” My junior year, I got an internship and saved all of my money to follow one of my first passions and started my online clothing boutique. I have been running an online clothing store N. French since that time. Our brand’s motto is “Daring, Edgy, Timeless”—We cater to women who enjoy unique fashion pieces and sends a message to the world that we don’t like to be boxed in. We can be a career women and sexy; we are multifaceted. We had our first physical showroom location for one year in Macon, Georgia 2020-2021. I am so grateful for the lessons learned starting a fashion brand and the opportunities it has afforded me.
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?
Do we even have enough time to list the struggles? I would say one struggle I had when beginning was consistency. I started in college so finding the balance from transitioning into the real world while maintaining the boutique was a struggle. Than actually working a full-time corporate job and balancing a brand became a struggle. However, I did learn to never be afraid to take a step back to plan and rebrand. I rebranded the three boutique years ago and currently make weekly goals and schedules to stay on track. So the umbrella of the struggle would fall understructure. Every business needs it and you will likely fail without it.
There are many struggles I could discuss. Lack of information, no marketing budget, not catering to my specific target audience, and finding funding. The list goes on. Honestly, it’s many issues that most start-up companies have. My best advice on this is-no one is coming to save you. You have to network, ask questions, research, work hard and when it gets hard, work harder. Your business is 100% what you make it and you just have to keep showing up.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
N. French is an online clothing brand that caters to women. We have hosted several events over the years including pop up shops local events. And have traveled to be in different fashion shows in different states.
N. French is different than other brands because it is not always trendy. We take time to handpick pieces that are fashionable and unique. The idea is that no matter how simple or edgy the look might be if you wear our pieces, you will turn heads.
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
That’s a tough question because there are so many lessons you learn as you grow. I would have to say an important lesson is not using what I already know. Advertising is never going to be a dying market. If there is a channel to advertise to a customer, then it will always be used. No matter if it’s social media, television, or email. Just think of how many times you are scrolling Facebook or watching a YouTube video and see advertisement. A lot of time instead of focusing on actually growing our companies, we think of growing as exposure only. I.E Instagram likes/views or shares on Twitter and not actually looking at the numbers and creating strategy. I’ve been guilty of this. If your post has 5,000 engagements and you only received two purchases, that’s not even 1% conversion. If you are running a business, you are in it to be profitable. So ask yourself what is a good conversion rate? Out of those 5,000 people do I have their emails to send a coupon? Did they even visit the website? If so what is stopping a purchase?
I would have to say that’s a big struggle especially for new companies and when you experience low volume times. I had to learn it’s important focusing not only on retaining customers but also reaching new ones. Also, a caveat to this is if you don’t know, learn. Always invest in yourself, your knowledge and your network; Take courses, ask questions, pursue mentors, create a network of peers you can rely on. You will never go wrong.
Contact Info:
- Email: Info@nfrench.co
- Website: NFrench.co
- Instagram: @nireefrench & @nfrenchcollection
- Facebook: @nfrenchcollection
Image Credits
Photographer: Shawn Maxwell
