TOMI Magazine November 2012

essence of when that style or that trend is happening, or if you can’t capitalize off of it during its peak or conception? You are 9 times out of 10 going to miss the ball. You’ve got to jump right in there. The only way you can re- act is doing everything domestically. That’s one thing we pride ourselves on in the position we are in now, at least in the market. Is that we manufacture and we make everything in the good old US of America. That right there gives us the reaction time that we need. Time- lines will throw you off. Especially when you’re trying to be a trendsetter. At the end of the day, in the US market, that’s we’re they should start at and establish. Once they get the ball rolling then obviously they can look at financial opportunities and financial cushions by manufacturing products overseas as well.” This election year, a point of concern is job creation. U.S. manufacturing means you will be a part of that solution. “I’m definitely all about recycling the dollars within the area of where I’m from” - says Nathanial. “I would love to keep everything in the threshold of staff where I can touch. The organic way of doing things is having a family-orientated company. I don’t mean you have to be related but you have to have a family interaction. Our motto is ‘Teamwork makes dream work. Defi- nitely a true statement.” - Tonisha L. Johnson

and they give me feedback. I can make the proper adjustments in the correct time. So we can all be on the same page. They’ll buy into what they pretty much want and I just try to fill it like that.” 99% of the time, a designer has an in- vestor who is willing to back the line. The numbers are in . The big question now: is there an ROI? And is it enough to turn a profit? “In determining ROI, it’s this little formula” - says Nathanial. “You’ve got to, at least, get 45 to 55 percent margins on everything you do. How I win is actually manufacturing my own product in-house. I cut a lot of cost there. So, I actually have a little advantage over other brands who kind of source their stuff in China and send it overseas internationally. And they’ve got to wait weeks. They cut costs but lose time. On my end, I actually have my fac- tory connected to my showroom. Myself and my design team are in the same space togeth- er. We’re able to react with styles and trends and we’re able to comfortably set a great ROI before we go into production.” In-house is not something every startup designer can afford. While outsourcing overseas is a common option it’s not the only option. A new designer can outsource in town; locally. “The key to everything is time- management. If you can’t capture the time or

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