Latoya Janae - CEO of Nineth Closet
MY TALL GIRL RANT:
All I want is to find pants that cover my ankles. I want my pant legs to drag to the floor and I don't care if they get dirty. I would just be happy to find pants that cuff OVER MY ANKLE. All my life I have been carrying the label "the tall girl"! I actually LOVE being tall, but once I got that growth spurt in middle school, fashion (specifically pants) weren't giving what they were supposed to give. Ya'll know the sizes "Juniors 14 slim tall". My jeans would turn into capris and I've learned to accept that. I would just make sure that my ankles and calves were always moisturized. Until my Mom told me to just take the Hem out! This changed my life forever. But this change didn't fulfill me since it would leave a awkward line that showed the place where the jean length used to be. As I got older I noticed that more stores would carry "tall" sizes but the fashion behind them just wasn't hitting. Oh the struggle.
Okay I'm done ranting because God answers prayers ya'll! I came across a article written that listed 21 black owned tall brands that I could support. I was like where have you been all of my life?!
Anyways one clothing line that really stood out to me was a company called Nineth Closet. When I clicked on the website and saw"Inseams 35 - 41" I was in heaven!! Nineth Closet has been featured in BRITISH VOGUE, ELLE, INSTYLE, BYRDIE and the Strategist. I had to spread the news to my tall girl community. So I reached out to the CEO Latoya Janae and she was sweet enough to answer some questions for me! Read about the story behind her beautiful brand below.
Introduce yourself! Tell us your name, where you are from, and describe your business.
My name is Latoya Janae, I’m from Washington DC and I’m the owner of Tall
fashion brand Nineth Closet.
What according to you is a favorite part of being a fashion designer?
My favorite part of being a fashion designer is seeing how happy it makes my
customers, that’s honestly the best part. As a designer, especially in the Tall
fashion market you never know what the Tall community will like or not. Honestly I feel like Nineth Closet is doing a good job so far and its only going to get better.
I love the stunning photographic prints in your collections; tell me about
the inspiration behind them and the design process.
Thank you! I try to give the Tall community a mix of trendy, exclusive
items, prints and styles they never seen from other brands in our market.
When me and my team design we pull inspo from anything, it could be a cup
of milk going into coffee that could inspire a print lol, or simply me putting
two ideas together and adding little details to make it pop. For example one
of my best sellers The REMI CARGOS was inspired by me thinking of lingerie
garters on top of cargos lol sounds crazy probably but that’s what i told my
designer and he sketched up the perfect design.
What is your greatest career achievement?
My greatest career achievement is similar to my favorite part of being a
designer and that’s just making Tall women happy with their purchase from
my company. Its hard to please everyone but if majority is pleased and
happy I’m good with that.
Who is your style icon and why?
Hmmmm My style icon…. There's so many but my favs are….I love the
versatility of Teyana Taylor, I love Ciara’s style, I love how Molly dress on
insecure lol, Lady GaGa, I know I’m missing a lot more.
What advice would you give someone who wants to start their own
fashion label?
I would say before starting know your brand identity. That's more important
than the designs honestly. A lot of people just want to create without proper
planning or even knowing who their target audience is. I would also say don’t strive to try to please everybody, it's impossible! I know from experience hahaha. Don’t devalue your brand to get a sale either, that’s also important. Stay consistent and your people will find you.
Where can we find you online and on social media?
Website - www.ninethcloset.com
Instagram - @ninethcloset
Facebook - @ninethcloset
Twitter - @ninethcloset
Tik Tok - @ninethcloset
Thank you Latoya! I can't wait to see what you design next! Below are my favorite jeans from her collection. I'm wearing the SEAM SLIT BOOTCUT DENIM (BLACK) with 35'' inseam!
Rach Wrote That wearing Nineth Closet SEAM SLIT BOOTCUT DENIM (BLACK) 35 '' inseam
Love, Rach
Comments