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Episode 000 - Introduction
18 Plays1 month ago
Welcome!
This is a career podcast for black and brown girls in the fashion community. Here on Breaking the Mold, not only will we deep dive different careers within the fashion industry, but also explore what it means to be multi-hyphinated.
Recorded 6/21/2025
Transcript
Introduction to 'Breaking the Mold'
00:00:00
Speaker
Welcome to Breaking the Mold, a career podcast for black and brown fashion girlies. I'm your host, Dominique. Pull up a chair, girl. Let's get into it.
Why Dominique Started the Podcast
00:00:14
Speaker
I started this podcast because I was tired of hitting walls within my own career. and i feel like every step of the way, it was just another hurdle that I couldn't get over. And I felt like I had nobody to turn to, no mentor. Even if I could ask somebody for advice, they weren't a woman of color. So they just didn't understand what the
Exploring Career Hurdles and Opportunities
00:00:30
Speaker
struggles were like. So in this podcast, we're going to talk about how to overcome those hurdles, different career options within those communities, and what it means to be multi-hyphenated. so I'm very excited to share these secrets with you.
00:00:41
Speaker
I am your corporate big sister. i have worked at multiple companies from off price to wholesale to fast fashion, um from retail to visual merchandising to corporate baddie space. I've done so much. So I myself have a lot of advice to give, not to mention I have my own career goals too. There's different places I want to get to. So I'm really excited to bring our guests on too and be able to share their journeys. They inspire me. I know they're going inspire you too.
00:01:09
Speaker
Okay, and so before we really get into the podcast, I want to tell you about my journey.
Dominique’s Journey in Fashion
00:01:14
Speaker
So I've loved fashion since I was a little girl. Since I was seven years old, I used to always sketch. I remember I like tried to design my cousin's wedding dress. It was crazy, but I've always known that this was the industry I was going to be in. um And then when i was in high school, I skipped school on my birthday. I told my parents, I was like, I'm not going to class. I'm going to the mall. I'm going to apply to these retail jobs because I am a fashion girly. That's what's happening.
00:01:38
Speaker
So you can call the school or not, but I will not be there. um i think back on that, i was like, even then, i was so driven. I was going to be in the industry one way or another. So yeah, that was back in 2017.
00:01:49
Speaker
um And I've been in the fashion space ever since. I worked at Forever 21, Claire's, Ross, a bunch of different places all throughout high school, all throughout college. um When I was in college, it was a lot though. I was fully a store manager at Claire's. and also had a full course load. So that was really intense to be able to do all of that.
00:02:10
Speaker
and then also the clubs that I was in and trying to navigate the social scene too, really overwhelming. It was a lot. um So I was definitely excited for graduation. Graduated college in 2020. Not fun. That was a challenging year for everybody. Everyone I've talked to, it feels like that really just set us back. No matter to the industry you're in, that was just a tough year. So to graduate college in 2020, definitely hard. I wanted to move to California so bad then, years ago. I just knew that this is where I was meant to be, was in l LA.
Navigating Post-College Challenges
00:02:41
Speaker
And so i did all the things. I journaled about it. I prayed about it. I manifested it.
00:02:46
Speaker
It didn't happen. It just wasn't the time. It felt like the whole world was on a hiring freeze. was So what i did have to do is I started in the stores first. And that just felt like a plateau for my career. But i pulled up my bootstraps and I was like, that's okay. Like we're going to work in the stores for a little while and work our way up to corporate. So I ended up working for this department store that had this trainee program where you work in the stores for a little while and eventually you can work your way up to corporate. But I began to get frustrated because I'm watching these girls, these white blonde girls get promoted over me that have either the same experience or less experience than me. So I had to think differently. I started networking with different managers that were above me, my store manager, the district manager, and trying to just show off my skills. Whenever I was in meetings with them, i would ask for feedback. What can I do to get further, right?
The Role of Networking and Mentorship
00:03:35
Speaker
um The feedback I'm getting is that I'm doing well, but what can I work on? Because I want to get corporate. These are my career goals. I want to be a corporate girl, right? So I can't be doing everything right because I still haven't been promoted and people are getting promoted over me. So I think it's important to constantly have that conversation. These are my goals. How do we get there? And also to be friendly, to be likable, to be willing to grow, to be able to take constructive criticism, right? Because management believed in me, it was also easier to be like, okay, guys, like what are the next steps? um
00:04:08
Speaker
So after a couple months of that and working with management to get there, i finally got to corporate, which I remember my first week there was just training and I was supposed to come in as an assistant buyer.
00:04:21
Speaker
And as I was in the training class and I i was like, yeah I'm just happy to be here. i was like, I felt like I've worked so hard just for this moment. I'm just happy to be here. And after the training, i ended up getting a buyer position, which I'm so grateful for. So that goes to show you just what a positive attitude can do. Positive attitude, ready and willing to learn.
00:04:43
Speaker
However, that position was just based in rural Iowa. I loved my job. I loved what I did. I made great friends while I was there, but overall I just did not want to live in the Midwest anymore. Like I said, i knew I wanted to get to California. i just didn't think I was qualified enough, but I've always been driven. I've always been ambitious. so What I did do is I got a mentor.
00:05:06
Speaker
She was a mixed woman in finance, but so encouraging, so lovely. She just didn't quite get the fashion sector of it, but it was nice to have a woman of color being able to give me advice on how to get ahead, right? um Because she was from a small rural town in Georgia. I moved to New York. had lived through layoffs, all the other stuff. So she had great advice to give. So it' was nice to pick her brain. I'm like, okay, in the next year, i want to be able to move to California. so I do want financial advice. How do I get my money together? How do i negotiate? How do I get there? And so I booked meeting with her. We're going through my resume. And she was like, well, you've been in this corporate position for nine months. I don't understand why you're not applying now.
00:05:45
Speaker
And I'm like, well, I haven't been in corporate a year. no one's going to take me seriously. She's like, Have you even applied? Have you tried? i was like, no, you know what? I
Empowerment through Self-Branding
00:05:54
Speaker
haven't. So I started reaching out to different people at companies I wanted to work at, asking for coffee chats, picking their brain about the companies, started applying to jobs just to see what would happen. um And within a couple months, I actually got a job. I didn't believe myself. I'm so happy she was there and encouraged me to do that.
00:06:11
Speaker
I had no idea it was all going to happen so quickly. It felt like it happened in the blink of an eye now that I look back at it. But yeah, through my talking with her, i was able to organize my thoughts and almost reframe the way that I viewed myself. i was like, okay, this is what I've done. This is exactly how I'm going to negotiate, how I'm going to sell myself, thinking of myself as the brand, right? Because at the end of the day, like I said, I've been in this industry for so long. I have managerial experience. all this other stuff. I had been with that one company for years now at this point.
00:06:42
Speaker
It was just a matter of how you sell it.
Building a Supportive Fashion Community
00:06:44
Speaker
So I'm really grateful for that because the job that I did get moved me to l LA and that's something I didn't even think was possible. But for different corporate positions, and I think retail positions too, you can either negotiate a higher salary and or negotiate a relocation package depending on your experience and what you've done. But it's all in believing in yourself and how you sell yourself. My friends always say i come off really confident. It's not true. I'm just really good at faking it till you make it And sometimes even before I go into an interview, having a script that I memorize and I just go over it, over it, go over it. So
00:07:18
Speaker
When I say it to somebody, it's believable. So sometimes it's just writing down all your credentials and going over them again. So when you say them, the person in front of you believes you. But ultimately, yeah I moved here to l la in May of 2023. It was the hardest move I've ever done. Yeah. And I've lived in multiple states now at this point, and it was a hard move. Just finding a job, securing a job, finding community within. For example, i've had four jobs in the past two years, and this is
00:07:49
Speaker
One was my decision, but most of them were not, just between layoffs and the industry and just shifts within. so one thing I wish I had was a stronger community within fashion specifically, just other girls I could talk to, mentors I could find just to give me advice on how to move from point A to point B.
00:08:11
Speaker
So that brings us to breaking the mold. This is a podcast I wish I had long before I moved here. Definitely wish I had it once I lived here. Just a community of kind women who are passionate, driven, ambitious, and excited for the next steps in their life. Whether you're a college student and you want to break into a scene or whether you've been in your career for a while and you know in your gut it's ready for a pivot. Just think of me as your big sister. I definitely don't have it figured out, but I'm on my way and we're going to get through it together.
00:08:43
Speaker
What I'm excited about is I feel like this is the first time in my life that I realized I can be multi hyphenated. i can be a buyer and a podcast host and a career coach. even though I am figuring it out and still finding my footing. So I'm really excited to bring this podcast to you because what I'm really grateful for in this journey is all the amazing women that I've met. And I'm excited to bring them on show you what multi-hyphenated look like. For example, i know one girl who is launching a magazine and also a celebrity stylist and also works for a prestigious company. i have another friend who's a personal stylist, works at a very reputable brand, also is an influencer in her downtime. I have another friend who works at an amazing magazine as creative director. Also is about to launch her own brand that she designed from the ground up.
00:09:32
Speaker
We've got such amazing stuff coming up. I can't wait to introduce you to everybody. um What else am I excited about?
Upcoming Initiatives and Collaborative Efforts
00:09:40
Speaker
I'm also about to launch this new networking meetup for women in l LA for us to meet up, build community, just focusing on kind-hearted women in fashion because... Not only are there not enough black and brown women in fashion, in positions of power, but also kind women. We need to be friends with each other because we're going to get so much further if we hold hands and work together. i feel like as a team, as a community, I don't have it figured out. Some of my friends don't have it figured out, but it's so much easier when I can call up my friend who gets it and we brainstorm together. because we want the same thing, right? So I help you, you help me. And we can all achieve our goals. There's definitely enough room at the table for all of us. So pull up a chair, girl. Let's get to it.