Today on The Spotlight, we have fashion designer Milan Rouge! Milan admitted that she had a strong taste for fashion since she was a little girl. “Even when I would go to school, I would style my uniforms up so it [wouldn’t] look like the typical uniform,” the designer stated. She thought about taking fashion merchandising in college, but decided on business instead because it was a broader topic. “It was always something that I wanted to pursue,” Milan added. “I just didn’t know the avenue or the extent of what I wanted to do with it.”
In 2012, Milan was let go from her job. She had started blogging a few months before, and began focusing on that. Inspired by other bloggers with their own brands, she stopped looking for a job and began creating her own opportunity. “I learned to create what I wanted to be a part of,” the designer said. She created her own unisex streetwear apparel brand, Milano Di Rouge, which has been drawn major support, even from celebrities like Angela Simmons, Chris Bosh, Keyshia Cole and more! “A lot of the things that I do make, I make so you can style them up or you can dress them down,” Milan said of her work.Recently, Milan held a fashion showcase in Philadelphia, entitled The High Road, sharing her 2015 Spring/Summer collection with attendees! Check out a video from the showcase below (courtesy of The Daily Grind Radio Show).
In addition to Milano Di Rouge, the designer is planning out her Safe Sex Saves Lives campaign. She got the ball rolling on the idea back in December 2014. “I was trying to do something with my brand, to use my voice and my platform to make a difference,” she said. “HIV is something that you can prevent. If we can use our voice to make a difference and raise awareness, then let’s do that. ” Milan and her team have been able to connect with several people stricken with this disease, and plan to make their campaign ongoing throughout the year, instead of just during one specific month. “I’m trying to get it implemented in different schools across the city [of Philadelphia],” Milan stated. I personally commended her for this, because safe sex promotion and HIV/AIDS awareness is something that should be going on all year round, not just a specific day or month!
Milan focuses on herself and building her own brand, but also supports other brands as well. “I don’t really look at the competition as competition. I just look at them as another person trying to make it,” she admitted. “Maybe the difference between me and them is [that] I’m so passionate and I’m so focused on my brand that I don’t really notice other things, but I do salute hard work.” She also focuses on quality work and good customer service for her clientele, and it definitely shows!
In the future, Milan obviously wants to continue to grow the Milano Di Rouge brand and do more designs for the line. She also wants to help other entrepreneurs build their brands as well, hosting seminars, workshops, etc. The designer dropped some great gems, advising future entrepreneurs to work building something that make you happy “Money isn’t what makes you happy,” Milan stated. “With this, comes a lot of stressful, sad nights, a lot of times when you want to give up. If you’re just in it for the money, it may not work for you.” She also urges entrepreneurs to make their own opportunity, producing something that you wish you saw out. “Create what you want to be a part of,” Milan said again. “And always stay true to you.”
Check out the official Milano Di Rouge website to shop the collection! You can follow Milan on her personal Twitter and Instagram, and Milano Di Rouge on Twitter and Instagram as well!
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