Tamika Price truly embodies the
term hustle. She is a fierce half-black, half-Puertorican woman on a
mission, with big goals and lofty dreams. She has transitioned from a
seasoned stylist appearing on shows such as The Rachel Ray Show to a
boutique owner and she’s even penned her own book: Standout Style.
Yet, her story has humble beginnings.
Despite Tamika’s polished demeanor and fabulous personality, her
life has been anything but easy and glamorous. Between 3rd
grade through 8th grade Tamika along with her siblings and
family faced consistent homelessness on the streets of Chicago. This
created an incredibly tight knit bond between her and her sisters.
They are some of her biggest fans. Yet this experience did more than
bind, it taught Tamika at a young age about appreciation, hard work
and overcoming obstacle. This experience instilled in her the work
ethic that has allowed her to become a successful entrepreneur. It
truly shaped her into the person she is today and due to her innate
understanding of the struggles of those in need, it has always pushed
her to give back to her community now as a business owner. Growing
up Tamika always knew that life had bigger things in store for her.
After graduating from Northern Illinois
University, Tamika set out to take over the corporate HR world, but
her dreams came to a halt when she was laid off. Rather than
wallowing in self-pity, this go-getter continued to build up her
styling clientele and portfolio that she was nurturing as a side
business during her corporate days to help fulfill her inner creative
voice. Her love of fashion and impeccable style allowed her to build
an incredible following and set out on her own path. She never turned
back.
Fast forward nearly 6 years and she has
garnered national media attention, been a speaker at multiple women’s
empowerment networking events, maintained a successful clientele and
even released her own styling book last year- Standout Style: The
Shopping & Style Guide for Real Women. The book is the epitome of
a personal style book. Rather than following trends, Tamika preaches
the idea that women should dress for their body type.
In addition to her success as a
stylist, Tamika has established an annual charity fashion show and
expo to fight homelessness and empower women of all shapes and
backgrounds. Dangerous Curves ahead Charity Fashion Show benefits
Tamika’s non-profit A-line Foundation. The 6th annual
show will be presented this September and it is the culmination of
all of Tamika’s interests, passions and hard work.
As Tamika continues to grow, she has
realized that there was a need for her clientele and saw an
opportunity to expand her brand. She recently opened the Standout
Style Boutique storefront in Lakeview, an up and coming trendy
Chicago neighborhood this past March. The boutique offers moderately
priced clothing from local indie designers, great labels that cater
to the everyday woman looking for great styles, accessories and a
range of sizes that cater to petite and plus sized individuals.
Due to her extensive styling
background, shoppers have the opportunity to get free styling
services on site to help them curate their closets. Tamika’s eye
for good quality design and fit ensures her customers leave feeling
put together and successful with their shopping trip. She prides
herself in being honest with her customers about the products they
are trying to ensure they only leave with items that they love.
The journey into entrepreneurship is
not always gilded in gold and Tamika points out that anyone who runs
a business needs “to get used to not being comfortable”. The
reality is that anyone chasing a dream must be prepared to experience
situations that they are not used to. Yet, that is what allows the
growth entrepreneurs need to continue to build their brands and
become a better businessperson.
Tamika embodies the empowered
individual as she has maneuvered her way through ups and downs
throughout her life. She never allowed her circumstances to affect
her vision and goals. She plans on growing her boutique into a chain
and ultimately plans to settle in San Juan, Puerto Rico – a place
close to her heart. She also hopes to grow as a designer over time
and bring her visions to life in order to offer them to customers.
When asked what advice she would offer up and comers interested in
pursuing a similar journey, she offered the following insights.
- Find a mentor, someone who can inspire you advise and ultimately allow you to learn to build better relationships since networking is such an important aspect of the fashion industry.
- Be OK with working for free for a while. As scary as that seems, the reality is that in order to gain the experience necessary to grow, volunteering at fashion shows, interning with fashion brands and offering free services to build your portfolio is invaluable.
Check her out here!
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