Founder of JBD Apparel, Saudia Islam, took to knitting as an escape mechanism from the anxiety and depression issues she was battling with. Soon, the activity that provided a safety net for her became a side hustle.
At an early age, her mum – who was also a crochet artist, walked her through the ropes of fashion; on which Saudia would later capitalize in her solitude to find strength many years later. At the urging of her friends and family, she founded JBD Apparel in 2017 and made most of her products; ranging from T-shirts, tank tops, and sweatshirts from her bedroom.
Her main avenue for marketing her brands was Instagram and other social media platforms. Three years later, she quit her 9 to 5 job to focus on a thriving business, according to the celebrity insider.
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However, her business took a huge jump when influencer, Kim Kardashian, got social media talking about the company when she posted pictures of herself wearing JBD Apparel brands. Kim had initially posted products of the brand on her social media pages, but later decided to mention JBD Apparel and urged her 175.3 million followers on Instagram to give the brand some attention. This single act made JBD Apparel a household name and gave the business a major boost in sales.
The mompreneur recalled that some members of the Yeezy team contacted her to place an order on behalf of Kim when they came across her fashion line on Instagram. It never occurred to Saudia that the reality tv star would promote her business to millions of followers. Thanks to Kim, JBD Apparel has grown faster than the founder envisaged.
Studies have shown that celebrity endorsements have the potential of boosting a company’s sales by 4 percent. The challenge, however, is that many black-owned businesses are unable to afford such testimonials, according to the Entrepreneur.
However, when such a window presents itself, like in the case of JBD Apparel, where Kim Kardashian offered free publicity, the evidence can easily be quantified.
