Exploring the Misconceptions of Fashion with Entrepreneur and Fashion Blogger Sucoyia Love

How would you describe Sucoyia Love and your brand to someone who didn’t know you?

Well, my name is Sucoyia Stewart, aka Sucoyia Love and I am a fashion-forward blogger (now vlogger!), and entrepreneur based in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. I specialize in building confidence in women through fashion and networking. My brand is geared to illustrate how any woman can feel great about herself, regardless of age.

 

 

What lead you into exploring fashion and opening Coya’s Closet?

I’ve loved fashion starting at age 12, but I didn’t really believe there was a way to make it a career until I quit nursing to take up fashion merchandising at Johnson & Wales University. Still, I had a hard time starting as a military spouse, because we bounced from state to state. Finally, I was able to explore entrepreneurism after relocating to Atlanta and meeting the right people to help me build my business. Coya’s Closet was initially a way to draw traffic to my blog, but became its own entity after I realized how lucrative it was to own my own boutique!

 

 

What has been your personal experience with fashion and how has it translated into your self confidence as a woman?

Fashion has helped build my confidence completely- in fact, my experience with fashion is very unique. As I mentioned earlier, I’ve always loved fashion since childhood, but my middle school had a strict uniform policy that left no room for creativity. The monotonous black, brown and navy blue uniforms brought confidence down to a new low. Every time I tried to stand out, I got in trouble. I realized that the restrictive policy suppressed my creativity, so in high school, I took chances and explored my fashion creativity more than ever! The result was a more confident and happier me.

 

 

Many people in Western Society view fashion as a luxury and some would even go as far as relating it to vanity of one’s ego. At times this narrative can make women feel guilty in indulging in themselves with the purchase of high end clothing. How do you respond to that perspective and challenge the notion that fashion/beauty is just a luxury?

This is probably my favorite question! First off, fashion and beauty is about self care, and if you don’t care about yourself, who will? I find it interesting when people think that you should dress to their standard. (And what’s worse is when they dress like crap!) They have no room to tell you how to care for yourself.

Secondly, luxury doesn’t always mean you have to spend money you don’t have. People confuse “luxury” with “expensive”, and guilt women who seek luxury. Luxury is defined as the state of great comfort and extravagant living. The keyword is comfort. I may find a pair of designer shoes that are comfortable TO ME, purchased on sale at Macy’s. Someone may see me walking confidently in these shoes and call me self absorbed and vain, but they misunderstand that fashion and beauty is about self expression. It’s not about how others view your style, it’s about how YOU view it.

That being said, if you’re buying it for the wrong reasons, such as to impress others, yes, that’s a problem. But if you love taking care of yourself, it’s a necessity, not a luxury. My brand is trying to dispel the notion that taking care of oneself is a bad thing. It’s never a luxury to take care of oneself, it’s a necessity. It doesn’t mean you need $500 worth of makeup and $10K worth of clothes. It means that you should never be ashamed to indulge in things that make you feel more confident, as long as it doesn’t become excessive.

 

 

There are a lot of individuals who are becoming more consumer literate and educating themselves on how fast fashion can negatively impact their immediate environment as well as the world. However, this leaves an obstacle for those wanting to support sustainable wear but may not have the budget to do so, as well as limited fashion options when it comes to sustainable clothing. What would be your advice on those wanting to venture into environmental friendly fashion but feel they have limited means?

This is a great question, as I have been the person who has wanted to support the environment, yet remain trendy. When you are on a budget, new sustainable clothing is typically unaffordable. I got around this by frequenting consignment shops and thrift stores to invest in quality pieces that last. You can then minimize your fast fashion to simple basics.

 

As we look on social media we see and experience the trend of online boutiques promoting/selling to black women, but using racially ambiguous women as the face of their brand. Do you feel that practice impacts black women on a subconscious level to feel that they are not as attractive? If so, how do you feel one can break out of that mentality and the habit of supporting brands that don’t support them?

This absolutely impacts Black women on a subconscious level and this subject matter goes to the core of why I started Coya’s Closet. Building confidence through fashion is a pillar that speaks to me as a brown-skinned Black woman. I see other brands who purposely use light skinned women and other races, and I even see it in other industries such as music videos. I love being the face of my brand and I started an influencer program that allows me to better balance who represents my brand- no matter what skin tone. Just as seeing Michelle Obama as our first lady gave hope to little girls, Coya’s Closet is a place where Black women can feel that Black is beautiful. Breaking out of that mentality would be easier if large brands made a conscious effort to be more inclusive, but that requires us as a community to voice our concerns on a national and global level. Every time you notice that there’s a trend of missing dark skinned women, publicly speak out on social media, provide feedback via their corporate website, or if you’re a model, solicit them through your agent or independently. If they ignore you, simply stop supporting them. Like anything else, you must first voice your concern and if they don’t bend, stop investing in them. That’s what it means to stand up for what you believe in.

 

As a lot of people have observed in the fashion industry, there is a lot of colorism to this day in the way dark/brown skin black women are treated versus their light/white counterparts. Have you faced any obstacles in creating and expanding your brand as a result of colorism and if so how did you overcome them?

Truthfully, I have not faced any real issues with colorism or prejudice with my brand, and that’s by design. I purposely moved to Atlanta, also known as Wakanda lol, so that I would be closer to my target demographic. I learned this by dealing with prejudice as a fashion stylist in other cities I lived in such as Providence, RI, Boston, MA and San Diego, CA.

My first experience was while working at a high end luxury department store in Providence, a predominantly white city. White customers would regularly brush off my offer to assist, then accept the assistance of my white coworkers. It became noticeable to a point where I would have to ask my coworkers to validate my opinion to help close the sale! White women simply refused to trust my fashion sense, and I don’t think it was always intentional, unfortunately Perhaps they felt that they weren’t being racist, rather I likely wouldn’t understand what type of event they were looking to dress for. Or, perhaps they felt that I wasn’t educated in fashion. Whatever the reason, they would consistently seek out a white coworker, even if they were not as polished as me. My coworkers would have to pull me to the back and ask my opinion to close their sales; they would never need me to come out to the sales floor to validate their opinion.

Overcoming this goes back to showing the world that darker skinned women are just as qualified as everyone else. I am working to show that on my website and by hiring a diverse workforce, which includes women my hue and darker.

 

What does the future hold for you and your brand?

I want to continue to be a trendsetter, offering the latest in fashion while building confidence in women. I am working on becoming more present on YouTube as a self improvement influencer, and I’ve been taking acting classes and working on set. I can see myself on a reality television show if the opportunity presents itself. I want to expand the Coya’s Closet Mommy & Me collection, add more accessories, handbags and even shoes! I ultimately want to grow my brands into household names in the US and abroad. Sucoyia Love and Coya’s Closet will be synonymous with confidence, because that is exactly what it takes to be the best version of yourself.

 

If you would like to connect further with Sucoyia Love or check out her boutique you can find her at sucoyialove.com or on Instagram @sucoyialove @shopcoyascloset