- 2 days ago
Shop ESSENCE Live in partnership with New Voices Foundation is LIVE at Festival on the SOKO MRKT stage! Black-owned brands will be on-stage all weekend long sharing their journeys to entrepreneurship, product do’s, don'ts, and more. This show will feature fashion shows, live hair and makeup demos as well as give viewers the opportunity to get their questions answered and shop live in stream!
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00:00I see y'all looking. I feel like y'all want to be over here with us.
00:03Y'all want to be over here with us. We're about to live shop here.
00:07This is streaming live to Essence.com, EssenceFestival.com, and Pinterest TV.
00:12My name is Noni. We're going to start in a few seconds. Stand by.
00:24I'm good, if you guys are good.
00:27You, somebody want to count me?
00:30No, we have some teams, so I just have to pass it out.
00:33Oh, that'd be nice. Yeah, so you both are going to start off stage.
00:36I'm going to call for you, Alexandria, to come on.
00:40And it's Ali or Ali?
00:42Ali.
00:43Ali.
00:47Okay.
00:51Yes.
00:52But how do I know when I'm live? Somebody going to tell me?
00:54We're live.
00:55Hello, hello, and welcome to Shop Essence Live from the SoCo Market stage.
01:03We are right now live at Essence Festival of Culture, presented by Coca-Cola.
01:09How are you guys feeling out there?
01:10So my name is Noni. I'm vice president in charge of video here at Essence, but I'm also host of Shop Essence Live.
01:19It is a weekly commerce shopping show that you can shop live with us every single week on Pinterest TV at 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
01:29But for festival, I'm going to be live every single day at 12 noon Central Time, 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
01:36Shout-out to everybody watching at home on Essence.com and EssenceFestival.com.
01:40And shout-out to everybody watching on Pinterest TV.
01:44What's up, y'all?
01:45So if you're watching at home and you want a live shopping experience, I definitely encourage you to go to Pinterest TV.
01:52All the products here, you can go.
01:53You can pin it in the stream and shop live with us.
01:56So what I really love about Shop Essence Live here in partnership with the New Voices family is we give you some incredible stories from incredible women that have started their own business.
02:08And today we have some incredible stories and incredible products.
02:11Y'all ready to hear some stories and see some products?
02:14Come on now.
02:16All right, up first we have Alexandria Alley.
02:20She is from F&W Style.
02:21When I tell you these bags are fabulous, they are fabulous.
02:23Come on up, Alexandria.
02:26Hello, everybody.
02:28Hey, Noni.
02:28So how's it been for you so far at Essence Festival?
02:31Man, the vibes, the people, the color.
02:35I mean, I'm just happy to be here.
02:37First of all, let's get a fit check.
02:40Look at this outfit right now.
02:41So beautiful.
02:42So before we get into the bags, you have to tell your inspirational story.
02:47How did you come up with this incredible line?
02:51Well, I mean, I started with my mom being a designer in Lagos, Nigeria.
02:56I didn't know, fast forward to now, I would be doing the same thing.
03:00I was stuck at my banking job and knew that I wanted to do something different.
03:04I've always loved fashion.
03:06But you know how you don't know how to get to that next level.
03:09But I took that chance and I decided I was going to start.
03:12I did research and found that there weren't a lot of black-owned brands doing this.
03:17And I'm like, why?
03:17We love fashion.
03:19There should be black-owned luxury brands.
03:21And I'm going to stop until we become a household name.
03:24Come on!
03:26So I highlighted F&W style a few weeks ago on Shop Essence Live.
03:33And I have been using their bag, the travel bag.
03:37That tote bag is just so amazing.
03:39And not only is the style so intentionally fabulous, the quality.
03:45The quality is so incredible.
03:47So why don't you tell us what you have for us today?
03:50Let's show up these bags.
03:51Yes, like Noni was saying, it's a well-crafted, colorful handbag at an affordable pricing.
03:57So let's start with this.
03:58This is our Ruby belt bag.
04:00I'm holding it for you.
04:01Yes, thank you.
04:02So that's our Ruby belt bag.
04:04People love that because you can wear it cross-body.
04:08You can wear it around your waist.
04:09It's made with pebble-grade Italian leather.
04:12All of our bags, and we have that in several colorways.
04:15This purple one has been a hit, though.
04:17I'll say that.
04:19This is cute.
04:21And look, it zips all the way around.
04:23All the way around.
04:24So you're not trying to look for how to get in there.
04:27You got everything.
04:27Can you tell the story about the inside of your bag?
04:30Yes.
04:31Our goal is, obviously, we want to look good on the outside.
04:34But we're for the ladies, too.
04:35We want you to feel good every time you open your bag.
04:37It's a dose of happiness every single time you open your bag.
04:40A dose of happiness every single time.
04:43This is black women giving us intentional design for our lives to make us happy every single day.
04:48Every single day.
04:49Thank you so much for that.
04:51Yes.
04:51And, again, cross-body or belt bag.
04:54Yes.
04:54Versatile.
04:55Yep.
04:56What else do you have for us?
04:57Look, I have this one.
04:58And I'm excited to show you this.
05:00So cute.
05:00I was inspired by the 90s.
05:03Yes.
05:03You know, the color, the cool, the sexy, the vibe.
05:06The feeling of the 90s.
05:07So that's what this was all about.
05:09So it has the chain strap on there.
05:12This is called our candy collection.
05:14Candy collection.
05:15And this is so, like, look at this design.
05:18How many people love to wear things?
05:20And you love when people stop you, like, where did you get that bag?
05:23It's so unique.
05:24Like, we don't want to wear what just everybody else is wearing.
05:27This is just so amazing.
05:30Look at that.
05:32What else do you have for us?
05:33Okay, so I had to do the clear bags.
05:35You know, obviously, we all have those ones that we have.
05:38But this is a stylish clear bag.
05:41This goes with all your outfits.
05:43When you're going to the Superdome, when you're going to concerts,
05:46you're going to festivals.
05:48Come on.
05:49We got the clear bag here for you.
05:51And we have two different types.
05:52We have this.
05:53This is the crystal clear bag.
05:55And then we also have this right here.
05:58I love that.
05:59Yes.
05:59Which is our violet vanity case.
06:02How cute are these?
06:04Even the metal feet on the bottom for you.
06:06Wait.
06:07Talk about the metal feet on the bottom.
06:09Yes.
06:09Because we don't want to skirt.
06:10All these little intentional details for us to make our lives easier.
06:15Talk about the intention of that.
06:16So the metal feet on the bottom is so we don't want our gunk and things getting on the bottom of our bag.
06:22So we put that there so when you set it down, you don't have to worry.
06:25It's not getting dirty.
06:26Come on.
06:27Yes.
06:28Yes.
06:28Intentional design.
06:29And I love this too because sometimes we have our huge bags and we can't find our lipstick.
06:35We can't find things.
06:36So this actually will work really well as a tote inside your bag as well.
06:39Exactly.
06:40And we have that today on our booth and also on our site.
06:43So good.
06:45And then finally, finally, I have to talk about this bag.
06:49I told you guys earlier, my mom had a design studio in Lagos, Nigeria.
06:53So this bag, we have some bag inspired by Lagos, Nigeria.
06:58This is a damask fabric that they weave for us in Nigeria and we use it to make these bags.
07:04So people would wear this kind of fabric to like weddings and special occasions, but we feel like every day is a special occasion.
07:11So we make them with the bags.
07:14Come on.
07:16I absolutely love this.
07:17And again, we have that dose of happiness, the pink on the inside.
07:21Don't we love it?
07:22She is selling right here.
07:24If you guys are here with us in the convention center, she has a booth.
07:28Make sure that you guys go visit her.
07:30If you don't have your clear bag, you need a clear bag to get into the Superdome.
07:34You guys do know this, right?
07:35Yep.
07:35Make sure you have your clear bag.
07:37She's going to hook you up.
07:38Not only is it practical, but it's going to look so cute.
07:42And then also, if you are watching with us at home and shopping live on PIN TV, we have the products PIN there.
07:48You can shop right there.
07:49This is so incredible.
07:51And the show is in partnership with the New Voices family.
07:55So we have to hear about what your experience has been like being a part of that incredible, incredible community.
08:02Yes.
08:02I mean, it's a community.
08:04It's a family.
08:04I mean, I'm standing right here.
08:06I'm at Essence, and I'm on stage here talking to Noni.
08:10It's incredible, you know.
08:12This is our first Essence that we've done.
08:14And the New Voices have just helped us to be able to get ready for this and be able to put our brand out there.
08:20So I'm really thankful for them.
08:22Oh, my goodness.
08:23Well, you are so inspiring.
08:26Thank you so, so much.
08:27I know that there's probably a line at your booth right now.
08:29Yes.
08:30So I'm going to let you go, but good luck to you, and have an amazing festival weekend for sure.
08:36Boots 7351.
08:38Thank you, y'all.
08:39Okay, she knows all the numbers.
08:40Boots 7351.
08:42Okay, so if you guys are just tuning in, this is Shop Essence Live.
08:48We are live for the first time from the Convention Center in New Orleans at Essence Festival of Culture, presented by Coca-Cola.
08:56So we're shopping live here, and we're shopping live at home.
09:00If you're watching on Essence or EssenceFestival.com, you might want to switch over to Penn TV if you want a live shopping experience.
09:07There, you'll be able to shop live with us, and it's such a great, great experience.
09:12So we have one more black-owned business to share with you, an incredible story.
09:17Here we have Dominique from Domo Inc.
09:19Give it up for Dominique, y'all.
09:21Yeah.
09:23So, Dominique.
09:26I know we love art.
09:28We love black art.
09:29We love to hang it in our homes.
09:31How amazing would it be to walk around and use cups with some original black art?
09:37How amazing?
09:40Incredible.
09:41So, Dominique, why don't you tell us, what's your background?
09:43How did you get started with Domo Inc.?
09:45Domo Inc. kind of just came naturally.
09:47I feel like since I was a little kid, I've always been drawing.
09:51I probably, like, my first instance of me ever drawing was when I was in preschool, and I drew a portrait of this lady with long hair.
09:57And my teacher told me, it's amazing.
10:00You probably look back now, it was probably a hot mess.
10:02It was just some lady with, like, probably a stick figure with some horrible hair.
10:06But that inspired me to keep drawing.
10:09And then once I moved into my first home, I was trying to figure out ways, how do I decorate my own home?
10:15And I was going to stores, and I'm like, nothing looks like me.
10:19If I do see it, it felt very generic.
10:22And I'm thinking back to myself, I'm like, why don't I just draw my own stuff?
10:26Like, and decorate my bathroom, decorate my living room, decorate my bedroom.
10:29And as I was decorating, I'm using social media to share my house.
10:34I'm excited.
10:36And it started taking off where people were like, I want that for my bathroom.
10:40I want this for my living room.
10:41And I'm like, well, I guess everybody else is having that same kind of problem, too.
10:45So I was like, okay.
10:47So I started selling art prints.
10:48And then as it kept blowing up, I was like, what about I make my artwork functional?
10:54So I started selling, like, tote bags.
10:57I started moving into puzzles.
11:00Because, like, you know people be at home, but, like, you might want a puzzle that looks like you sitting on your table.
11:06You might want to have a mug in your kitchen that looks like you, represents your auntie, your grandma, your uncle, anybody.
11:12So good.
11:13But at the same time, art prints are still my heart.
11:16Like, art is always going to be everything.
11:18And even shirts, as you see.
11:21I'm matching.
11:21She's representing.
11:22So we're going to get into piece-by-piece inspiration behind each piece.
11:27Okay.
11:28I love what you said in there about sharing your art, even, too.
11:32I think there's a lesson in there.
11:33How many of us are holding on to talents and we don't want anybody else to hear about it or see it because we don't want criticism?
11:39And you see she was sharing her art and what she did in her home.
11:43And now she's built a business that she is selling at Essence Festival of Culture.
11:46Yes.
11:47So that's pretty incredible.
11:48So why don't we go through each product?
11:51Okay.
11:51We want to get these close-ups.
11:53We want people to take in this.
11:54So what do you want to show off first?
11:55Let's talk about the puzzles.
11:57I love puzzles.
11:58I'll hold it up for you.
11:59This is something I used to do all the time in my past time as a kid was do puzzles, fun games.
12:05So I noticed that even then there was a lack of black culture, a lack of representation of us in puzzles.
12:12So I wanted to bring that in to Domilink and give you guys more variety, as you could say.
12:18This is so cool.
12:19And these are really good intentional gifts, right?
12:22Like how many times are we trying to, oh, what do I get for my boss?
12:26What do I get for this person?
12:27My rich auntie.
12:28We got a couple of them.
12:30These are really great intentional custom-made gifts for sure.
12:34What else do you have for us?
12:35I have tote bags.
12:36Love a tote bag.
12:38So also another thing I noticed was a lack of black men in artwork.
12:42You can go to the store, you'll see a bunch of women artwork, but do you ever see men?
12:46Because a lot of times when people go to these home decor stores, it's usually targeted towards women.
12:50So I wanted to show, I wanted to be like, hey, if you have a man in your life, you want to give him a tote bag that looks like him, you can do so.
12:56That's so great.
12:57That's what I've always tried to do.
12:58Try to just represent everybody because the black experience is not monolithic.
13:03So try to show everybody.
13:04So good.
13:07What else do you have for us today, Dom?
13:09I'm going to show off the originals, the artwork.
13:11Yes.
13:12So I'll say the thing about me as an artist, I'm an illustrator first.
13:17So this was all done in marker originally.
13:20Wow.
13:20And then I create art prints from it.
13:23And then with my background, I went to school for graph design.
13:27So I've been able to do illustrations as well.
13:29So this is all done digitally.
13:30So I just try to have a lot of versatility in what I'm doing.
13:35Because also, too, not everybody wants a picture of a woman that might look like somebody in their house.
13:41They might want something more abstract.
13:43Yes.
13:43So I try to just have a lot of diversity in the artwork that I provide to you guys.
13:47So a reminder, she is selling here at the convention center.
13:51Just imagine these hanging up on that empty wall.
13:53You don't know what to do with it.
13:55You want to do a little gallery wall in your house or at home.
13:59These are really, really incredible.
14:01Thank you so much.
14:01And you have one more thing for us.
14:03And then I have the mug.
14:04It's also about being functional.
14:06Because not everybody has room.
14:08You might already have art on your wall.
14:10Or you might want to have photos on your wall.
14:11So I wanted to have another option for you to have artwork somewhere else.
14:16So here's a mug.
14:18I love it.
14:19You guys give it up for Dominique.
14:22So this is in partnership with the New Voices family.
14:25I'd love to hear about what your experience has been like being a part of the New Voices community.
14:30It's been amazing.
14:31I think it's just, I feel like it just feels like so surreal.
14:35You know, I feel like the only experience I've probably ever had of watching, of Essence, was watching Girls Trip, honestly.
14:39Oh, my gosh.
14:40So it was like, so to actually be here from, all the way from L.A.
14:45Wow.
14:45To be here flying over.
14:47I have my dad with me.
14:48And to just be in this space, right?
14:51To be in this space, it just feels absolutely amazing.
14:53And I know I wouldn't be here without New Voices.
14:55So I appreciate all the help they provided to me.
14:58And I'm just, I don't know what it works.
15:02Well, we love having you.
15:04Thank you for kicking off our first episode of Shop Essence Live here, live at Essence Festival of Culture, presented by Coca-Cola.
15:11Dom, you are so incredible.
15:13Everybody, tell them what your booth number is for everybody that's here.
15:15What's your booth number?
15:16My booth number is 7347.
15:18So check it out.
15:20See, I see people trying to get up from their seat already.
15:22Wait, hold on.
15:23We're still here.
15:24I know, I got to get back to help my dad.
15:26Yeah, so I'm, thank you so much for joining.
15:29I know you got to go relieve dad.
15:31And good luck this weekend for sure.
15:33Thank you so much.
15:34Absolutely.
15:35I want to thank you guys so much for tuning in at home.
15:38Remember, this is Shop Essence Live.
15:40I'm your host, Noni.
15:41We're going to be here all weekend long, giving you a live shopping experience right here at Essence Festival of Culture, presented by Coca-Cola.
15:49Every day this weekend at 12 noon Central and 1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
15:57You can watch on Essence.com, EssenceFestival.com.
16:00And remember, if you want that live shopping experience, go to Pinterest TV.
16:04I will see you guys tomorrow.
16:06Bye.
16:08Go shop.
16:08Go shop.
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