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Cieja Springer is a fashion purveyor and style expert with over 16 years of experience in luxury marketing and fashion. She鈥檚 worked with L'Oreal, Maserati, Est茅e Lauder, Nordstrom, and many more. She鈥檚 also the host of From The Bottom Up!鈩笍, a podcast where she speaks about hidden gems in the fashion industry.
Cieja shares how she broke into the fashion industry in her own unique way in this episode of Motivational Mondays.
As a woman of color, Cieja had to find a different approach to break into fashion and marketing. Cieja knew she wanted to touch fashion in a different way and she did it through a podcast that features unsung heroes in the industry. Each episode is a deep dive into their career journeys, style conversations, and their opinions on today鈥檚 industry.
Cieja also discusses her passionate topic of shoes. She explains how there was a time when you couldn鈥檛 get high fashion beyond a size 10. If something is available but you don鈥檛 fit standard size conventions, you might have to get a larger size and have it tailored. But the one thing that is almost always true to size? Your feet. She always finds a way to incorporate her love for footwear into her life and work.
Cieja has been marketing since she stepped foot on Howard University鈥檚 campus. She was clear on what she wanted, even when her father challenged her to choose a different career. Cieja knew she wanted to write and that she wanted to be part of the fashion industry.
Her dad always taught her that, 鈥淵ou have to do what you have to do, to do what you want to do.鈥� So, she majored in advertising and minored in fashion merchandising to get the tools she needed to do what she wanted to do. Doing this allowed her to hone her skills and understand the industry from all angles.
Diversity and Inclusion Within the Fashion Industry
Andr茅 Leon Talley was Cieja鈥檚 greatest inspiration. As a person of color at the top of his game, he should have been celebrated and compensated more for his greatness. Instead of 鈥減laying along to get along,鈥� he should have been utilized as the catalyst for brands to diversify. Andr茅鈥檚 story empowers African Americans to go after their creative dreams.
Cieja doesn鈥檛 see a lot of people of color working in executive positions in fashion. But she sees some brands implementing changes to make diversity part of their core DNA. The changes aren鈥檛 always seen by the naked eye. But Cieja points out that they鈥檙e making moves behind the curtain to set a foundation.
Cieja encourages listeners, 鈥淭ake that same energy that we place on wanting to be in these rooms and place that on creating our own rooms, building our own tables, and establishing our own ways.鈥� People like Andr茅 Leon Talley became who they were because they decided that鈥檚 what they were going to be. You can also make your own opportunities.
Listen to the bonus episode to learn more about Cieja鈥檚 podcast, From The Bottom Up!鈩� and her passion for sharing stories of fashion鈥檚 unsung heroes.
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