Building a fashion label at 20: what I’ve learned

A few years ago, my label was a sketchbook full of swimsuits and a lot of big talk. Now it has a name, IMANI MIRELLE, a color palette, a waitlist and its first samples. It’s still in development, so there’s nothing to buy yet, but I’ve learned more in the last year than in all my years of school.

I studied Marketing and Sales, and I work in marketing and sales for lifestyle brands, so I knew the theory. Building something with my own name on it is different. Here’s what I’ve learned so far, mistakes included.

1. Start with a feeling, not a product

Before I drew a single swimsuit, I made a mood board. Not of clothes, but of feelings: the last light at South Pointe, at the southern tip of Miami Beach, warm terracotta walls, the teal of the water off Key Biscayne, a small island just off Miami, and gold catching the sun. That became the palette: ocean teal, terracotta, midnight and a little gold.

Every decision since then gets tested against that feeling. Does this strap, this color, this photo feel like a Miami evening? If not, it goes.

2. Small and focused beats big and blurry

I want to make swimwear, resort-wear, everyday pieces, bags and jewelry. All of it. But I’ve learned that a first collection should do one thing really well. So the label starts with swim and resort-wear: pieces I know inside out because I live in them. Everyday pieces and gold accessories come after.

It’s the advice I’d give anyone starting anything: pick your first chapter and make it great.

3. Samples will humble you

The first real samples arrived recently and, honestly, it was a rollercoaster. The ocean teal was exactly right. The terracotta straps were not. They sat wrong, and I was so frustrated I nearly cried.

But that’s what samples are for. My best friend Bri, a nursing student I’ve known since middle school and the most honest person in my life, came over for a try-on and told me exactly what felt wrong, in detail. We’re fixing the straps before anything else moves forward. A mistake caught at the sample stage is a lesson. A mistake caught after production is a disaster.

4. Test everything in real life

Swimwear has to work in salt water, chlorine, sun and sand, not just in a studio. So I test my pieces where they’ll be worn: by the pool, on the beach, walking, sitting and swimming. My best friend Kai, who shoots most of my photos, documents everything, so I can see how each piece looks and moves in real light. You can see some of those concept looks on the label page.

5. Your values are part of the design

A big brand recently offered me a paid campaign. It was good money and great exposure, but their values didn’t match what I want my label to stand for, and I went back and forth for a whole week. In the end I said no, politely, and felt lighter straight away.

Marketing taught me that a brand is a promise. If I want people to trust my label later, I have to protect that promise now, even when it costs me something.

6. Build the community before the collection

The smartest thing my work has taught me is that you don’t launch to strangers. So I share the process openly: sketches, samples, mistakes and wins. The waitlist on my label page isn’t just a list. It’s the people who’ll tell me which colors they want and which pieces they’d actually wear.

Asking for feedback early is scary, because people might not love everything. That’s exactly why it’s useful.

7. Protect your energy

Between modeling, client work, content and the label, my calendar is a lot. What keeps me steady: a Sunday reset with skincare and laundry, leg day at the gym, a call home to my family, and at least one sunset a week with no phone. My mom, a nurse and my biggest fan, reminds me that the label will still be there tomorrow, and that I need to be too.

8. Remember why you started

The gold Africa pendant I always wear was a gift from my grandmother, Grandma Dee, on my 18th birthday. It’s the reason the label will have gold details: a small reminder of where I come from, on everything I make. When things get hard, I touch that pendant and remember that this is bigger than one sample or one bad week.

My dream is to shoot the label’s first campaign in Zanzibar. I don’t know exactly when yet. But I know the direction, and that’s enough to keep going.

What’s next

The next steps are fixing the samples, refining the fit and getting the first capsule ready to share. There’s no launch date yet, and I’d rather get it right than get it fast. If you want first looks, join the waitlist on the label page, and browse the samples in my gallery.

Are you building something too? Tell me about it in the chat. I love hearing about other people’s big dreams.