Crocheting For The Stars:

How A Self Care Hobby Became One of Kim Kardashian’s Favorite Brands

Interview with Saudia Islam of JBD Apparel | by Emma Golley | 02/22/2021

Starting your own fashion label can be a daunting experience. So when a self-care crochet hobby grows into one of Kim Kardashian’s favorite black-owned brands, just how do you deal with the sudden attention and demand that goes with it? Philadelphia-based designer Saudia Islam’s unique journey is one of the more positive fashion narratives to come out of 2020.

After launching her brand, JBD Apparel, with almost no formal fashion experience, Saudia soon realized she had a talent for creating fashionable crochet dresses and separates. But she had no idea what was on the horizon just 3 years later.

Here Saudia tells us her inspiring story...

Saudia, tell us about your background in fashion, what had you been up to previous to launching JBD Apparel:

It’s funny, I don’t really have a background in fashion, the closest thing related to fashion in my life previous to starting JBD is my mom. She was actually on Season 17 of Project Runway. She’s always been a seamstress and worked on establishing her own brand, so she inspired me to start JBD after I realized I had an interest in crochet clothing, as well as a passion for creativity and design.

Talk us through your journey from your interest in knitting to starting your own label:

I started crocheting because I have generalized anxiety disorder, so I needed something to help me cope, calm me down and allow me to be more relaxed. I realized it was a lot more productive for me to put my anxious energy towards something creative rather than just sitting still and letting it take over me. Literally after only a couple of days I was creating some great pieces, so I decided to launch JBD. It’s been an incredible journey ever since!

“My reaction was really like anyone’s reaction would be, I was floored. All of a sudden my notifications were going crazy, so much so that I couldn’t even open my phone successfully. ”

What steps did you take for getting your brand out there in front of people?

I started to collaborate with smaller influencers and I realized once I started to get my name out there through those people, a lot of others started reaching out to me and asked for my clothes in exchange for promotion. It was really organic in the way that I was growing, especially since I had been doing this for a long time before any of the recent press we’ve been receiving. I’m pretty appreciative of the smaller influencers who took a chance on working with me in the very beginning because they're the ones that helped to launch the brand.

Having one of the most famous women on the planet wearing your designs doesn’t happen everyday, tell us how that came about and your reaction when you saw Kim Kardashian in your knit pieces:

That was probably one of the most impactful moments for JBD so far. I’m incredibly appreciative of all of the people who were behind that Veneda (Kim’s stylist), Lucky (JBD PR Manager) and Kim especially. I’ve been very adamant on getting my product onto Instagram influencers because a lot of designers and stylists look to influencers to see what’s trending and what’s popular - or smaller influencers to see exclusive products. I’m pretty sure that’s how it came about with Kim and her stylist.

Her stylist decided to reach out to me and wanted to purchase pieces on Kims behalf. My reaction was really like anyone’s reaction would be, I was floored. All of a sudden my notifications were going crazy, so much so that I couldn’t even open my phone successfully. It was absolutely insane, I was just so grateful and so appreciative that she decided to take the time to support the brand by not just wearing the clothing but by tagging us and announcing her support on her instagram. I was genuinely shocked, I couldn’t believe it for a couple of days, it was so surreal. But I’m so thankful as it changed the brand overnight.

During 2020 Dua Lipa also wore your designs, what were your other ‘pinch me’ moments from this past year?

The Vogue features that we’ve had were pretty surreal to me as they’re what a lot of people aspire towards in their careers. It all happened to me so quickly and I was so appreciative, I just wasn’t expecting it. Also seeing so many girls tagging me in their pictures wearing JBD, it’s euphoric almost to me. I sometimes can’t believe the impact that we’ve had in such a short amount of time. I’m so grateful to see everyone loving their pieces and feeling confident enough to post in them. Every single time I get a notification to say someone has tagged JBD in a post or a customer has tagged us, I get butterflies because it really is so special to me to see pieces that I’ve made with my own two hands on other people. Seeing them rocking it, feeling confident in the clothes and loving the work that I’ve put out.

“I don’t ever feel like I’m working because I really love what I do and I appreciate that I get to do what I love as a job because I took my time and followed my heart.".

What are the best ways to handle a fashion business that grows in popularity as fast as JBD has?

That’s something that still I'm continuing to learn. I haven’t fully grasped how to really handle the popularity and demand but that’s something we’re working through now. We have a lot to work on and get to. There’s so many pieces to building a brand that I wasn’t familiar with as I was doing this all by myself and many aspects we have to delegate to other people who specialize in these different areas, getting manufacturing and marketing handled. There’s a lot of things we have to work on, but I'm blessed to have this support system and popularity as well as an upwards trajectory. I’m still getting a grip on it all but it’s coming along.

Lastly, do you have any advice or words of wisdom for anyone looking to turn their passion or hobby into a business?

I would say take your time, a lot of people don’t know this but I’ve been working on JBD since 2017. They assume my brand popped up when Kim wore JBD, but I’ve been doing this for a long time. I fell into what works for me and what’s good for my brand, establishing my brand identity and not just hopping into it and making low quality products just for money. You should always fall back onto what makes you happy, if you turn a hobby into a business and you just do it for money you tend to no longer like that hobby and it’s then ruined for you.

I don’t ever feel like I’m working because I really love what I do and I appreciate that I get to do what I love as a job because I took my time and followed my heart. I make sure I do things for me and not for money. Don’t be inspired by the money it’s going to make you, be inspired by the impact that you can have on other people and the confidence that you can give to other people. Whatever you are putting out, it could have an emotional connection or attachment to another person. That should be what you focus on because it’ll constantly keep you happy.

You can follow Saudia’s journey via her IG account and JBD’s IG account

Want to get your hands on a unique Jolie By Dia (JBD) piece? Head to the website now!