Today we’d like to introduce you to Marvin Jackson.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I’m a full-time photographer here in Houston. My photography company, Jackd Photography (JackdPEG), was launched on the campus of Prairie View A&M University in the Fall semester of 2009. Since then, I have grown from just an event & graduation portrait photographer, and have become an established photographer in many other genres as well. I’ve worked with some celebrities, award-winning wardrobe stylists, highly acclaimed fashion designers, and published in some very reputable magazines for various genres.
Annually, I produce a black lingerie concept series that takes place during the summer time, and over the past few years, I have taken notice to the difficulty that the participants have had when it comes to finding adequate attire. I didn’t put much thought into solving that problem until my brother, Hunnidt Waze, a Houston artist, suggested that we look into starting our own lingerie business to create an avenue for us to cross-promote our crafts. We sat down and looked over the #Numb3rs, and accepted the challenge that we would be males in a female consumer-based industry.
Our extensive research built our solid knowledge of lingerie, and after several conversations with our female associates, we quickly became aware that they’re the biggest concern with lingerie is sizing. Many women are currently in possession of the incorrect size undergarments due to not knowing how to properly measure themselves. We decided to build our company around the issue. By providing women with the proper tools and knowledge to attain their correct measurements, they would be encouraged to purchase items online without the fear of them fitting properly once delivered.
This sparked the name of the business J Lust Lingerie Baetique. J Lust is actually pronounced as Jealous. Proclaiming that purchasing lingerie that accurately fits will make your old lingerie jealous.
Has it been a smooth road?
JLust Bae launched Thanksgiving night of 2018 as many other businesses launched their “Black Friday Sales.” Our thoughts were pure that this would be a soft launch considering that we had roughly 30 items on hand to sale. We were blown away by the sales as we began to sell out of items within the first few hours.
We quickly had to dismiss the original idea that our “soft launch” would allow us time to do a full launch in January in preparation for Valentines Day in February 2019. By Monday morning after Thanksgiving, we were contacting new vendors and manufacturers to meet the supply and demand, and avoid losing the momentum of our brand’s growth.
Many long nights followed by early mornings led to our inventory growing from the initial 30 items to 150 items by the middle of December 2018. The growth pushed out timeline up exponentially in all areas, and soon we definitely came to a conclusion that we needed to bring in a few others and create a team to help in other areas of the company. Needless to say, the struggles became real… real fast!!!
So, let’s switch gears a bit and go into the JLust Lingerie Baetique story. Tell us more about the business.
J Lust Lingerie Baetique is an online lingerie boutique that is based in Houston, TX. The company is owned and operated to two men. We specialize in accurate sizing of our garments, and we’re known for empowering our consumers with the knowledge of how to acquire their accurate measurements.
Those that visit our website and are comfortable enough to purchase items that they feel will fit them will receive a soft tape measure in the mail along with their purchase. Now, from the comfort of their home, they will be able to measure themselves accurately and revisit our site with confidence to buy items they were uncertain about the right size to get before.
Our website also has step-by-step instructions on how you can measure yourself to get your accurate bust, band, waist, and hip measurements. This is a service that is usually provided by other brands in their store, but my women shy away from having strangers execute these steps to attain these particular measurements.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
Lingerie is a very large industry, and online lingerie is becoming a big part of that as more and more people enjoy purchasing online versus finding time in their hectic schedules to physically go into stores. Our brand caters to all sizes and shapes of women not only with a range of sizes that we sell but also with the models that we choose to photograph our items on.
Our research shows that the average women do not feel that the typical lingerie model looks like them and therefore makes it even harder to see themselves wearing the items. We have a variety of body types as models, and we can see this becoming a huge trend change in the years to come.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jlustbae.com, www.jackdpeg.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/jlustbae, www.instagram.com/
jackdpeg - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jlustbae/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/jlustbae
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