Harrison Blake Apparel offers the latest garments and accessories that finish off the perfect look for any gentleman looking to conquer a board room meeting or enjoy a night out on the town.
Recently, the Los Angeles Sentinel spoke with the mastermind behind the Black-owned business, Richard Taylor, to discuss how Harrison Blake came to be.
Taylor, a Michigan resident, created Harrison Blake Apparel in 2014, now the company is celebrating five years. Taylor’s degree in business administration combined with his work experience in producing garments and clothing for the military, provided him with the background he needed to launch his luxury apparel business.
Currently, the online company allows customers to purchase neckties, bow ties, silk pocket squares, and much more in a variety of colors, patterns, prints, and materials. All of the prices on the website are under $20 except for the Harrison Blake Monthly Dapper Club. The monthly subscription includes one necktie and four matching accessories every month for $25, free shipping included. Additional Harrison Blake clubs include, the Bow Tie Club, and the Floral Tie Club.
“When I first started, I was making lapel pins, and that was the only thing I was producing at the time,” said Taylor.
“That’s when I decided to make my own branded website. After about ten months in, that’s when I expanded and started doing other accessories besides lapel pins like neckties, pocket squares, bracelets and things like that.”
Although the business is spearheaded by Taylor, he also receives help from his mother, father, and his daughter who handles the business’ social media accounts.
Like many business owners, Taylor too faced challenges during the process of starting his business.
“[Some of the] obstacles included finding good suppliers that had the quality we were looking for. There were some mistakes that were made by me. At one point, we tried to have some women’s accessories, which I really knew nothing about and that was part of the fail.
So I gave up on that and decided to focus on just men’s accessories,” he said.
Looking back at his life, Taylor never saw himself as a business owner. In fact, prior to getting involved in business, Taylor focused on writing and self-publishing for four years before he decided to start Harrison Blake.
“That’s kind of what got me started. Just developing my own extra income, and I kind of attribute that to getting me on this path of entrepreneurship,” he said.
As a Black business owner, Taylor understands the importance of encouraging young men and women to pursue entrepreneurship as a career path. During the interview, he spoke of his own journey and provided advice for those seeking to start their own business.
“The biggest thing is to get started even if you start slowly or start small that’s okay. Just feel free to grow your business gradually. You don’t have to go into debt or always take on investors,” he said.
“Also, what helped me was leveraging the power of social media and making connections with various, different, and past influences and whatever business they may be in so that you have influences in that market. [Next,] retail to them and allow some of those people to try your products and recommend you to their audience. That will really get your business out there a lot faster than you can do on your own!”
Harrison Blake Apparel offers high quality men’s accessories and a variety of products for gentlemen at a reasonable price. For more information on the company please visit www.harrisonblakeapparel.com, and follow them on Facebook @Harrison Blake Apparel and on Instagram @wearlapelpins.
