Today we’d like to introduce you to Lewis LaGrant
Hi Lewis, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started off with the idea of DifferentEra in Highschool. I wanted to be able to make my own brand that stood out from other small businesses and trends. With the wave of bubble letters and sweatsuits coming in I saw a lot of repetitiveness or even copying in a lot of brands. I wanted to branch out and start my own look.
I remember being in my economics class and we were creating businesses and I decided to design some clothes that I actually enjoyed. From there, I decided to just build off from there and decide to actually make a brand. I went from creative planning the designs, the company name, the archives and what direction I wanted my brand to go.
Once I got into college I struggled with finding a manufacture that could be consistent, this ended up with me wasting so much time and money, but eventually I had found one that hit the mark every time. I had scheduled out when I wanted to drop my first archive and when I wanted to do photoshoots and everything. With how much money I had used I had to start off with a smaller design ,and that’s where the Separated by Differences Archive shirts come in. I showed them off to some friends had them model for me and finished creating my website. It was super fun and the best part was once I had released we immediately sold out of a lot of sizes. It felt like I was dreaming when I opened the sales panel.
My whole mission as a designer and clothing brand owner is to unite people with their uniqueness but also distinguish everyone by their own characteristics, it’s easy to wear the same clothes as someone else, but our big question is “How do YOU wear it?” I want to continue branching out and meeting designers and incorporating collaborations into new designs and it’s always fun being friends with designers, photographers, and models, because it’s essentially just a big artistic hangout. I have big plans for DifferentEra and I love the direction it’s going.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
One of my biggest struggles was finding at first, I’m a college athlete, and being in my sophomore year of college I moved into an apartment and wanted to furnish things as well as start my own brand. I had to test on whether or not manufacturers could be quick enough, if they could get things consistently or if they were going to change quality each time.
It’s also a bit difficult balancing everything, I want to extend my team soon as it is just myself managing everything as of now, but it’s all apart of the process.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m known for being a bit of a wild card, there’s a lot of things I’m interested and I find myself particularly good at. I love to make music, and meet new people who involve themself in production. I also like to modify cars, and take mine to car shows. I enjoy making media content, like short films as well as skateboarding at parks or on the streets. It’s hard to pin point my favorite thing to do, but I think that’s a good trait.
What sets me apart from everyone isn’t really too much, I just go with the flow, I let the idea I have for anything it is come to me, and expand on its own in the process of creating it. If a small design comes to me, I draw it and eventually I add more to it, and the more I look back and come back to it, I’ve come back to something different than the original.
Who else deserves credit in your story?
My mom and friends have been a huge help in growing my business. My mom always believed in me and gave me the encouragement I needed to keep pushing forward, even when things got tough. She helped with keeping me focused on what I wanted to do as well as being able to identify the need to balance my creative and educational life.
My friends stepped up and spread the word about my business, shared my posts on social media, and even helped me set up my photoshoots and even a small merch drop commercial. Their support made a big difference and kept me motivated. It really shows how important it is to have a solid support system when you’re trying to make things happen. It made me just want to keep making my ideas and thoughts a reality the more and more I went on.
Pricing:
- DifferentEra Separated by Differences Archive: Separated by Love Shirt – $34.99
- DifferentEra Separated by Differences Archive: Separated by Desire Shirt – $34.99
- DifferentEra Separated by Differences Archive: Separated by Knowledge Shirt – $34.99
Contact Info:
- Website: https://eradifferentarchives.com/collections/all
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eradifferent_?igsh=djBta25vZnJkOWpn&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/differentera.2024?mibextid=wwXIfr&mibextid=wwXIfr
- Twitter: https://x.com/eradifferent_?s=21&t=cDiubf4XxOfn4-IdQRyJlQ
