The Start- Building Resources- Funding 

I am a Caribbean American (Specifically Trinidadian  of African descent ) living in NY for over a generation. born In 1966 I had a strong pre tertiary education at one of the nations top all girls high schools that greatly shaped my perspective and capabilities.  Post graduation I held a series of jobs in marketing, research, library services, teaching before starting my own  line and boutique. I was certified as a COBOL programmer while becoming involved in advocacy for indie manufacturers and apparel makers and  planning my first  Professional Garment Trade show all before leaving Trinidad to enter New York's Fashion Institute of Technology at the age of 22. I have been sewing  since my preteens trained by my mother who taught dress and pattern making A specialization in Knitwear design, a minor focus on accessory design followed by a Four year stint as an apprentice to a Leather wear artisan designer who was also a professor at Parson's solidified my core fashion design training. I continued developing my skill sets seeking other apprenticeships and opportunities to learn from skilled professionals from other backgrounds. By the mid 1990 I joined a partnership running a bespoke dressmaking salon on NY's Upper East side.  In subsequent years I've taken on a lot of roles and projects that have given me a unique perspective and a cadre of skill sets & expertise!

By Profession I am a Creative Luxury Designer of Signature Business Products soft toys furniture and accessories even events & Bespoke/Custom Personal Fashion specializing in Fit. My vocational skills run the gamut in Fashion, Tech, Art, Event and Marketing. My Passion is sharing what I know with others, teaching them. My Mission is to empower folks with the ability to provide for themselves and their loved ones. 

By the turn of the century (yes I was there) Several events, including  the tragedy of 9/11. the murder of my brother death of a close friend and several others close to me resulted in a shift in focus and trajectory and in 2003 I made a conscious decision to follow my calling to  help local businesses. A decision that would run the gamut of the next twenty years ! 2004 started the first blog on black  local fashion designers and a Brooklyn Fashion week event.  Around  2007 I designed and executed a trade show sponsored by Macy's for black designers under the auspices of the Black church means Business.  2006-11 saw me  deeply entrenched in the NYtech Barcamp scene. Participating in 3 o4 $ hacks winning in Two... Speaking and predicting about the use of Live streaming by mom and pops in their businesses (we were already doing it). Convening Fashion Camp the first US based fashion tech event, an unconference! The stories  of various projects undertaken, products developed, the achievements,  challenges, failing forwards, missed opportunities and incredible highs are too much for this intro but I will be documented over the next year feel free to sign up for my mailing list.

The ability to provide for oneself is a basic human right.
I believe in value of humans above things and machines.
The hand that executes is as equal to or even more important than the face that simply represents and that should be reflected in remunerations.
Big Fish eat little fish... if the little fish die from lack of the ability and or opportunity to eat. Big fishes eventually suffer.
There is enough on this planet to sustain mankind if we divest from centralized cities and industrial centers. Decentralized, distributed production is a global necessity. 
Karma is a business principle, Do right by others.

B-A-D-A-S-S-E-BS is and Acronym 

B- Building

A -  Art-artist- artisan

D - Design 

A - Apparel

S - Styling & Service

S _ Sustainability

E - Entrepreneurship

BS- many say Business Savant but BS are my initials (the only BS I put up with)! 

I create! I challenge and lead folks to make small transitions that result in significant transformation. "What do you do", is the most common question I get. Saying I create is a simplified version of what I actual execute.

I inspire folks.
I solve the  problems they find themselves stuck on.
I create a bit of joy and peace by designing what they did not know they needed.
I walk them through processes and introducing them to  technology that helps them and teaching them so they can  navigate their own way around their obstacles. 

We all know that  earning on your own, when earning on your own is a necessity, whether it is for health, parenting and or family needs or lifestyle desire is not just hard. It can often seem impossible. So many have great ideas but never embark on them.  Of those that "try' many become overwhelmed and give up.  Many more simply lack funding space, equipment man power need to succeed. They end up putting more effort into finding resources or attracting potential customer. that despite teh fact the the vast majority of those seeking grants will not  gain them, in fact I'd garner a guess that over 95% of those needing grants or funding will not qualify to apply. as for the banking credit based system...

"By the time the bank is willing t give you the money,  you really do not need it"

I've seen many take courses and workshops   on getting grants, writing great social media post and copy, positioning themselves to attract clients and opportunity. Only  to realize they  do not have deliverables that stand out  they lack space, production, talent logistic so then they themselves start coaching others! Some cannot even generate a viable idea, they were never thought how! The transformation from employee to self employed and  more importantly Employer takes a number of small transitions before the TRANSFORMATION is successfully  achieved.  Add the use of technology and culture, what people actually do and value) to that mix and its a volatile cocktail.

What's hype vs necessity?

What works vs what is simply trend?
These questions fascinate and engage me.

Since 2003 I have conscientiously opted to explore, design and execute projects that seek, find, and mend the cracks that keep our smaller creative, culturally based businesses from sinking and/or  dragging, rather that rising and pushing forward. I strategized and leveraged technology to amplify results and in so doing created systems of products, processes, 

My are designed to projects shift the door open to future generations. Folks given  the help and support not only succeed but bring their communities along. Reach a mother you'll get the entire village. Our Projects have proven that its possible to change lives by addressing challenges, while respecting personal and cultural boundaries and extremely high standards of execution.  

re-envisions the collective marketing and sales portals and practices both online and offline with an  emphasis on supporting individual businesses and supporting their growth as Businesses Brands and Creatives! we explain not just the what but "how to", and encourage others to share as a means of solidifying that  transition.

Unlike many current offering we centered our program within local communities or virtually, with flexible timing. So parents could be at home for their kids thus avoiding teh "challenges of "Latchkey upbringing. Accessibility was key We centered our project in fashion, technology, arts and live "entertainment like events. Our hands on project helped existing local businesses, So that participants got a working experience in teh field while businesses got  support especially with attracting consumers. Most importantly we focused on self funding... so from the jumpstart participants were introduced to teh concept of value in Resources and not  being  dependent on cash.  

The project was designed to work by ideating, testing theories through action and improving on results. VIPS- Vested interest parties and Sponsors were also participants at a crucial stage.. That direct communication and exchange of ides, needs, and desires, that connected ness resulted in the high levels of success.  During NYukco our popup incubator for example withing a week of designing a sample the artist got fed back and was able to make changes that resulted in immediate increased demand (within a week)

More info coming soon...
You can always check for details via our Project page  
In the meantime  you can reach out with specific questions via the  contact page 

More info coming soon...
You can always check for details via our Products Page  
In the meantime  you can reach out with specific questions via the  contact page 

This is my portfolio as well as a legacy site. It is one of my latest projects with two goals
1- DESIGNING A SIMPLE WEB PRESENCE for those who may be facing economic hardship or unable due to one  constraint or another, is unable to maintain a more complicated digital presence.
2- DESIGNING A LEGACY SITE - Post covid I've notice many sites and account "disappear" when owners are no longer around to  maintain or pay bills.  any record of folks who have existed and contributed has simply vanished!  my goal is to include info someone, maybe a descendant, may find interesting. A record as such of my time on earth.  

The way back machine  captures images  and preserves of the contents of the internet at a given time.   
This site is hosted on Google sites and designed to be permanently available and backed up onto the WayBack Machine. in its first iteration we are using the sites native google site address as we build.  Since some folks will not be able to buy domain name  https://sites.google.com/view/badassebs . When completed we will activate the custom url www.badassebs.com and also index those urls via the Wayback machine.

Since the the US appeals court judges has ruled that Archive.org's Wayback Machine is legit legal evidence, one of the goals of this small project is to leverage the ability of those captures to be utilized as legal evidence of existence for those small creative who cannot always
afford registering IP rights! we have not yet finalized final logistics but will update once we've figured it out...