Jihan Roberts in front of her retail shoe store, Fashion I.S
Whether you have spoken to her directly or follow her on
twitter, you’ll notice very quickly that 31 year old Marie Jihan Roberts speaks
her mind and goes after what she wants. It’s this attitude that has propelled
this single mother into success and this week’s FireCracker spotlight.
Jihan, as she is known to many, wears many hats: she is the
owner of a shoe and accessory store named Fashion I.S., a personal shopper and
stylist inclusive of photo shoot production and styling, she runs a clothing
line, 36EDR, with her cousin and she helps manage the family’s carnival band
called Image Nation.
Constantly questioned about her personal style by friends
and strangers Jihan decided to enter the retail business; but this journey
wasn’t an easy one. She began this
business venture by pedaling a suitcase from office to office, building up her
clientele. After several years of doing so, she was finally able to open a
brick and mortar store (Fashion I.S) in 2010, where those clients and new
customers could now peruse her wide selection of shoes and accessories.
But Jihan isn’t all about business. Her family and personal
downtime is important too. Most of her working hours take place while her teenage
son is at school. She closes her store at 5pm, which allows her to make it home
in time to do homework and have dinner with him. As for her personal time,
dating or partying takes place outside of the hours she spends with her son,
e.g. her son’s bedtime is 9pm, so dating or partying may take place after that
time or on the weekends. She spends her downtime shopping, chilling with her
son, at the beach or sleeping.
Her advice to pregnant working women is to pace yourself; go
for your goals but know when to put your feet up and have someone rub them for
you. Additionally, she doesn’t believe in using pregnancy as a time to
overindulge. She states that you should eat until you’re satisfied keeping in
mind that the more you overindulge, the longer it will take to shed the pounds
post-pregnancy. Her fashion tip for pregnant moms is to invest in flats and
great accessories.
To women starting or currently running their own businesses,
she advises the following:
a) Don’t
quit your permanent job until you have sufficiently built up your clientele
b) Customer
service is paramount
c) Most
importantly – YOU ARE YOUR BRAND! You’re a walking advertisement for your
business. Always represent what you do e.g. she sells shoes, so she believes
her shoe game needs to be on point.
In ten years time, Jihan hopes to open another retail shoe
store at a lower price point, a plus sized clothing store, and a ‘working
man’s’ eating place. She would also like to become a merchandiser for an
internationally recognized brand while her son pursues his Masters degree.
If you would like to visit or purchase shoes and accessories
from Fashion I.S. you can go to #3 Mathura Street St. James, Port of Spain.
They’re open Tuesdays to Saturdays from 11am to 5pm. To contact Jihan for any
other services you can call 1-868-797-4141, follow her on Twitter @shoesbyfis
or on Instagram at shoesbyfis.
Get familiar with the logo for Fashion I.S.
36EDR's first collection
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