The corporate life, though profitable, is not always a good fit for everyone. Many creatively driven people have admitted finding the culture of corporate, mundane, restrictive and at times, purposeless. Taylar Barrington, owner of The Taylar Barrington Creative Agency say’s she recognized her dislike for corporate pretty quickly after some brief exposure in office.
[Related: Women of Power: 4 Boss Moves to Get Salary You Deserve]
“I wasn’t always sure I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but my short-lived exposure to the corporate world assured me that an office cubicle was not the place for me. Over the years, I’ve consistently been a mentor and a creative.â€
Taylor bid farewell to the #CorperateLife and went on to utilize her passion and skills as a mentor and creative for the greater good. Not only does Barrington, have her own creative agency, where she offers clients, young, fresh talent in a verity of fields,–the 27 year old Florida A&M Alum, is also the founder of empowerment brand, Maverick Hill, an inspirational portal for collegiate women, where the mantra, “Well Behaved Women Seldom Make History†tag each colorful page of its website.
Black Enterprise caught up with Barrington to discuss her journey into entrepreneurship, a few of her biggest fears, and how she started one of her businesses with only $500 dollars.
Tell me a little about yourself and your background, and what it is you do?
I am Taylar Barrington a 27 year-old native of Stone Mountain, Georgia and graduate of Florida A&M University. I am currently pursuing my MBA from Florida A&M University in management and supply chain and reside in Madison, Wisconsin.
My personal mission statement is to creatively elevate young women in order to cultivate more motivators, leaders and history-makers. I am the owner of two entrepreneurial ventures Taylar Barrington Creative Agency and MaverickHill™. Taylar Barrington Creative Agency (TBCA) is a full-service visual marketing agency that utilizes the niche creative skills of young women to provide a multitude of services to clients.
MaverickHill, my newest venture, is a lifestyle empowerment brand for collegiate women. MaverickHillâ„¢ encourages young women to be leaders, motivators and history-makers through its products, programs and resources. In one year MaverickHillâ„¢ has reached over 15,000 people, has established a campus representative program, hosted it’s first annual charitable event and has become a profitable company.
Where did the inspiration for MaverickHillâ„¢ come from?
The inspiration to start MaverickHillâ„¢ came from my time in the classroom. As a special education, graphic communications teacher, I had the opportunity to make an impact on my former students although I’m convinced they made more of an impact on me. Through a daily class warm-up, my students were asked to write about their dream and in return, they asked me as well. Unfortunately, I didn’t have an answer and it made me have some serious self-reflection. Through this realization, I started MaverickHillâ„¢, left my teaching job and have been working “my dream†ever since.
How much capital did it take to start your businesses?
I started MaverickHillâ„¢ with the $500.00 I saved from being a teacher. I scraped my little savings to produce my first batch of tees, order some shipping supplies and conduct a photo-shoot the day before the launch. It was truly a whirlwind!
What is your business model? Why not a nonprofit for MaverickHillâ„¢?
MaverickHillâ„¢, a social company, was created to service the worlds
collegiate woman’s population through its products, resources and programs. Through my experience as a social entrepreneur, I’ve received a lot of questions about profit vs. non-profit and the ultimate answer is the ability to allow the company to be self sufficient in creating revenue and profits. As MaverickHillâ„¢ has a philanthropic undertone; our ultimate goal is to provide opportunities for public shares and corporate growth for young women. I desire to show young women, that you can help others, sow seeds and still become a profitable entity.What were some of your biggest fears during your time of transition into entrepreneurship? How did you overcome them?
My biggest fears have been the opportunity to sustain financially, rejection of business models and racial inequality. I’ve overcome financial sustainability by becoming more fiscally responsible with my finances. I’ve made better decisions about how money is allocated and have fulfilled financial saving goals. Second, my business model is unique because of my target market, marketing efforts and geographical location.
Through servicing collegiate women, I was concerned about the idea of rejection, but I’ve learned that a major part of brand recognition
and acceptance is marketing and transparency. I have refined my business model continuously while keeping my ear to the ground regarding modifications, feedback and additional products. Thus far, that has proven to extend my customer base.Finally, it is certainly different to permeate markets in a place where women, let alone black women aren’t “very familiar†to the entrepreneurial community. Marketing a new business starts with marketing yourself and I have had to work tirelessly to network and make connections with players than can help MaverickHillâ„¢. I am grateful to a co-working space here in Madison, 100 State, that has afforded me the opportunity to collaborate with entrepreneurs, obtain feedback with new business ideas and concepts and a place that embraces me for who I am and what I believe.
Barrington says, MaverickHillâ„¢ is a huge company, with a lot of working parts and any future endeavors will remain under her focused umbrella of building a company with integrity, longevity and goodness. To find out more about Taylar Barrington and her creative empowerment efforts, visit Maverick Hill.com.