Jesse Jackson, a sophomore political science major and marketing minor, has begun putting his marketing skills to use on the campus of Texas A&M University – Commerce, establishing a clothing line entitled Stars + Elevators.
“It grew from looking at stairs and elevators and how they’re kind of close to each other, and how there’s more than one way to get to the top,” Jackson said. “And I always chose the stairs because it’s going to end up that if you take the stairs, you’re just going to be healthy, and it kind of had me thinking. It kind of transformed into stars and elevators, and the slogan for it is ‘reach for the stars and elevate your thinking.’ That’s just how it came to pass, and I’m glad it is what it is.”
Stars + Elevators has only been in the works for six months and has already launched it’s first three items: a short sleeve t-shirt, a bracelet, and a preorder for a long sleeve t-shirt.
“I first started doing it in May,” Jackson said. “I just had a notepad that I carried around with me, and whenever I had a free minute I would just draw different designs in there. It’s something that I do when I’m just listening to music and I think something would be cool, I just draw it out. I want to make something that people can identify with and express myself through the clothes. I’ve been doing that and I had 40 or 50 pages of designs, and I didn’t know how to transfer that to a shirt without the technology.”
However, Jackson attained the technology needed and pushed himself to learn how to use them on his own.
“I just spent hours [learning]; I would come home and mess around in [Adobe] Illustrator,” Jackson said. “Finally I got to the point where I thought I could put this out. I feel like when I was drawing it, it was what I wanted it to be, but figuring out how to manipulate it on the computer took some time.”
Mayra Ramiez, a sophomore biology major with pre-dental intent and a supporter of Stars + Elevators, explained her appreciation for the clothing line.
“What I like most about Stars + Elevators is being a witness to the fruition of an idea,” Ramirez said. “I have been able to see the creative process behind the company and the designs, and ultimately see a bit of all of the love and passion Jesse has for his company.”
Jackson has big dreams for the line, already planning a collection for next spring.
“My big goal right now is to just keep getting it out there,” Jackson said. “I’m probably going to have a few more shirts coming out soon, and once I get the customer base to where I can do that kind of thing, my goal is set for the spring. Continue to get through the winter, have a few more releases, and then in the spring I want to have a solid collection of things from shirts to maybe a jacket, and I do want do branch out. It’s just going to take time; build the people who know about it up, acquire the capital necessary to do that. In the long run I do want to be expansive and cover everything such as jackets, shirts, bags and shoes.”
While Jackson has great ambitions for the line, he is also aware that it will take time.
“It’s not going to happen overnight, but it’s something that I love to do so I hope that I can continue to have this grow and make things that people like and give back different ways through this company,” he said. “It’s been a couple weeks now and I’ve got over 100 likes on Facebook, which is really big for me. I’m just hoping to keep the growth up and get it out there to people and just continue to make really cool things that people could identify with.”
Jackson uses his interests to inspire his creations.
“I’m really into fashion and things like that,” Jackson said. “I’m really inspired by the music I listen to. I’m really inspired by James Bond, I love those movies and I think that inspires me a lot. One of the clothing brands that I do like is Love Before Glory. It’s a clothing line founded by Jackson Hall, who is an ex-member of [the band] Of Mice and Men. I really like the way he was doing things.”
Jackson also stressed his determination when it comes to creating original clothing.
“I make a point to not look at [clothing lines] because I want to have my own thing,” he said. “I don’t want to even accidentally copy something from somebody else. I think that if you’re a designer, that should be your thing. Nobody should take that from you because you put a lot of time into it, and I think it’s important that you get your own point of view across. I want to make things that kind of reflect that and give it a different spin.”