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56 | GRAVITAS MAGAZINE GravitasMag.com Tracy Negoshian Designer/Owner Tracy Negoshian, St. Petersburg, Naples, St. Armands Circle Six years ago, this Zephyrhills native and University of South Florida graduate burst onto the fashion scene with her own line of bold, geometric designs feauturing seahorses and aquatic shapes. Tracy Negoshian, 34, says she never grew up thinking she would become a fashion designer, and yet, her multi-seasonal lines are a hot commodity for women from Millenials to retirees throughout the Southwest Florida region. A er creating her own college-themed clothing line, Negoshian set her sights on expanding her brand to create her label and flagship store. She convinced her step dad to invest in the launch. Her concept was such a success, she was able to pay back the loan within a year. Now, she and her step dad are business partners alongside three other full- time employees in an aic of a converted home in St. Petersburg. Sav v y in fashion design and in business, Negoshian launched two flagship stores in downtown St. Petersburg and Naples, and will debut another on Sarasota's St. A rmands Circle at the first of the year. If opening three stores isn't enough of an accomplishment, Negoshian is also balancing married life with newly wed husband, David Phillips, and their one-year old son, Cooper. In her own words, Negoshian shares with GV ITAS how she car ved out her own niche and what the Tracy Negoshian brand represents to women. How did a local girl from the Tampa Bay area become a fashion icon, as well as a savvy entrepreneur? When I moved to Palm Beach aer college graduation, I worked at Saks Fih Avenue as an assistant manager at a designer salon selling Lily Pulitzer and Emilio Pucci dresses. Ever y thing that I loved had a price point that was k ind of out of my realm. en, I went out to a national college football championship game with my stepdad 's family; he is a University of Florida alum. My mom was wearing a lile orange tank top with a rhinestone gator and women kept ask ing her where she got it. We talked about how there might be a market there for a potential business venture. A few months later. When I le Saks, I thought, "What am I going to do?" at's when my step dad reminded me about the game-day line I was talk ing about. I had always been work ing in retail, but I had never worked in the manufacturing side of the business. It took a year and a half to find a factor y to produce my first label, which was called My Team Boutique. I started with 4 colleges, USF, FSU, UF, and Georgia. I did si x styles between tunic tops and wrap dresses. We had a wonderful sell up until I got a cease-and-desist leer from the colleges. A lthough I wasn't using any trademarks, it opened my eyes and I learned about the fashion business. Continued page 58 Visit GravitasMag.com to hear the full interview embedded into the digital edition.

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