Meet Jennifer
Jennifer is the proud mother of four boys with an unwavering dedication to her dream of working in the fashion industry. While her journey towards that goal hasn’t always been linear, Jennifer has remained remarkably steadfast in pursuit of her design career.
Jennifer originally attempted to enroll at the Fashion Institute of Technology in order to hone her craft and gain access to advantageous professional connections that would propel her career forward. However, expensive tuition and obligations to her family left Jennifer unable to follow through with her coursework.
Undeterred, Jennifer registered for classes at her local technical school and even secured an internship offer with fashion giant Betsey Johnson.
“She’s my idol to design with because she does happy-looking patterns, and she’s really expressive.”
And yet, the school closed before her first day taking the internship offer with it.
To make ends meet, Jennifer worked odd jobs as a security guard and in the medical field putting her family first and taking care of her sons the best she could. All the while, Jennifer never gave up on fashion designing from her home for family and friends.
Years after her bid at Betsey Johnson fell through, Jennifer was introduced to Grameen America by a friend and saw it as an opportunity to revive her dream of working as a full-time designer. Taking her career into her own hands, Jennifer invested her first $2,000 loan into getting her brand, Jenna Line Customs, off the ground. She now enjoys creating kitschy garments with bold colors and patterns that bring a smile to the face of those who wear them.
Four months into her membership with Grameen America, Jennifer is already looking ahead and into ways she can share her talents with others. Her ultimate goal is to open a fashion school in her hometown of New Haven, which currently has no such institution. In this school, she hopes to not only teach people how to sew and design clothing but also model and market their work. Working towards this fully equipped school, Jennifer has already begun teaching pattern making classes in her local community center and enjoys making connections with her students.
