Our Story
UNIQUE ROOTS
Nicole Duke started her company 22 years ago, after graduating from the Fashion Institute of Technology and then working for a few of the industry giants including Tommy Bahama as Design Director. But it is her memories of home, and the tragic loss of a young sister, that gave her the impetus to venture out on her own and make the most of her talent and opportunities. Nicole is an artist by nature and wanted to fully create something from scratch, and have the complete freedom to create anything she could imagine. Nicole is unlike anyone in the industry – both who she is now, and her journey in life so far.
MEET NICOLE
Nicole is our founder and lead designer, and is the pioneer of couture tops and animal prints. She came to the United States from Guyana with nothing, has found her own way and makes her impacts in personal and professional ways. She has been exceptionally successful leading design for industry giants, starting her own company and growing it substantially, and continuing to design and create in unique ways. Her line of sandblasted and embellished jeans launched the company. Later on, the couture tops sold faster than anyone expected, sparking a new interest in Nicole's signature dresses. Now, vibrant colors and new expressions are inspiring new creations.
OUR VALUES
More than anything, we are focused on the strength of women and girls, and the power of diversity and collaborating across cultures. We believe strongly in equality and we have aligned ourselves with factories that do right by their employees, especially the working women. We want to ensure our customers are getting the best quality and value possible while maintaining safe manufacturing environments for all workers. And it is important to us to work in the most environmentally friendly ways.
SUSTAINABLE, STYLISH + SAFE
The health of environment is incredibly important to us. We focus on reducing waste, water consumption, gas emissions and chemical use in production, reducing excess packaging, reducing airline travel and using biodegradable materials wherever possible. We are always looking for new ways to use less, and apply our creativity like developing our Nicole’s Closet hand tag so that it can be used as a bookmark. We also do what we can around the office – using public transportation and bicycles (and our feet!), minimizing electricity consumption especially in lighting and using almost zero paper.
OUR COMPANY
We start with exceptional design – creativity, style and a compelling personal back story. We have high quality production globally, giving us advantaged access to the best fabrics and materials, ability develop rapidly and efficiently and produce with high quality at tremendous scale. We have strong, long term relationships with most of the major retailers in the United States and Canada, and are now exploring new relationships with international retailers. We are backed by one of the largest banks in the world, and have several additional financing and capital relationships in place to support our growth. And, we are continuing to grow and expand our partnerships both in the United States and around the world – please contact us if you are interested in partnering with us.
GIVING BACK
We care about making positive impact in the community. Nicole created a breakthrough and hugely successful charitable program Food for Jeans. We will also be donating a portion of half profits to help improve race relations and also to support those most affected by COVID 19. And, Nicole and Curtis have been mentoring students in disadvantaged communities for over a decade.
