Despite being told that fashion was not a viable career option, Kimon Baptiste-St Rose was determined to follow her heart and turn her passion into a business.

She started her brand Kimmysticclo in 2007, when she was still working as a junior accountant. Her job funded her growing company, but when she was made redundant in 2012, she decided to take the plunge and become a full-time fashion designer.

Kimon says she has “no regrets” about her decision and the continued evolution of her brand has proved that she was right to take a leap of faith.

Yello asked Kimon to share her success story.

Please tell us a bit about your childhood.

I have two brothers and one sister, who is 11 years younger than me. My father was a mechanic and a sailor, so he was away from home a lot, but my mother did an awesome job raising us in his absence.

Growing up, I was an introvert. I didn’t have many friends, I didn’t talk a lot, and I didn’t get out much. I was considered ‘bright’ because I was always at the top of my class, so I mostly focused on reading and books.

The only playtime I had was with my many dolls. I loved to dress them up and make new clothes for them from the ‘scraps’ that my aunt, (who was a seamstress), gave to me.

My mum raised us all to be polite and humble. I owe a lot of who I am to her – all the good stuff!

Were you always a creative person?

Yes, as a child and teenager, I would sew clothing for my dolls and friends. I think I made a few cardboard shoes as well.

When my aunt acquired a new sewing machine and gave me her old one, the real magic started! I began designing and making clothes for myself and my friends.

Did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur?

To be honest, I really didn’t know what I wanted to do wholeheartedly for a very long time, especially since I was discouraged from pursuing fashion as a career.

When did you launch your brand Kimmysticclo?

In 2006, after I completed my BSc in management and psychology, I officially launched the Kimmysticclo brand. I registered it as a business in 2007.

Prior to that, fashion was something I did as a hobby because friends and family constantly told me that it wasn’t a lucrative career option. So, even when I registered the business, I still kept my job as a junior accountant.

However, I felt passionate enough to launch my brand instead of pursuing my masters’ degree. It was a decision I’ve never had any regrets about.

What was the biggest challenge you faced getting started? How did you overcome it?

Financial support from lending institutions was a huge challenge for me as a young person seeking to start up.

I held onto my job, and it supported my passion for quite some time until I was made redundant in 2012. That was when I was faced with the decision of either looking for another desk job, or dedicating all my energies towards my passion, I chose the latter with no regrets!

Who are your clients and how do they find you?

Our store is located in Kingstown, St.Vincent. We also have retailers in St. Lucia, Barbados, Jamaica, and Grenada. We can be found on Instagram and Facebook.

At Kimmysticclo, our clothing is functional, timeless, and versatile.

The Kimmysticclo woman is diverse.

A university graduate; employed; a mother; wife; she doesn’t get out very often, but when she does, she cleans up nicely.

She is free, single, and shops because she wants to look good.

She has “been there, done that” so is comfortable in her skin and wants to be comfortable in her clothing.

She may have physical insecurities, but she focuses on her strengths!

How do you come up with a dress design?

That is difficult to narrow down as I’m inspired by everything around me.

What is the process behind making a dress from start to finish?

For me, the process starts with an idea or a thought.

I’ll be honest and admit that I break the rules and skip a few steps in the ‘fashion design rule book’. There are times I choose my fabric and without a sketch, or a pattern, or a muslin sample, I cut into the fabric and sew!

The excitement for me comes from bringing the thought to life.

What has been your proudest career achievement so far?

I would say having boutique owners from across the Caribbean approach me to carry my brand. To have them recognise the quality of our pieces is truly humbling.

Which local, regional, and international fashion designers do you admire?

I’ve always admired Claudia Pegus and Heather Jones, who are both from Trinidad and Tobago.

And you are also an SVG cultural ambassador – please tell us what that role means to you?

It means a lot to me. It gives me the opportunity to represent my country officially as it relates to fashion. I’m a huge patriot, so the opportunity to represent my country as an ambassador, doing something I’m passionate about brings me tremendous joy.

How do you balance your personal and professional life?

It is really important for me to spend quality time with my son as he grows, so once I get home at the end of the day, my phone stays in the bag!

My weekends are sacred, which means little to no work is done. I try to plan family getaways during the slow periods as well.

What do you do on your days off?

I watch movies and TV series on Netflix with my husband and run around with my son. Lately, I’ve been trying to teach him to fly a drone, but he is only two, so that hasn’t been going very well.

I also love to cook and try new recipes.

What do you love about St Vincent and the Grenadines?

Everything! We have so much to offer here. Our people are so warm and friendly.

We have black sand beaches, forests, and hills for hiking; rivers and waterfalls; the Grenadines for sailing and yachting or just chilling.

Our food! Breadfruit and jackfish, Peleau, callaloo and crab, coconut dumplings, bakes and salt fish, doughboy, and Tri Tri.

Our festivals like Carnival and Nine Mornings, which is unique to our island.

What’s not to love!

What are your plans for the future?

To have a global brand.

What advice would you give budding Caribbean fashion designers?

Pray, work hard, persevere, and surround yourself with positive people.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?

Time travel. It has its drawbacks, as with most superpowers, but who wouldn’t want to control the nature of time? To be able to go back and change things that went wrong, or to travel to the future to see what would happen if you made a given choice.

On top of that basic usage, the variations and permutations of this power are near infinite in scope.

Emulating super speed by jumping around in time, arming yourself with the right tools to win a battle you previously lost, transporting your enemy to the end of time and then blinking back.

The possibilities are endless!

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See more of Kimon’s fashion on her website, Instagram and Facebook.

Read more ‘Celebrating Caribbean Culture’ articles in the 2021 St Vincent and the Grenadines phone books (pages 1-16).