Self-Made Millionaire Ebony Swank on the Power of the Pivot in Business
Dropping out of high school was no hindrance to Ebony Swank’s determination to reach her goals.
The Detroit native and fashion entrepreneur may not have followed the typical path to become the successful businesswoman she is today. Still, the fashionista is a significant asset to the fashion industry’s ongoing evolution of systemic change and efforts to address inclusivity issues. Known for creating the “World’s Stretchiest Jeans,” Swank is the founder of Swank a Posh, a quality and affordable clothing brand, growing from a small business into a multimillion-dollar company in less than a decade.
Innovative thinking and a tenacious spirit led her to identify a void in the fashion marketplace. Affordable, stylish clothing accentuating women’s curves and appealing to all body shapes and sizes accelerated Swank a Posh’s popularity among consumers.
The self-taught business owner shared her journey with BLACK ENTERPRISE, from being a high school dropout to building a successful brand and mentoring young Black businesswomen.
Navigating Success Without a Degree
“It’s not just I’m a high school dropout,” Swank says. “I only have an eighth-grade education. When I decided to take my GED, which was very early on, I just went in and took the test and passed.”
Swank explained that taking the test was just something she decided to do. Calling herself a forward thinker, Swank said she broke into the accounting world and made sure she was actively working to gain experience.
She navigated through the corporate culture with various job titles, from data entry to becoming a collections specialist, accounting manager, and financial analyst.
Failing Forward
The fashionista said she was excited when she quit her job to open her first storefront next door to Nordstrom’s department store in a high-end luxury mall. However, things quickly took a turn when she realized, “I spent tons of money, but I didn’t make any, so I had to close. That’s why I love failure.”
Knowing that she had no desire to return to work, she reopened another store with only $12,000, and this time she was successful. Creating her multimillion-dollar baby, Swank a Posh, Swank applied her accounting principles and developed a plan.
Swank said she researched the Juicy Couture brand, digging into their target demographic, “the young, Black girl. I started researching who the young, Black girl was and her interests.” Studying the customer allowed her store to soar, leading her to open a second store and eventually an online store.
As she continued scaling, Swank was approached by a company to buy nearly 50% of her business for one million dollars, which she knew was not enough money to share a portion of her brand. This propelled her to invest more money into her business, with Swank creating a marketing plan of ads, educating herself on the ins and outs of digital media, and hiring others to perform company tasks so she wouldn’t have to be a one-woman show.
Swank went from starting with $12,000, which was all she had at the time, to building a $40 million company. This past year, the brand saw a record one-day profit from $1 million on Black Friday to $2 million by Cyber Monday.
Addressing Inclusivity
The Swank a Posh brand considers the Black woman first, and Swank said making clothes specifically for Black women is her responsibility. She makes sure Swank a Posh clothing provides stretch in specific areas like the hip, thigh, and butt, where Black women may be a little heavier.
“Nobody has ever made clothes specifically for Black women,” she said.
“It’s my responsibility to make sure that whatever I touch, whatever fabric I use, it has the amount of stretch that’s needed,” she said in regards to fit.
Her business motto has always been about producing clothing inclusive to all sizes. “Body positivity is where I really went in,” Swank said. Swank a Posh clothing pays close attention to details such as arm length, and women with a full bust size, because she remembers shopping at stores and struggling to find clothes that comfortably fit her physique.
Teaching Young Employees Business Tools for Success
The self-taught entrepreneur said she thrives on teaching young people leadership skills to help prepare them for success, even the basics, including:
- How to craft resumes and cover letters
- How to capitalize on your ideas
- How to learn from your mistakes
- How to dress for a job interview
Swank insisted, “No one showed me how to do that,” adding that youth mentorship had always been a mission, even before she became a multimillionaire.
She said although she doesn’t require a degree to work with her company, she does love when people have them, as she believes a degree gives you structure. “That’s my giveback. My giveback is giving to those that possibly didn’t have the chance to go to college or the money,” she emphasized, further iterating that she employs many individuals on the basis of helping to nurture their career and grow within her company.
“You definitely have to be able to work for it and have the skillset, but I am a really great teacher,” Swank said, as she prides herself on accelerating the careers of those who receive valuable experience working directly under leadership.
What’s Next?
According to Swank, she is working to better streamline her company process by opening her own factories and gaining more control over the volume going in and out of her company. Swank has multiple brick-and-mortar stores, and her social media presence has amassed over a million followers.