Apparel Merchandising and Management

Student and Alumni Entrepreneur Profiles

The AMM Department has many outstanding students who have taken what they learned in the classroom out in the real world. Here are a few of our students and alumni that have started their own company.

Teresa Becker and Heart of Haute

Teresa is an alumnus of AMM and currently serves on the AMM Advisory Board.  Teresa and Mandie Becker are a mother daughter team that found their niche in the vintage inspired fashion market, through what was initially a home based business in 2006. They call it Heart of Haute and it is making its own history...

By May of 2008, the business had grown out of the home studio and spare bedroom, added a couple of more employees, and moved into an office/warehouse in San Dimas, California. Before long Teresa and Amanda realized that their growing orders required more employees and more space, and in May of 2009 Heart of Haute again more than doubled their warehouse space to accommodate more inventory for quicker delivery and immediate in-season stock for both retail and wholesale customers.  They are now in over 500 stores.

Read more about Teresa, her daughter and their company on their website http://heartofhaute.com     

Julia Lopez and Lencca

Julia Lopez is one of the many students who have created her own online brand called Lencca.  Her line consists of handmade bags that are inspired by the professional person who needs organization in their everyday life.  To add, her designs stick to a classical style.  What started her creations was a simple tablet cover that became versatile for any tablet or iPad size.  She then decided to expand Lencca and create bags and backpacks that have organization pockets for every item a person would carry.  Lencca is now selling internationally and in boutiques and stores.  With a full-time job of being Brand Developer and being a full-time student Julia confesses it’s hard to handle both.  Her time management secret is that she is able to shut off and be in “school mode” while at school and in “work mode” while at work!   Be sure to visit http://www.lencca.com  and see Julia’s product line.

Roshena Chadha and Shawl Dawls 

Years before their paths crossed as coworkers in the corporate fashion world, Designers Julie Cruz and Roshena Chadha each attended fashion school with the intention of starting their own fashion companies. They came to pursue their common dream in January 2012, leaving the corporate world to feed their entrepreneurial spirits full force, pooling their talents together to launch Shawl Dawls after having been inspired by the thought that shawls are such a chic and practical fashion staple.  Although the Dawl Duo are very opposite in height (Julie at 4’11” and Roshena at 5’10”), they see eye to eye when it comes to running a fashion business with skills and personalities that complement one another to create a powerful team.  Read more about Roshena and her company at http://shawldawls.com