When Kebra Smith was younger, her parents always told her to learn a skill, because when she got older no one could take that away.
The owner of Kebra Negast Designs and Soft Furnishings did just that and took an interest in clothing and textiles at secondary school.
She pursued sewing at the Samuel Jackman Prescod Polytechnic, fashion designing at the Barbados Community College and later when she worked for an event company as a decorator.
Smith said that the foundation for her business was set at primary school and she continued to build on it at every stage of her education. She noted that while people thought that those who studied fashion designing would focus on clothing, there were several aspects and avenues available and she opted to do what she does now.
“I’ve always wanted to anything pertaining to designing; from small I always had that idea in my head. My parents never brought me up thinking I have to work for somebody…,” she said.
It was at the event company that her skills as a needleworker were pressed into service to be used when she volunteered to help after persons they worked with could not assist with what they were doing.
“I did the first set of work and they were impressed and from there it just started and it’s been going ever since.
“I don’t concentrate on clothes. I do mainly event décor and interior décor. That’s basically how this aspect of my business started,” she noted.
In addition to the home décor that includes throw cushions, she does spandex table covers, flags, and cloth banners for businesses.
Always looking for ways to increase her offerings, about six years ago, Smith added another element – T-shirt weaving.
“My sister came to me wanting a shirt done for St Philip Carnival. I didn’t want to do the regular cut I would see people doing, the same old cuts and strings.
“I went on YouTube and saw the shirts being cut and weaved. I said ‘wow, this is definitely a plus’. I practised it and then cut out her shirt and it started from there,” she said.
The year after for Crop Over, she spoke to a bandleader, did some designs which they liked and this aspect of the business took off.
“Ever since, I’ve been cutting up T-shirts every year around Crop Over for several bands
“There’s one big band but then there are people from all different bands coming to me to get their shirts done.”
“When I [started] the T-shirts, I saw a market for it and people who saw it were impressed. I said to myself, ‘this is something that people would like and I could offer this as a service’.
“So, as I said I put myself out there, a friend saw it and he spoke to someone and they called me and we moved from there.
“I’ve done UWI Carnival when my brother had his band…. I’ve done simple things such as parties where people want to go looking alike. I’ve cut up shirts from all different kinds of occasions,” said the businesswoman.
She added soft furnishings after her brother died. She said she stopped working at the event company, got off the machines “for a while” and did “some other work for a while and got some different experiences”.
“A few years after the decorating company contacted me about getting some stuff done. I agreed to do it and from there I’ve been going ever since.
“A year after they contacted me I sat down and thought about it and said this is something that can work. I took the steps to register it and moved from there,” Smith said.
Setting up Kebra Negast Designs and Soft Furnishings was not hard, simply because she was getting work constantly from the event company.
“They wanted a variety of things that she had not done before but, up to the challenge, she did them.
“They never doubted what I could do, what I was capable of. They always expected the best and they always got the best from me. I would always put my best foot forward and they would have that faith in me that I could get it done even though it was something I had probably never done before.
“I can say thank you to them, because it is through them and getting certain work done like the spandex table covers, that I realised ‘Kebra, you can do anything’,” she said with a smile. (GBM)