“Some people can’t eat at your dinner table and it’s okay.”

While you are breaking into the fashion world, you can’t listen to just anyone. There will be those that will try to cloud your judgment and get you to second-guess yourself. In order to create, sometimes getting away from others can help bring peace to yourself. No one has your back the way they say they do. Reason for moving alone. A team comes with conflicting ideas.

Realizations such as this one play a part in the inspiration of the designs in Phase 7. Jahmari Moodie, founder and designer of the upcoming clothing brand, is majoring in cyber security while attending Mercy College. He feels this path requires him to use problem-solving skills that he values. Moodie takes his experience in day-to-day life and translates it into the clothes he makes.

Moodie created Phase 7 because he wasn’t a fan of the clothes other people or businesses were selling. The clothes he did like were too expensive for him to buy. So, he decided to create clothing that not only looks good and has good quality, but also isn’t costly.

“Fashion is whatever you can create,” Moodie explains. He tries to think of new ways to create what he wears each and every day. The most important thing to not forget is how you wear things and not what you wear.

It could be the curl of the pants to show the socks, the switch of the laces, or cropping a hoodie to give a different look to the outfit.

Following trends has been prioritized more than being confident in one’s own fashion sense, and someone like Moodie has been criticized by people around him for going against the grain with his own style. Some would look at him with the thoughts of home weird and different. He doesn’t shy away from being unique.

Life is short to care about how other people view him. Especially when he has aspirations to be an all-time great.

Moodie wants to take Phase 7 to the heights the way the late great Virgil brought Off-White to the world. Virgil was not only a fashion designer but also a beacon of hope to others. The goal for Moodie once the brand is where he wants it to be is to help people and get others on board with him. He plans to uplift his community with the growth of Phase 7.

He also wants to recognize those who helped him along the journey. Even acknowledge and show love to the people that hurt him.

The clothing brand started off with himself and three of his friends, but things fell apart between the three. Instead of moving to bring the team back together, Moodie began learning how to run things alone. He used his knowledge of making clothes, which developed at Roosevelt High School with a hot press, introduced to him by a teacher. With his lack of experience, he wasn’t fond of the early designs. It wasn’t until the Covid-19 pandemic that Moodie took the releases a bit more seriously. Doing this led to the sell-out with his first release.

Moving forward after the early success, Phase 7 continued to improve along with the mind of its founder. He may look for outside advice, but it is not the go-to plan for the brand.

“They may have an idea but they don’t have the image that I may have in my mind,” Moodie says.

There is enjoyment in the process of putting things together despite the frustration of not trying to duplicate outfits.

Also, as a designer, there is joy in receiving feedback, whether it be positive or negative. If no one is talking, no one is bothered by what is being produced. Moodie and Phase 7 welcome the consumers to share their thoughts on the product.

Having your own business comes with pros and cons, just like anything else in the world. In the eyes of Moodie, he can run things the way he sees fit. After working with a team in the beginning and transitioning to being on his own, it is more desirable for him to put his vision down without having to refer to others. This leads to the con of having a brand because of the workload that comes with it.

Countless hours and days come with the production of Phase 7. On average it takes six months to a year to complete a drop. With so much going into the clothes-making process, emotions are aligned with the success of the drops.

You can either feel like a kid on Christmas when you sell out or you can feel like you are sinking to the bottom of a pit if there isn’t much buzz to a drop.

To put the best looks together, Moodie views his designs like an ecosystem. Just like the tech company Apple, all of the products work together from the iPhone, AirPods, and the Apple Watch and this method is brought out within Phase 7.

The “I Found Peace in the Star” hoodie goes with the spider work jacket, and the “Part-Time Lover” shirt can go with the lover boy/girl shorts.

“I want there to be a sense of entitlement when you wear Phase 7,” Moodie states.

The style is always changing just like the time of year. Moodie focuses on drops within winter and spring. These are the time when the clothing needs to change so he produces clothes to partner with the climate.

The overall goal after the success of Phase 7 is to give back to kids that have dreams and passions but simply can’t afford to pursue these dreams. If he was supported early on his idea of making clothes when he was younger, there is no telling how things would be. So, the mission is to provide the way he wasn’t provided for.