Today we’d like to introduce you to Tia Shabestari.
Hi Tia, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started my business almost 4 years ago at the age of 16 in my parent’s basement. I have always been a lover of everything fashion and clothing and even from a young age knew it was something I wanted to pursue as my full-time job when I was older. My dream was always to be a designer in the New York Fashion Week runway shows. What started out as a little side hustle in the beginning stages turned into my full-time job fast when COVID hit. When I took my business full-time back in 2020, I had a new sense of determination to chase my dream to a whole new level. I was working 12-15 hour days doing everything I could to get my business the exposure I knew social media could bring it. In June 2020, my business went viral.
Receiving more than 15 million views across my social media platform. This little business I started in my parent’s basement was becoming something I never thought possible. From this point on when schools started opening back up I never returned to full in-person school and continued remote, I decided to focus on my business full-time and continue the hustle. As my social media began to grow even more it got hard to keep up at times, especially when I left for college back in the fall of 2021. The hardest obstacle I have had to deal with is making sacrifices in order to pursue my dreams. My college experience has been all but ordinary, with a lot of time spent in my office fulfilling orders and nightly post office runs, which I have grown to find so much comfort in. In late 2022 I got the call that changed my life. I received a call from the digital production team about an opportunity to showcase my work as a designer at New York fashion week 2024.
This moment single-handedly was a moment I hold so close to my heart. I know little 5-year-old me would not believe I would have this opportunity at just 20 years old. Getting to where I am at today has been nothing short of a journey with so many twists and turns along the way but I wouldn’t have my success without all these road bumps. I really feel my mindset through it all has been about being authentic to myself and having the courage to step out of my comfort zone and be willing to take a chance on myself.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Some of the biggest struggles I have faced through this process were isolation, losing many friends through the process, and having to learn to find comfort in my dreams even if that meant not having the normal lifestyle that many of my peers were living.
I also always struggled with connecting with people, especially in high school in college. Not many people could understand why I was so young and chasing these crazy big dreams
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Malibu Skyye clothing brand focused on elevating your style in order to become the most authentic version of yourself. Through bright and colorful pieces at affordable prices, I designed my pieces with uniqueness in mind to allow people to show up every day in clothing that is both comfortable and fashion-forward.
I offer a range of clothing spanning from tops and dresses to denim and a new activewear line coming later this year. I am a firm believer in comfort in fashion and I wanted Malibu Skyye to be based on these standards.
What’s next?
I currently am designing my pieces to bring to New York Fashion Week next March so that is been something I have been super passionate about and excited about! It is quite a long process when it comes to bringing designs to life so I anticipate focusing a lot of time and energy on that over the next few months.
As for my future collections, I am currently working on an activewear collection that I am super excited to launch in June/July. It has been in the works now for almost a year so I am looking forward to getting that unveiled in a few months.
Contact Info:
- Website:www.malibuskyye.com
- Instagram: @Malibuskyye
