Last week I was down in Miami, and y'all know how that goes—sun hitting different, sand between your toes, and me rocking The Heritage Crown to keep cool while I made my rounds at the American Black Film Festival. Had to keep the Crownmark Tee in rotation too, because you know your boy stays consistent with the brand.
But real talk, this wasn't just some vacation vibe. I was there handling business, connecting with purpose, making sure everything stayed aligned with the vision we've been building at Material Opulence.
Picture this: I'm walking through the festival, networking my ass off as both an actor and creative, meeting people who've been grinding in this industry for decades. Between catching films that tell our stories and sitting in on panels where real conversations about representation happen, I'm jumping on Zoom calls with our Pro X Summer interns back home. And let me tell you something—these young women didn't miss a single beat.
Watching them brainstorm from hundreds of miles away, seeing them create with intention, communicate with clarity—that's when you know the future is genuinely in good hands. That's when you realize this thing we're building is bigger than any one person, any single moment, any individual achievement.
The Grind Never Stops, Even in Paradise
You know what's wild? Here I am in Miami, supposedly taking a break, but my mind is still racing. Still thinking about the next collection. Still visualizing how we're going to elevate the brand. Still dreaming about the impact we're making.
That's the thing about being an entrepreneur, especially when you're building something with real purpose—the work follows you everywhere. Not because you have to, but because you want to. Because every moment is an opportunity to connect, to learn, to grow, to push the vision forward.
I'm sitting on South Beach at sunset, and I get a text from one of our interns showing me a mood board she's working on for Fall/Winter. The creativity, the attention to detail, the way she's thinking about how each piece tells a story—I'm getting chills just looking at it.
That's when it hit me: we're not just building a clothing brand. We're building a pipeline of creative leaders who understand that fashion is culture, culture is influence, and influence is responsibility.
Week 3: Communication Is the Whole Vibe
Now we're rolling into Week 3 of the Pro X Summer Internship, and the energy hasn't dipped at all. If anything, it's climbing higher every single day.
This week we're diving deep into Communication as our professional development theme, and these six brilliant young women are showing me exactly what it means to share ideas with clarity, work as a real team, and move with genuine intention.
They're designing pieces for our Fall/Winter collection that actually tell stories. Building mood boards that capture not just trends, but emotions. Strategizing ways to grow our social media presence that feel authentic to who we are as a brand. Learning how to express creative vision in ways that don't just impress people—they move them, they inspire them, they make them feel something.
Every message that pops up in our GroupMe feels like a spark of innovation. Every update they drop in Notion shows me they're not just absorbing what we're teaching them—they're adding their own flavor, their own perspective, their own brilliance to the mix.
One of them sent me a sketch yesterday with a note that said, "What if we told the story of resilience through texture?" Another one shared a color palette inspired by her grandmother's quilt collection. These aren't just interns doing busy work. These are future leaders actively contributing to something bigger than themselves.
While We Wait for Something Special
Speaking of building something bigger, we're over here still working towards something truly special while we wait for the Kansas City People's Choice Awards ceremony on Sunday, July 27th at the Kauffman Performing Arts Center. That's right—Material Opulence was voted as a finalist for Best Clothing Apparel Brand, and honestly, just being recognized by our community like that hits different.
This nomination isn't just about the brand. It's validation that Kansas City sees what we're building. It's proof that our community recognizes the intention behind every design, the purpose behind every collection, the legacy we're weaving into every single piece.
The Kauffman Center—that's where symphonies and ballets and Broadway shows happen. That's where art gets celebrated at the highest level. And we're going to be there, representing not just Material Opulence, but every Black-owned business in Kansas City that's been grinding, building, and creating with purpose.
But here's the thing—win or lose, we're still going to keep building. We're still going to keep pushing boundaries. We're still going to keep proving that Black excellence in fashion isn't just a moment, it's a movement.
The recognition is beautiful, but the work is what sustains us. The impact is what drives us. The legacy is what keeps us going when the spotlight fades and the cameras stop rolling.
Up Next: CURATED. A Fashion Moment You Don't Want to Miss
Speaking of moments that matter, this Friday, June 20th at 8 p.m., Material Opulence is hitting the runway at CURATED. The Blakk Co. is hosting—shoutout to Kansas City's premier social club for creating the space where culture and commerce collide.
We're sharing the runway with Black Money Matters and Deep Rooted, and together we're honoring Father's Day and Juneteenth. We're celebrating the gentlemen, the builders, the fathers, and the fashion curators who show up and make impact every single day, often without recognition, always with intention.
This isn't your typical fashion show, either. We're talking about a walking show where every step tells a story. A panel of culture creators who actually have something meaningful to say about where we've been and where we're going. A pop-up market featuring some of the city's finest brands, all of us supporting each other, all of us rising together.
If you're in KC, pull up. The vibes are going to be immaculate, and the fits? Legendary doesn't even begin to cover it. But more than that, you'll be witnessing history. You'll be part of a moment where Black creativity, Black business, and Black culture take center stage and refuse to apologize for their brilliance.
A Juneteenth Worth Remembering: The Weight of Legacy
Today we honor Juneteenth, and as a proud Black-owned designer brand, Material Opulence stands deeply rooted in what this day actually represents. Not just the holiday version that companies use for marketing, but the real, raw, transformative meaning of this moment in history.
Juneteenth isn't just another day off work. It's not just barbecues and sales at the mall. It's a tribute to resilience that most people can't even begin to comprehend. It's a salute to people who endured unthinkable hardship and still found ways to dream of freedom, to imagine a world where their children's children could create without limits, build without barriers, express themselves without fear.
It's a reminder that we—right here, right now—are the living, breathing result of our ancestors' wildest dreams. They couldn't have imagined smartphones or social media or global fashion brands, but they dreamed of a day when their descendants would be free to create, to build, to express themselves without asking permission from anyone.
We design with purpose because they believed in possibility when possibility seemed impossible. We celebrate with intention because they fought for the right to celebrate at all. We create with legacy in mind because their spirit lives on in every single stitch, every color choice, every design decision we make.
Material Opulence exists because they endured the unendurable. We create because they believed when belief was dangerous. And we keep going, we keep building, we keep becoming because their spirit refuses to be contained by history books or limited to one day of recognition per year.
The Stories Our Clothes Tell
You know what's beautiful about fashion? Every piece tells a story. Every design choice is a decision about how we want to show up in the world, how we want to be seen, how we want to feel when we look in the mirror.
When someone puts on The Heritage Crown, they're not just wearing a hat. They're wearing a declaration that they understand their lineage, that they respect where they come from, that they're ready to honor the past while building the future.
When someone rocks the Crownmark Tee, they're not just wearing a shirt. They're wearing a statement that says they're part of something bigger, something meaningful, something that connects them to a community of builders and dreamers and creators who refuse to accept limitations.
Our Fall/Winter collection—the one our interns are helping to design—is going to tell even deeper stories. Stories about resilience and creativity. Stories about community and individual expression. Stories about honoring tradition while pushing boundaries. Stories about what it means to be Black and brilliant and unapologetic in 2025.
What We're Building Is So Much Bigger Than Us
From Miami heat to Kansas City stages. From red carpet moments to runway shows. From late-night sketching sessions to collections that are actually runway-ready. From intern brainstorming calls to People's Choice Award nominations.
We're not just building a brand—we're building a movement. A mindset. A legacy that extends far beyond what any of us can see right now, far beyond what any award can validate, far beyond what any single moment can contain.
This season isn't about sitting around waiting for someone to notice us. We've been noticed. Kansas City noticed when they made us finalists. The industry noticed when they started paying attention to what we're creating. Our community noticed when they started wearing our pieces with pride.
Now it's about showing up consistently, honoring exactly who we are and where we come from, and reminding the world of something they might have forgotten: we don't just wear crowns—we build them from scratch. We don't just follow trends—we create culture. We don't just make clothes—we make statements that echo through generations.
The recognition is beautiful, but the work is what sustains us. The awards are nice, but the impact is what matters. The spotlight is temporary, but the legacy we're building is permanent.
The Future Is in Good Hands
As I write this, I'm thinking about those six young women who are spending their summer learning not just about fashion, but about leadership. Not just about design, but about purpose. Not just about business, but about legacy.
They're learning that success isn't just about individual achievement—it's about lifting as you climb. They're discovering that creativity isn't just about making beautiful things—it's about making meaningful impact. They're understanding that building a brand isn't just about making money—it's about making a difference.
And on this Juneteenth, as we celebrate not just the weight of the past but the power we hold right now and the endless possibility stretching out in front of us, I'm reminded that every generation has the responsibility to build something better for the next one.
Our ancestors built freedom from slavery. Our parents built opportunities from segregation. Now it's our turn to build legacy from possibility.
Let's keep building. Let's keep becoming. Let's keep proving that when we show up with purpose, when we create with intention, when we build with community, there's nothing we can't accomplish.
Together.
— Renauld Shelton II, Founder of Material Opulence
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