Meet Kala Wilburn – Black History Month Spotlight

Kala Wilburn is a fashion Architect who brings life to the industry through creativity.  At the age of twelve she learned to sew from her grandfather, Willie Ben Anthony Sr.  Never considering the passion for fashion as a career, she pursued Biology as a Major at Central Michigan University. Her fascination with the human body was developed and combined with the apparel industry. This lead her to study abroad at the American Intercontinental University of London, UK. She later graduated with a B.A.A. degree in Apparel Merchandising and Design with a minor in Art (Graphic Design Concentration) from Central Michigan University. While abroad she also interned with Jaeger apparel company as a Visual Merchandiser in the Central London area.

Studying abroad gave her the opportunity to visit all the Fashion capitals of the world including Paris, Barcelona, Milan, and New York City. These experiences enabled her to begin her first venture as designer. Mrs. Wilburn created The Velocity Collection, an apparel brand based in Flint, MI. She debuted this collection at the Premiere Fashion Show in 2007, a show she created and produced. The Velocity Collection was not only featured in The Flint Journal newspaper, but also sold at a local boutique in the Flint, MI area. While still wanting to pursue more she decided to take a step of faith and enter the fashion market of New York City.

Kala began her industry career as a Mercedes Benz Fashion Week volunteer in New York City in 2008. She began assisting designer shows such as Vera Wang, Tracy Reese, Herve Leger, and Behnaz Sarafpour to name a few. She used her free time to intern with head designers at companies such as Rocawear and Marc Ecko. Her perseverance kicked in landing her in a full-time position with Marc Ecko as the Junior Knitwear Designer for the USA division.

While working in the fashion industry as a menswear apparel and footwear designer, she discovered many voids that needed to be filled. Fannie Lucille was created as a result of learning and leaping only to find her place in the midst of many fabrics. She believes it’s her problem to solve. Her desire is to create new things while leaving a mark that can never be erased

For more information follow Kala Wilburn on twitter.