By Andrea Williams
At age 19, when most people are fresh out of high school and just beginning to enjoy their “adult” freedoms, Natischa Harvey was already making significant strides on a well-constructed path that was sure to lead to her dream life. She was married to her high school sweetheart, who happened to be a professional athlete, and she was studying to become an attorney at Clark Atlanta University. Needless to say, people close to her were completely shocked when she decided to take a job at Bakers during her sophomore year.
They questioned her sanity while she juggled her $6/hour evening shifts at the retail shoe store with her demanding political science classes during the day. But Natischa had a plan. There was a definite method behind the perceived madness, and the end result was Fever Shoes – a $1.5 million-and-growing brand that has firmly established Mrs. Harvey as a true contender in the highly competitive designer shoe industry.
It is widely understood that the road to entrepreneurial success is treacherous at best, and Natischa was faced with a major obstacle before she could even begin. Though Natischa had been designing shoes since the 10th grade, her mother dissuaded her from such lofty pursuits and instead encouraged her to pursue a safe and reliable career. So, when Natischa felt like she could no longer suppress her high-fashion fantasies, she knew she would have to gain her mother’s blessings first.
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“My mother always knew that I loved fashion and designing shoes, but she felt it was too risky as a career choice,” she said. “Studying political science and becoming a lawyer was safe to her because she knew I would always have an income, and she needed that level of security and comfort. But I wanted to open a boutique, so I had a talk with her. My mother told me that if that was what I wanted to do, I needed to go out and do it full force or not at all – no half-stepping.”
Armed with her mother’s well wishes and cash from a stock investment that was initially intended to pay for her college tuition, Natischa opened her first boutique in 2004. She calls her time at Bakers a “paid internship” that gave her the hands-on experience and confidence she needed to strike out on her own.
“I definitely believe you have to crawl before you can walk,” she said. “So I decided to work at Bakers, and my manager helped me learn pretty much everything about how to manage a store, from counting inventory to managing employees. I was in college, and I definitely think college prepares you for a lot of things, but I knew that if I wanted to own a boutique I had to learn how to run one.”
Four years and two additional stores later, Natischa was ready to market her own designs to the world. Absolutely nothing came easy; she recalls feeling guilty for depleting her family’s savings to invest in her company and many nights working late and sleeping in her store – away from her husband and three children. She even took a two-week trip to China alone to find a manufacturer for her shoes when none of her industry contacts provided the leads she had hoped for.
The sacrifices were monumental, but she says, without hesitation, that it was completely worth it. “I have worked my butt off for my company, and even when I felt like quitting I just kept going because I didn’t have another option” Natischa said. “It was hard before I really started making money, when I was just breaking even, because my family was depending on me. I depleted our savings account, and I felt horrible. But that only made me work 10 times harder, and today, every drop of blood, every drop of sweat and every tear was well worth it.”
In addition to providing uniquely chic designs to suit the myriad tastes and budgets of the everyday woman (current styles range from a sparkly wedged heel at $59.99 to funky, double-platformed stilettos priced at $250.00), Natischa has also seen her shoes grace the feet of some major celebrities, including Vivica A. Fox, Raven Symone and Christina Aguilera. She actually credits her celeb clientele for giving her company its first real push into the mainstream.
“Once celebrities put a stamp of approval on Fever Shoes and certified the brand – it took off,” Natischa said. “I went from selling $600 or $700 [worth] per day to almost $15,000 in one day.” She also attributes her ever-expanding customer base to constant media exposure and, with press clippings from publications as diverse as People StyleWatch and Essence, Natischa has continued to gain access to different demographics – which is what she always envisioned for her company. “I definitely appreciate the support that the African American community gives me, but I want support from everyone,” she said. “I make shoes for all women.”
On October 4, Natischa was an invited guest at the White House Women’s Entrepreneurship Conference. She was recognized as one of the country’s youngest and most successful women entrepreneurs, and she acknowledges her impact on others who aspire to start their own businesses. While she is very careful to avoid glamorizing the process, even despite her current success, she encourages people to pursue their passions wholeheartedly. “If something is meant for you to do, and you are willing to work hard for it, it is going to happen,” she said. “It may take a while – it took me 6 years – but it will happen. If you want to succeed as much a you want to breathe, you will be successful.”
