Inspired by Streetwear Culture and Driven to Succeed
Some of Brittaney Bautista鈥檚 earliest memories are of streetwear and sneaker culture. That鈥檚 because her father was the co-founder and owner of one of Los Angeles鈥� first brick-and-mortar streetwear stores and, as a child, Brittaney and her sister would often find themselves immersed in fashion 鈥� longing to dress the mannequins, arrange the shoe displays, and play dress up in everything that they saw in the store.
These childhood experiences, however, never really register with Brittaney beyond simple playtime fun. 鈥淚 was just a kid who loved being in my dad鈥檚 store,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 until I got older that I realized that because of my father鈥檚 influence, streetwear and sneaker culture had become a significant part of my own life.鈥�
When it came time for college, Brittaney initially decided to major in kinesiology at Cal State Northridge. 鈥淚 wanted to become a physical therapist for athletes because I enjoyed sports and wanted to work closely with athletes,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 liked the major, but when I was about to finish my first year at CSUN, I recognized that I couldn鈥檛 see myself having a career in that field.鈥�
Brittaney spoke to a counselor at CSUN and they discussed what she really wanted to do with her life. 鈥淎fter about a month of meeting with her once a week, I said to myself 鈥榳hat am I thinking鈥鈥檝e always been inspired and influenced by fashion. That should be my focus.鈥欌��
But Brittaney knew that she didn鈥檛 want to be a designer. Her advisor suggested the perfect option: fashion marketing. After looking at the options available at a couple of different schools, Brittaney scheduled a meeting with the chair of Woodbury鈥檚 Fashion Marketing program, Wendy Bendoni.
鈥淲hen my mom and I met with Wendy, I was convinced that this was the right program for me,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 so thankful that my parents have always been supportive of my decisions.鈥�
During her time as a student in the Fashion Marketing program, Brittaney has also been sharpening her skills in the real world as well. Not long ago, an opportunity presented itself to her when some friends of her family launched a streetwear-inspired golf brand called Malbon Golf. 鈥淚 knew very little about golf,鈥� Brittaney said. 鈥淏ut I was excited to become part of this small team of entrepreneurs working to change the industry.鈥�
She鈥檚 had plenty of opportunity to gain valuable experience. 鈥淚鈥檝e been asked to write press releases, assist in photoshoots, create social-influencer packaging, and monitor customer engagement,鈥� she said.
Eventually, additional opportunities to work in brand marketing opened up, including a chance to work on customizing Nike products for marketing activations 鈥� customer experience events designed to raise awareness of brands. Brittaney has customized shoes for the Creed II movie release, executed and operated the 2018 World Cup Jersey Suite at the Nike Store at the Grove, and she has worked alongside the LA-based artist, Steven Harrington, as part of the promotion for the NBA鈥檚 All Star Weekend in L.A.
With graduation approaching, Brittaney is planning to use her range of experiences to build upon her work in market activations and beyond.
鈥淏eing in the Fashion Marketing program has pushed me to think critically and creatively beyond what is expected of me,鈥� she said. 鈥淲endy always tries her best to provide us with a learning experience that isn鈥檛 available elsewhere. For example, one of my current electives is to create a 鈥榝uturist report 鈥榦f what consumers will want in 2022. We鈥檙e not only learning marketing fundamentals, we鈥檙e also thinking about how we can provide insight for the future in our own interests.鈥�
Brittaney鈥檚 experiences 鈥� both inside and outside the classroom 鈥� have set her up for success.