Her Excellence — Tacharra Perry

Houston-based fashion designer, TACHARRA PERRY, has returned to the fashion scene with the relaunch of her “unseasonal” womenswear brand, CHAR Workroom. In our recent interview, the designer and I sat down to talk about her brand, NYFW, setbacks, and so much more!

CHELLY IN THE CITY: For those who don’t know you, who is Tacharra Perry?

TACHARRA PERRY: I’m a 25-year-old, everyday girl from Houston, Texas that’s been creating womenswear and collaborating with local creatives for over seven years. Just to add, I’m also super chill, laid back, spontaneous, and I love to travel in my downtime.

CITC: What is your earliest memory of fashion?

TP: I grew up with my grandparents and they had an upholstery company. My grandma would always sew when I was younger. One day, I asked her to make a dress for my doll for show and tell and she took me to pick out the fabric. That was my first idea that came to life and once I got to middle school, my parents allowed me to dress myself more, and get a little experimental.  Once high school came around, that’s when Tumblr started getting poppin’ so at the time I started ripping vintage denim, and then I just started making the shorts. After that, I was just like: “let me see what I could do,” so I started teaching myself how to sew.

When did you realize you were meant to be a designer? 

TP: It started with vintage clothing. That’s when I really realized I was creative in a sense and it was something I really enjoyed doing while making money and trying to survive in high school. When I taught myself how to sew, I made my first pair of shorts and then I posted them on Instagram; then people just started asking me to make custom clothing for them. I’ve also done prom dresses in the past, but that was a nightmare though [both laugh], but everything was trial and error, honestly. I learned a lot from it, but I really think the Tumblr phase is really what kicked off the inspiration

CITC: Tell me about CHAR Workroom. For those who are unfamiliar with an “unseasonal brand,” what is it and where did you draw the inspiration from?

TP: An unseasonal brand is pretty much just not conforming to the norm of what the fashion industry has been in the past. Most brands are so stuck in the cycle of dropping Fall/Winter and Spring/Summer pieces at very specific times in the year which are usually opposite of the current climate at that given moment. Aside from me living in Houston where it’s usually pretty hot year ‘round, I’ve always been a “I do what I want, when I want” type of person, I don't like to be put in a box, I don't care to follow the rules and I want to be able to change the direction of what the mass considers as “normal” in industries like this one. I think that now many brands have started to get on that wave. 

 CITC: At the age of 21, you debuted your first-ever collection at NYFW. Walk me through that exciting day and how it made you feel.

TP: I still get excited thinking about that day because it all just happened so randomly and quickly, honestly! At that time, I was just scrolling through Instagram and found someone who was from a fashion show production company. He had a post that said: “looking for three more designers for fashion week,” so I hit him up via email, and literally, as soon as I sent the email, he probably called me within maybe an hour. We sat on the phone, briefly got to know each other, and talked about everything from the invitation to how many looks I could have, and then the next day I signed a contract. From there, everything started happening so fast. Although I wasn’t really where I wanted to be at that moment, I wouldn’t change it for anything because I learned so much. I think that’s part of the reason why I took such a strong break so that I could come back how my 21-year-old self would want to; I think I’m at a good point now to really do things my way.

On setbacks and the break she took from her brand:

TP: I went through some challenges just as far as life. At the time, I was trying to finish school so that ultimately had most of my attention. I wasn’t working and obviously, you need money to push something. Overall, the production part of it - people don’t realize the behind the scenes work that goes into producing collections, let alone a single garment. They don’t understand the mass production process in itself and that’s like a whole other situation and I couldn’t afford it at the time. It was a lot of things that made me want to just be like: “you know what? Let me take a step back, let me look at what I’ve done, how I could change, the mistakes I made (because I made plenty), and just come back when I feel like it’s ready.” With everything going on now, it’s kind of like a rebirth in a sense.

❝ Although I wasn’t really where I wanted to be at that moment, I wouldn’t change it for anything because I learned so much. I think that’s part of the reason why I took such a strong break so that I could come back how my 21-year-old self would want to; I think I’m at a good point now to really do things my way. ❞

CITC: What has your experience been being a young Black designer in America?

TP: Honestly, it is hard to say because I did have a long break. I haven’t been able to experience certain things that other Black designers have experienced, but what I will say is, there’s a lack of representation in the industry from all aspects. The industry could do better in giving not only Black people but Black women higher positions and more authority. Even between the Black designers we know, there’s not that many Black women designers, but there are tons of Black male designers, designing for women. Although there are some brands like Cushnie and Hanifa - who are now getting her recognition, it’s still not enough. I honestly can’t name too many luxury brands that are out there and held on a higher pedestal like our male counterparts that are owned by Black women. So I think for me, my goal is to really break the barrier and be one of those women.
Have there been any adversities you faced that you’ve overcome? If so, what were they?

TP: I think comparing myself to other people has been the biggest one. I feel like that honestly comes with being a creative, especially with social media culture. You’re always going to find yourself comparing yourself to other people and that’s what I had to get out of my head. I feel like I’ve accomplished so much since I started and I feel like my vision and brand’s image is one of its own.

❝ There’s a lack of representation in the industry from all aspects. The industry could do better in giving not only Black people but Black women higher positions and more authority. Even between the Black designers we know, there’s not that many Black women designers, but there are tons of Black male designers, designing for women…I honestly can’t name too many luxury brands that are out there and held on a higher pedestal like our male counterparts that are owned by Black women. So I think for me, my goal is to really break the barrier and be one of those women. ❞

CITC: Jordyn Woods, Nandi Howard, and other notable faces have been spotted in your pieces. What was your initial reaction to seeing them your clothing?

TP: I just remember that night so vividly and it was right after my show [NYFW show]. One of my friends, Joshua Hopes, was an image consultant for Jordyn at the time. He came out to one of my shows and he hit me up and was like: “hey, I would like to pull some pieces to put on Jordyn,” so he met me back at my AirBNB. That night, seven of us, Nandi included, went to get dinner. While we were in an Uber, one of my friends just started screaming, and I was like: “what?!”, so I looked at her phone and she was like: “Char, Jordyn is in your stuff!” and she tagged me! My phone started going crazy.  

On Nandi Howard: 

TP: Me and Nandi are just really good friends. She’s been there for me since CHAR started and she’s really seen everything. When she first got her job at Essence, she covered the CFDA Awards red carpet - interviewing designers. Upon covering the awards, she hit me up and was like: “hey, I would like to wear some of your pieces.” She is really big on putting Black designers on so she wanted to make sure she wore a Black designer and worked with black stylists that night.

CITC: Is there another fashion designer that you would like to collaborate with in the near future? 

TP: I would love to work with Gucci and be on their creative team. I know people have their feelings about Kanye, but I would totally love to be on the Yeezy team as well.  

CITC: What has the relaunch process been like?

TP: I can honestly say it’s been super seamless. I ran into a little trial and tribulation, but the overall experience has been a 10 out of 10. I think that’s just because I took a step back and was really figuring everything out. So with that time off, I was definitely able to dive straight into it once I planned accordingly. I knew what I wanted, I educated myself a little bit more, and I taught myself different skills like illustrating. Ultimately, I’m trying to be more organized and I usually try to create when I have a clear mind.

How has your brand evolved from the first collection?

TP: I did a complete 180 with rebranding CHAR. I took my time and went in more with attention to details - I focused more on colours and different textiles. Not only did the quality of the garments change, I think ultimately the production work did too, from the photography to the creative direction, I really took my time. I also wanted to make sure that this time around my models were diverse and that was really important to me.

CITC: Finally, What makes you excellent?

TP: Being able to overcome a lot of stuff, allowing myself to separate what I’ve been through with my craft itself, and really just using it as fuel for inspiration.

❝ Being able to overcome a lot of stuff, allowing myself to separate what I’ve been through with my craft itself, and really just using it as fuel for inspiration. ❞

CHAR Workroom has officially relaunched! To check out or purchase pieces, head over to charworkroom.com. To keep up with Tacharra Perry, follow her on Instagram.