Sunshine Coast’s Taj Hughes reveals inspiration behind his clothing line
A Sunshine Coast schoolboy turned entrepreneur has combined his two hobbies, surfing and drawing, into a start-up clothing line and he only just turned 11. See the video.
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A Sunshine Coast schoolboy turned entrepreneur has combined his two hobbies, surfing and drawing, into a start-up clothing line, which has been quickly embraced by locals.
Mountain Creek boy Taj Hughes, 11, who has been an avid artist since he was four, started up his own clothing label, Surfers Strand, featuring all his original designs at the start of the year.
“My grandparents told me I should start putting my designs on shirts and it just became a whole thing,” Taj said.
“A couple of kids at my school now have some of my shirts, I’m really shocked how good it has gone.”
The brand currently stocks T-shirts, hoodies and hats with plans to sell swimwear, socks and hooded-towels by summer.
“I draw all the designs on my iPad using an iPad pencil and then I just send them over to my aunt who has an apparel company,” Taj said.
“I have been drawing a lot since I was little, mostly to do with surfing.”
For mum, Kristie Hughes, Taj’s business success after starting the brand just three months ago has come as a big shock.
“It is all pretty exciting, most of his supporters have come from the Alex Surf Club and a lot of his friends and siblings’ friends are wearing everything now,” Ms Hughes said.
“It is nice to walk down to the beach and see people in his stuff.”
Ms Hughes said they were planning on taking the designs to markets around the Sunshine Coast.
“We have already applied to do a few markets, because at the moment it is just word-of-mouth,” Ms Hughes said.
“He has been drawing since he was really little so to be able to use that for something now is really great.”
Since starting the brand, Ms Hughes said Taj had made approximately $2,000 from selling his designs.
Taj currently sells his Surfers Strand designs through social media and an online store.
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Originally published as Sunshine Coast’s Taj Hughes reveals inspiration behind his clothing line
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