At Florida A&M University, there is no shortage of one-of-a-kind Black-owned businesses founded by students. Count Josh Taylor, a fourth-year architecture major, among them.
Taylor is the CEO of his apparel company, Humble Boss Clothing. Humble Boss Clothing is a luxury streetwear brand. According to Taylor, luxury streetwear ensures that all goods are high-quality, whether it be t-shirts, hoodies or accessories. Taylor’s business became a company in 2019, but his first clothing launch didn’t happen until 2021 because he wanted to ensure everything was in order. Taylor wanted to add luxury to ensure his consumers received great items because streetwear is a broad apparel trend.
Chris Sanford, a fourth-year business administration major, commends Taylor on the work he devotes to make his company successful.
“Personally, I like the fact that the brand is genuinely authentic,” Sanford said. “Josh does a great job of making sure every detail is crafted to the design in which he wants, whether it be from the heavy shirt to the custom tag on the inside. The quality and attention to detail has made me a true supporter of his brand.”
Taylor’s passion for clothing design stems from his love of art. Michael Jordan was his favorite person growing up; therefore, he wore Jordan shoes like every other child. His love of shoes led to a love of clothing, which developed into something more as he grew older. Taylor’s major is architecture; thus, his passion for sketching aids him in finding inspiration when designing outfits.
On Oct. 11, Humble Boss Clothing released new Homecoming edition tees. Taylor’s design for the shirts was created around a year ago. It was one of his favorite designs that had not yet been featured. Taylor believed it would be impactful to produce a shirt that displayed some FAMU spirit due to Homecoming being only a week away.
Regarding designing clothes after college, Taylor is more than ready to take on the challenge. Every clothing drop represents anything going on in his life or something he was thinking about at the time.
Taylor’s brand is a reflection and extension of him. Thus, it will exist whether or not he makes money from it.
Taylor’s grandmother was the source of his design inspiration. His grandmother instilled the value of being genuine and authentic from an early age, which inspired his company motto, “Pray the Real Live Forever.”
Kynadi Harris, a fourth-year public relations major, appreciates that Taylor considers his clientele’s needs while designing his clothing.
“I like that the products from Humble Boss Clothing are high quality and comfortable,” Harris said. “I like that you can tell that he thinks about the details of his products and doesn’t just put stuff together.”
Taylor strives to be loyal to himself despite the fashion world’s trends. He prefers to make trends rather than follow them. He wants to create goals that he believes he can reach.
Taylor is now focusing on his brand presentation to accomplish this. As his business expands, he aspires to organize more pop-up events and even be in retail locations. Taylor intends to take his time and grow his company gradually.
“So right now, I’m getting everything in order with my business and taking it slow,” Taylor said. “I’m a big fan of slow motion because I don’t want to grow too fast and not be able to keep up or set myself up for failure.”
Taylor’s first event selling clothing on campus was during Be Out Day last semester. He has also sold his products on a few Set Fridays.
He plans to do additional pop-up events, and his current focus is on growing his business by advertising himself more. Taylor will promote his business even more next week at Homecoming Set Friday.