By: Jhanae Winter

Years ago Latoya Deveaux-Wallace was unemployed and couldn’t find a job, so she created her own and now she is the owner of Soo Chicboutique, an online clothing store for women.

As of now the boutique caters to women sizes ranging from small to extra large, but their intent is to expand to plus sizes for women, men’s clothing and accessories. 

Latoya said her vision for the business is “to sell affordable and stylish clothing without paying an arm and a leg. Everyone wants to look good but doesn't want to spend a lot doing so,” Latoya said.

With six years in business, Soo Chicboutique was established because people would ask her where she bought her clothes, and from that, she decided to sell clothes herself. 

Soo Chicboutique was first used to support her financially because she did not have a full time job, now it has turned into a side business and another form of income. 

“I started Soo Chicboutique when I was unemployed and was not able to find a full time job. People normally ask me where I got my clothing from so I decided to start selling clothing since I was not able to find a job,” she said.

Now with a full time job, Latoya admits juggling the two is a lot of work. 

“Having a 9-5 job would get a bit challenging sometimes when I have to deliver before work, on a lunch break and after work. One of the biggest challenges was trying not to mix my 9-5 with my side job, so my side job started after my 9-5 and I went hard on the weekends with deliveries,” she said.

But with each challenge comes great success and success is the perfect word to describe Latoya’s Soo Chicboutique.

She said, each year her business has grown with more customers visiting their online store because of referrals. As a result she is able to meet a variety of people with different backgrounds shopping with her, becoming regular customers and with others building relationships. 

“In this business, my biggest supporters were always strangers other than my spouse, parents, siblings and close friends. You have people sharing your page without asking, rooting for you and encouraging you without you noticing,” Latoya told Bahamaslocal.com.

This is why negativity does not “phase me”, she said. Instead she uses any stone thrown at her, to build her business further to achieve the success she wants. 

Looking at the amount of clothing boutiques in The Bahamas in recent years, Soo ChicBoutique is one of the many available in Nassau. But Latoya does not view it as competition. 

“I look at it as there is enough money out there for everyone to make and everyone has their own clientele. Sometimes I don't have a particular item and I will refer to another girl boss that is selling clothing. We can all eat so why be greedy,” she said.

With this mindset it is no surprise that the quote she abides by is “chase the vision, not the money; the money will end up following you.”

Business oriented and success driven, Latoya is intentional about her business. She believes everyone has to start somewhere to achieve the goals they want and doesn’t mind naysayers.

“I was always told that I need a 9-5 and a sure pay. It was like, people do not think that you can be self-employed unless it is a multi-million dollar business. Those people started off the same way I did now look at them,” she said.

Letting nothing stop her, she bounced back after the first wave of the pandemic which affected her business significantly.

The lockdowns and restrictions administered by the competent authority caused her business a big loss but also proved to be a blessing. 

“Sales were down tremendously. I had a few people who still shopped during the first part but not much to talk about. But after we came off lockdown, my phone began to ping off a whole lot. During lockdown it gave me a chance to find and to think of new ideas on how to do things and go about my business”, Latoya explained.

Through it all Latoya still has plans to move forward with her business goals. Along with expanding on sizes and including men’s fashion, she also wants to open her first storefront. 

Although she loves what she does, “being your own boss is not for the weak”, Latoya exclaimed. The ability to set one’s own pace and move at one’s own leisure are the easier aspects she recalled. 

“But the hard aspect of it is sometimes you make money and sometimes you don't. Sometimes you're not able to pay yourself, but that's where pushing and working hard kicks in. If you don't work, you don't make money. Some days you want to give up but you cannot get discouraged. Continue to push and think of different ways to do things that would make your business better,” she said. 

Her word of advice to all millennials with intent to be a business owner is to simply start, that's the first step. The second step is to build business relationships with other millennial owners to learn from and who can support the business’ vision. 

To connect with Latoya on Facebook at Soo Chicboutique and on Instagram @soo_chicboutique