Lighting the Path: My Journey with the Creative Futures Collective x Soho Mentorship
Over the past 16 weeks, I’ve had the honor of participating in the Creative Futures Collective x Soho 2025 Cohort—an experience that has reshaped not only my perspective as a designer but also the vision of Covenant.
This mentorship was more than guidance; it was a call to action. It reminded me that growth happens when we put ourselves out there, remain curious, and embrace the power of community.
A Season of Growth
My mentor, An-Janeka Smith, is an underwriter by profession but a serial entrepreneur at her core. Throughout our one-on-one sessions, she pushed me to think bigger in a business sense—challenging me to knock on doors of opportunity, be more proactive in putting myself out there, and build the courage to move with intention.
Those lessons went beyond strategy. They lit a fire in me to keep pursuing Covenant’s mission with boldness and to remember that every opportunity we chase is another step toward inspiring others to do the same.
What This Means for Covenant
At Covenant, our mission has always been clear: to inspire, create, aspire, motivate, and dedicate. This mentorship affirmed that calling, showing me that Covenant is more than a brand—it’s a movement. It’s about building garments and stories that encourage resilience, spark imagination, and remind people that they are, in fact, born winners. This became a prevalent theme for me as I got to know many of the other members of this special cohort. Such natural creative beings don't come out of no where but are born this way.
This journey has challenged me to merge not only creativity and business but also courage and consistency. That alignment is what will carry Covenant forward.
Gratitude and Looking Ahead
To close out the program, we celebrated with a showcase where mentees displayed their artistry—fashion, short films, visual art, music, and powerful conversations with mentors. Although I didn’t showcase anything that day, I left more inspired than ever. It was proof that community is the heartbeat of creativity.
I am deeply thankful to my mentor An-Janeka Smith for her wisdom, to Creative Futures Collective and Soho for curating such a meaningful program, and to Trey “K.O.N” for sending me the application that opened this door. Special shoutout to the Photo.Giirl (Makayla Stovall) for the genius idea of doing a yearbook themed photoshoot. Also check out the landing page that Yahya Ali made that houses all the cool people from the cohort and all the cool things they do/did!
