A lifelong creative, Alycia is a bespoke designer blending art with couture. The proud owner of Emiah, Alycia specialises in bespoke couture, bridal and corsetry. Based in Cardiff, she now creates bespoke garments for a wide range of clientele across the country and abroad.
“Being a person with a disability, a woman of colour and a business owner, I wear a lot of hats. I want to show others out there what’s possible and that are no limits to what they can achieve. I’ve always been creative. Growing up, I was always making things, creating or painting, and then eventually branched out to experimenting further with fabrics and textiles.”
Alycia took her passion further and went on to study Fashion Design – Design for Performance.
“I first started making pieces as a hobby for myself with no real purpose for them other than the fact that I loved the process of designing and creating each piece so much, it was my creative outlet that soon turned into an expensive hobby!”
Realising her craft could be more than a hobby, Alycia decided it was time to explore whether she could take her work further and scale things up.
“I have Osteogenesis Imperfecta, otherwise known as brittle bones, which is a lifelong condition that requires me to use the assistance of crutches and a wheelchair. Due to my condition and personality, I always somewhat knew it would be unlikely that I would do a traditional job, and toyed with the idea of running my own business many times before I actually took the plunge.”
Alycia first did the Enterprise programme back in 2016 when she heard about it through a friend who was also going through the programme at the time, but felt she was “too green” and little overwhelmed by what setting up a business would involve. Feeling more ready, and having built a great portfolio and online presence, Alycia tried a second time in 2019.
“I really valued the face-to-face interactions with other business owners during the programme. It felt like I was part of a community and getting to meet others who were all at different stages of their entrepreneurial journey was a valuable insight for me. Not only did it teach me core practicalities of business in terms of finance and marketing, but also helped silence any concerns I had about whether self-employment was for me or something I was cut out for. Growing up, at university and throughout my life I have always been fuelled by the opinions that tried to restrict my ability to be able to do or achieve certain things and have always challenged any form of ableism that tried to limit me. I have the most incredible mentor, who has helped keep me in check and been so encouraging. It’s been so amazing to see how far and wide Emiah has gone, with a large amount of my client base coming from America.”
Looking ahead, Alycia hopes to have her own studio, to accommodate her expanding business and to see one of her pieces in a museum, on TV or a red carpet. Alycia is passionate about being visible and being an advocate for others like her.
