ABC Program Recipient Spotlight: Lawrencia Bridal Couture
3.13.2023
—
LISC StoriesEconomic Development
Lawrencia Blount is the owner of Lawrencia Bridal Couture, a luxury bridal brand that provides unique, luxurious, high-quality gowns that caters to brides of color in all sizes and celebrates their various skin tones.
Lawrencia officially began operating the business on a part-time basis in January 2021 with the hosting of their first bridal trunk show. On February 19, 2022, they held a grand opening of their bridal showroom in Downtown Los Angeles' Cooper Design Space, and have since transitioned into operating the business full-time.
Lawrencia received an investment from LISC LA’s Asset Building for Communities of Color (ABC) Program to expand her business. Supported by a $20 million contribution from Wells Fargo, ABC is helping small business owners operating in communities of color across Los Angeles County unlock their potential to grow, scale, create jobs, and fuel wealth creation. The groundbreaking program is one of a few sources of capital for small businesses and is providing more flexible and low-cost capital compared to traditional financing sources, meeting a critical unmet need for businesses serving low-to-moderate income communities.
LISC LA: How is the ABC Program helping you grow your business?
Lawrencia Blount (LB): With the ABC Growth Capital funding, I have purchased new gown inventory to expand my business. I now carry a few other bridal brands that have allowed me to service more brides at varied price points while still giving them that unique look that they want. I just received the last shipment a couple of weeks ago just in time for a bridal expo event that we participated in last month. It was amazing to see how so many brides loved our gowns and showed interest in coming to shop with us! Now that peak bridal season has started this month, we are looking forward to seeing the impact of this new inventory on our business growth.
LISC LA: A key offering of the ABC Program is tailored technical assistance to support recipients in achieving their milestones. What has that experience been like for you?
LB: I have begun working with my technical assistance advisor which has been insightful. I enjoyed her assistance in helping me to create my Yearly Growth Plan, which allowed me to really think through all of the goals that I want to achieve this year and put together an effective action plan to bring them to fruition.
LISC LA: Can you tell us about your connection to the community?
LB: Working in an industry driven by people who did not look like me, I often found myself having to break the glass ceiling. As a Black woman in this industry, it was important to me to create space and opportunity for other BIPOC women. As such, I was intentional in creating a diverse and cross-functional team. My Creative Director and Patternmaker are Black and Hispanic women, who bring over five years of bridal apparel sales and technical design experience. Together we are ready to take the bridal industry by storm!
Learn more about the ABC Program and stay tuned for the Growth Capital application launching this Spring at https://www.lisc.org/los-angeles/abc-fund.
