Creative Entrepreneurship Takes Centre Stage at BoF and Self-Portrait Los Angeles Cocktail

LOS ANGELES — On Wednesday, a curated assembly of Los Angeles’ most influential voices in fashion, culture and creative enterprise, convened for an exclusive cocktail reception hosted by Imran Amed, The Business of Fashion founder and chief executive, and Han Chong, founder and creative director of womenswear brand Self-Portrait.

The event, hosted at The Living Room in Los Angeles, centred around the theme “Creatives Shaping Culture”. It is the first in an ongoing series celebrating global creative entrepreneurship, the reception marked a meaningful step in strengthening the relationship between creative vision and business innovation that propels the fashion ecosystem forward.

“Creativity does not take place in silos,” shared Amed, as the evening began. “Our cultural landscape has fashion, music, contemporary art, design and film intermingling with each other. Bringing people together from across these creative disciplines is one way of harnessing the potential of creative collisions, as well as the new ideas and possibilities that come from them.”

The evening drew together a dynamic mix of voices from across the BoF community. Designers and entrepreneurs like Shay Mitchell, Mike Amiri, Samantha Richelle, Tina Craig and Gelila Puck mingled with artists and actors like Becky G, Bella Poarch, Victoria Justice, Evan Ross and Manoj Dias, as well as cultural catalysts and creative talents like Janaya ‘Future’ Khan, Elaine Welteroth and Nara Aziza Smith.

“When I founded my brand, I knew I wanted this to be at the core of everything we did — the name itself, ‘Self-Portrait’ – was intended to reflect this idea of evolution and self-expression not only to my customers, but to the partners we work with too,” said Chong. “Tonight is a really good moment to celebrate this through an event with a partner who shares the same ambitions to make an impact on creativity.”

When discussing Los Angeles’ singular position as an intersection of fashion, entertainment, technology and art, Chong said: “The city is an incredible tapestry of creativity and innovation. This event creates the space to celebrate a unique energy, connect with people who are influencing the landscape, and encourage the exchange of ideas that lead to new possibilities.”

Singer and actor Becky G echoed a similar sentiment: “[LA] is such a melting pot of so many different cultures. […] Today, there is so much movement for the culture, for community, and there’s a lot of connection that’s happening.”

She added the importance of “telling stories” within the creative process. “It didn’t really matter the realm in which that happened, whether it was through music, through fashion, through film and TV,” she told BoF. “Then, cultivating that sense of community just came with time in it.”

Model Halima Aden shared a similar sentiment around sharing narratives within creative work: “It’s always [about] telling stories. I feel like that’s how I connect personally. I need to hear your story to connect and it inspires me to share my own and create my own.”

However, actually “being creative and doing something that not everyone’s doing” is one of the biggest challenges facing emerging talent today, according to model-turned-content creator Nara Aziza Smith. “It’s kind of intimidating stepping out of that comfort zone a little bit and doing something different,” she added.

Aden advised that creatives “just have to post it and hope that it connects with the right audience.” She adds: “Don’t get in the habit of, ‘It needs to be perfect before I can show the world what my art is.’ Just have confidence.”

And as influencer and entrepreneur Hallie Batchelder added: “I always just say yes to everything and […] then I always have a story to tell.”

BoF’s ‘Creatives Shaping Culture’ event was made possible in partnership with Self Portrait. Special thanks to The Living Room for hosting this gathering.

This is a sponsored feature paid for by Self-Portrait as part of a BoF partnership.