Shoe Snob on a Budget & CEO
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T. Denin Williams, affectionately known as Denin, was born and raised on Chicago’s Southside. She is the oldest of her three siblings and the proud Mom of Puddles, her 4-year old Shih Tzu.
Denin’s appreciation for footwear began when she used it to distinguish herself from the other uniform clad girls in elementary school. She would spend countless hours studying the style of her older cousins, window shopping on State St. with her Grandmother and tearing out pages from favorite fashion and music magazines. By the seventh grade, she’d convinced her parents that buying shoes every two weeks was a far better allowance than money each week. They agreed. By 19, Denin had become a trusted footwear stylist for her family and friends. She could visualize what they wanted and deliver. Her client list grew and her admiration quickly blossomed into a passion.
In 2004, Denin toyed with the idea of creating her own footwear line. She researched the industry and while the idea was exciting she already had a great paying job and not nearly enough money saved to start a business. So, she tucked it away as a “dream”. Then in 2008, the economy fell and in the midst of adversity Denin could see nothing but opportunity. She began plotting her escape from Corporate America by muscling up her savings, re-introducing herself to industry contacts, working on designs, learning about raw materials and writing a business plan. With the full support of her family, in 2009 Denin fired her employer of nearly ten years and set off for China and India.
She started D’AuDaCT , LLC (pronounced, thee audacity) as a direct selling company and named the footwear line Shoe Socials. Her very first collection, Comfort Drama, gave the world an introduction to her life as a "Go Girl". "You better be ready for the drama and comfortable with change.” The collection, as each of the others, is extremely personal as it is a reflection of her relationships and perspectives on life. For example, Apricot Seed is about Wonsetta, her maternal Grandmother. The color of the shoe mimics Wonsetta's mixture of Creole, Indian, Irish and Haitian heritages. The zipper in the front pays homage to her cervix; the wooden heel symbolizes her Grandmother's trusted old wisdom while the name of the shoe (Apricot Seed) represents prevention of her demise, cervical cancer. Every shoe has a story.
The footwear designs, mostly birthed in her sleep are usually terribly sketched in the middle of the night. Once she edits the complete collection D’AuDaCT’s international design team begins the task of duplicating a vision from a moment in her dream. From negotiating the price of raw materials in Agra, Uttar Pradesh to approving samples in Guangzhou, China Denin works tirelessly to literally make her dreams a reality.
She is excited about being in her passion and expanding to unbelievable pinnacles. “ I want people that I may never meet to personally benefit from something I create. I want this line to be much bigger than comfortable, drama driven, life styled shoes. I see D’AuDaCT, LLC enriching lives, cultivating dreams and who knows maybe we can do all that by owning our manufacturing and creating jobs right here in the U.S. I'm not afraid to visualize beyond my capabilities. I am crazy enough to expect what has never been done before. I named this company D'AuDaCT because women have the balls, the will and darn it, THEE AUDACITY to dream!”
For Speaking Engagements: (313) 718-2748 or e-mail us at admin@DAuDaCT.com
Denin’s appreciation for footwear began when she used it to distinguish herself from the other uniform clad girls in elementary school. She would spend countless hours studying the style of her older cousins, window shopping on State St. with her Grandmother and tearing out pages from favorite fashion and music magazines. By the seventh grade, she’d convinced her parents that buying shoes every two weeks was a far better allowance than money each week. They agreed. By 19, Denin had become a trusted footwear stylist for her family and friends. She could visualize what they wanted and deliver. Her client list grew and her admiration quickly blossomed into a passion.
In 2004, Denin toyed with the idea of creating her own footwear line. She researched the industry and while the idea was exciting she already had a great paying job and not nearly enough money saved to start a business. So, she tucked it away as a “dream”. Then in 2008, the economy fell and in the midst of adversity Denin could see nothing but opportunity. She began plotting her escape from Corporate America by muscling up her savings, re-introducing herself to industry contacts, working on designs, learning about raw materials and writing a business plan. With the full support of her family, in 2009 Denin fired her employer of nearly ten years and set off for China and India.
She started D’AuDaCT , LLC (pronounced, thee audacity) as a direct selling company and named the footwear line Shoe Socials. Her very first collection, Comfort Drama, gave the world an introduction to her life as a "Go Girl". "You better be ready for the drama and comfortable with change.” The collection, as each of the others, is extremely personal as it is a reflection of her relationships and perspectives on life. For example, Apricot Seed is about Wonsetta, her maternal Grandmother. The color of the shoe mimics Wonsetta's mixture of Creole, Indian, Irish and Haitian heritages. The zipper in the front pays homage to her cervix; the wooden heel symbolizes her Grandmother's trusted old wisdom while the name of the shoe (Apricot Seed) represents prevention of her demise, cervical cancer. Every shoe has a story.
The footwear designs, mostly birthed in her sleep are usually terribly sketched in the middle of the night. Once she edits the complete collection D’AuDaCT’s international design team begins the task of duplicating a vision from a moment in her dream. From negotiating the price of raw materials in Agra, Uttar Pradesh to approving samples in Guangzhou, China Denin works tirelessly to literally make her dreams a reality.
She is excited about being in her passion and expanding to unbelievable pinnacles. “ I want people that I may never meet to personally benefit from something I create. I want this line to be much bigger than comfortable, drama driven, life styled shoes. I see D’AuDaCT, LLC enriching lives, cultivating dreams and who knows maybe we can do all that by owning our manufacturing and creating jobs right here in the U.S. I'm not afraid to visualize beyond my capabilities. I am crazy enough to expect what has never been done before. I named this company D'AuDaCT because women have the balls, the will and darn it, THEE AUDACITY to dream!”
For Speaking Engagements: (313) 718-2748 or e-mail us at admin@DAuDaCT.com