Meet Jasmine Hill-Carter | Jewelry Designer and Brand Specialist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jasmine Hill-Carter and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jasmine, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
When I was younger, my mom always wore jewelry. She use to pay a lot of money for her jewelry and I also grew up in a culture where people know where you were from based on your jewelry. As I got older, I started wearing all types of jewelry to match with my outfits. Juicy Couture was popular during the time I was 13 & my parents would always buy me Juicy Couture since I always loss my expensive jewelry.

Although juicy couture had beautiful timeless pieces, their quality did not hold up. I wanted to start a brand that made sense. Quality had to match the price for me. I started Velz Monroe to as a wholesale/resell brand as a stepping stone. I priced my jewelry low, ran sales and built a following.

Over the last 9 years, I paid attention to the market and knew once I had figure out the right logo, it was time to elevate Velz Monroe. I transitioned a wholesale/resell brand to a luxury everyday brand.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Velz Monroe had it’s ups and down being that I started the business as a freshman in college and had a few deaths in my family while operating the business.

I attended FIT (The Fashion Institute of Technology) in NYC and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Entrepreneurship. Before attending college, I would stay after school at the age of 14 studying the SBA and USPTO website from top to bottom. I still have a binder filled with legal jargon til this day.

After losing my dad, I was filled with naivety. I kept trying to fill a void because I loss one of the realest people on my team. I surrounded myself with likeminded people but did not realize how people only liked to be around to help me build their brands.

I took those lessons, along with my college background and started a brand development business.

This allowed me to develop two different sets of target audiences which eventually intertwined. People would support both brands because they were supporting me.

I also utilized my Fashion background to start my career as an accessory stylist where I would use Velz Monroe’s jewelry on every photoshoot/video shoot set as well as fashion shows.

With all the pain and tears I had to endure, I was able to finally pursue the vision I had for my brand last year. Although it’s been nine years since I launched the brand, this is truly the beginning for me.

Velz Monroe is not a wholesale/resell brand anymore. It’s is BLACK LUXURY !

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I love South Beach of course but I definitely would take my friend to the Art District!

The beach always help me get my creative juices flowing. It’s something about the water that does that for me. After leaving the beach, we will go to the Art District to take in all the talent and visuals.

Since I have a background in fashion, I definitely have to take her to the Versace Mansion!

I loved Nikki Beach when I attended a party there & will add that to our itinerary as well.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would love to give credit to my father: My dad is no longer with us. He has supported me and always showed up when he could. He was in the military and was always deployed or at training. However, when he was home, he tried his best to always be there.

Website: Velzmonroe.com

Instagram: Instagram.com/Velzmonroe

Twitter: Twitter.com/Velzmonroe

Facebook: Facebook.com/velzmonroe