The Power of Persistance-Misha Lulu Designs

To be persistent in the pursuit of a dream or goal means to endure tenaciously in spite of all opposition and obstacles. I own a children’s clothing boutique Dragonflies and Ladybugs Boutique. I started to pursue my dream four years ago in December of 2004. In the past four years, I have encountered a variety of obstacles and discouragements that have made obtaining my goal seem farther and farther away. In order to remain persistent and goal-directed… I needed to stay positive and persistent.

One of the greatest methods that I have been able to apply to my life is to get to know other individuals, primarily other women who are in the pursuit of their own business venture. I found that if we shared “stories” and experiences, it made the learning curve appear less intimidating. In this experience I met a lot of other store owners and designers alike whom shared very similar experiences as me, and I listened and learned from how they grew out of their experiences and made them better in their business.

The most inspiring story that I have come across thus far is that of the Misha LuLu designers and creators Karen and Joe. Misha LuLu (pronounced: “meesha” lulu) is a family owned business founded by Joe and Karen Salazar. Karen Moran-Salazar is a native of El Salvador, came to the United States to study fashion design in Long Beach, California. Karen and Joe now live in Pasadena with their newest addition Isabela, who is their “muse” for the Misha LuLu Line. They started Misha LuLu as a T-Shirt line, which has now grown into a complete fashion line known to us as Misha LuLu. Misha LuLu is not only a clothing brand, but a result of love, culture, and style.

When asked what their greatest obstacle and challenge was in creating their own clothing line, Karen replied “There are few things that make it really hard. One of the greatest obstacles is money, the second is time. Joe and I still have jobs beside Misha LuLu. My husband Joe works full time, and I work part time.”
Just like most of us women who started a business, Karen started Misha LuLu in order to be with her daughter, Isabela more often. “I started Misha LuLu because I wanted to be with my daughter more and see her grow. Also, I have always wanted to have my own line of clothing, and when I had Isabela I became inspired.”

I took on this great line during Spring 2008, and I was absolutely amazed at the quality and creative design. It was completely evident that the line was created from hard work and love of fashion. The Fall line is promising to be even more exciting with collections such as Homespun, Bird Family, Modern Misha, and Mishaland. When asked to describe her inspiration behind each collection, Karen described each one in great detail.

The first collection this fall is BIRD FAMILY, which Karen describes, "This collection bases it’s story on friendship with nature. Togetherness and love for all creatures, even though the birds are the only elements represented in this story, they mean our world,and this is a message we like to send always."

The next great collection is MODERN MISHA which is very fun, bright, and vibrant! I love the way Karen described this group, she said "Modern Misha-is a group very retro-modern for the more minimalist and artsy girl. Misha even did a self portrait of herself. The message is “save it for a rainy day” it is something that we wanted to say in this time because there is so much waist out there and we have to be more responsible"

After speaking with Karen and Joe, and reading how they described each line, I was truly inspired and ready to get back to work for our Fall Collection. They are very easy to work with, customer service oriented, and very passionate about their creation. This is what it is all about! This is what the power of persistance is to me, and I look forward to working with them in the future! If you would like to see and learn more about Misha LuLu, you can visit their new updated site: http://mishalulu.com/.