cc the love
Los Angeles, California
Tell us a little bit about who you are and what you do:
Chidera: cc the love
Photo Courtesy Lyda McIver
Hi neighbors, my name is Chidera Chime and I'm a city boy who spreads love. My business - cc the love - started out of nowhere and yet things have mysteriously fallen into place in ways that is no short of God’s doing; I’m extremely grateful. I tell people that I basically make tangible and non-tangible things that spread good vibes; so whether it's a social media post or actual merchandise, my goal is to shine my light and get you to shine yours.
Let us know more about your business name - how did you come up with it?
I get asked about this a lot; "cc the love" is the name, the "cc" part means something different to different people. If you're younger, think in terms of emails; when you cc someone on an email, you're forwarding the message to them. If you're older, you know that "cc" stands for Carbon-Copy which is how copies were made before Xerox. Bottom line, to cc the love is to forward the love or copy the love or spread the love so more people can feel it. The thought started from my initials which is also CC; I wanted my name represented in my business somehow and it was a perfect fit. Most of my friends stopped calling me by my first name and now call me by my initials...it's kinda crazy.
What is your signature style / item? How did it become so?
Definitely my tees. When I started cc the love, the focus for several months was just putting out videos on social media until one day I began designing tees with positive sayings on them. The goal was simple; I would wear one, it’ll make me feel happy, and I’ll spread those vibes everywhere I went. The feeling from my first sale is hard to describe but the first person I saw wearing one of my tees left me speechless; it's really my customers that defined my signature style. It's a simple yet impacting design.
What makes your business unique to the industry?
Honestly, I haven't figured this out yet or maybe there isn't one. Anybody can spread love and I wish everyone did. There's nothing proprietary about my tees; they're comfortable and affordable just like most tees are. What I do know is that I bring a different energy into the industry; call it naiveté but I follow my gut more than I follow the numbers. I'll keep searching for my uniqueness as I continue to learn and grow.
What's been your biggest roadblock when it comes to business and how have you been able to overcome?
My biggest roadblock when it comes to business is that I don't know what I'm doing most of the time; and that's not a joke. I started cc the love from a gut feeling to spread love and went all in; the entire time of running this business has been spent learning to run the business. I've lost money and time but ultimately, I'm happy through the process. I don't think I've been able to overcome it yet, I've simply accepted the fact that I know what I know and I learn what I don't know. I give myself plenty of room to make mistakes and don't judge myself based on other people's progress. In a way, this business has really been about personal growth and I'm lucky to have people believe in it/me the way they have. Their support will always blow my mind and I can't thank them enough.
How has your business had to adapt amidst the Covid- 19 Pandemic? What are you doing to navigate the situation?
Months before the pandemic, I started moving my business totally online and growing my efforts with e-marketing; I expanded my email subscriber list and slowly stopped doing physical markets. Nobody could have anticipated something like this to disrupt life as we know it. By the time things shut down and gatherings were prohibited, I was fully online. Life is weird in the way that things kind of fall into place. One thing that I've had to do because of the pandemic is increase my online presence. I post once daily on social media, once weekly on emails (e-newsletter), and once monthly on the website for my blog. More and more people are on their devices nowadays and with the uncertainty because of the pandemic, I'm happy to be spreading more good vibes. Thanks for asking
What is your favorite part of what you do?
I love meeting people and what I do helps me reach a wide range of people from all walks of like. The most exciting/my favorite part of that, is meeting people who also love cc'ing the love. Can't tell you how many strangers I've hugged because they too love spreading good vibes. My fellow light bearers, keep on shining.
What is your *must do* local activity?
Places to eat:
- Modern Shaman (vegan)
- The 6740
- CiCi's Cafe
- Veronica's Kitchen
Where to find cc the love:
Online: www.ccthelove.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ccthelove
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ccthelove
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ccthelove