Via. TJ Armour N'DIGO

From engineering to marketing to professionally dancing alongside the likes of Missy Elliott and Will Smith, businesswoman and entrepreneur Casey Kelley has seemingly done it all and shows no signs of slowing down.

The New Orleans native saw a major void in the fashion industry when her 10-year-old son asked for a back-to-school backpack with an image that looked like him on it. After searching high and low to no avail, Casey tuned into the age-old adage that necessity is the mother of invention and along with her husband Harvey developed Blended Designs.

In an era where African-American designers are still struggling for mainstream appeal, Blended Designs offers an alternative in the accessories department, using African-American inspired artwork, images, and messages to empower and educate a new generation.

Featured in or on The View, Forbes, NPR and ABC News, among other outlets, Kelley continues to empower her children and those of many others with her rise-above-attitude, making Blended Designs one of the most popular resources for school gear specifically designed for people of color.

In 2018, Kelley was awarded a FedEx small business grant, and continues to grow her company to impact the world. Hollywood favorites including Oscar-winner Regina King, Blac-kish star Anthony Anderson, America’s Next Top Model star Miss J, and the incomparable Vivica A. Fox have all been spotted with and supporting Blended Designs bags.

To read the full interview click here. 

Wednesday, February 6th, Blended Designs Founder and CEO, Casey Kelley spoke on a panel at the Jacksonville Business Journal African-American Small Business Forum.

The panel also included moderator Jeff Shuford, Contributor of Black Enterprise Magazine, Johnny Helms, President and CEO of Lumbee Group, Kathey Porter, Director of Small Business and Vendor Diversity at the University of Florida, and Deborah Thompson, Owner of Deborah K. Thompson Consultants.

The keynote was given by Julian Duncan, Chief Marketing Officer for the Jacksonville Jaguars. 

Carla Harris, Vice Chairman at Morgan Stanley, Loves Blended Designs

Blended Designs had the absolute pleasure of presenting to Ms. Carla Harris, Vice Chairman at Morgan Stanley, who is known world wide as an entrepreneurial leader and investor in early stage disruptive solutions. Ms. Harris runs the Morgan Stanley early stage investment fund and is always looking for deals across many industries.

Blended Designs founder was introduced to Ms. Harris though Jim Stallings and PS27 Ventures. Ms. Harris loved the backpacks and resinated with the Blended Designs Delta bag, the 'Devastating Divas Duffle Bag' pictured below.