Student entrepreneurship may be Mississippi State University’s fastest-growing trend. There is always the student designated as the rapper, the designer or the artist. Many students seek different ways to change campus ideals using their mediums as well as pushing for both local and international recognition.
Different T-shirt lines always emerge amongst the crowd. Students create handcrafted jewelry and accessories and sell them every day. Dorm rooms have become second-hand shops. What if a student-owned creative managing company wanted to not only support, but also elevate talented artists?
Noir is just that: an up-and-coming student-run multimedia brand geared toward music, fashion and photography.
Cam Veal, junior music education major, owns Noir. Veal said he wants to showcase the talent of Mississippians to their home state.
“Mississippians don’t back each other. We don’t give each other enough support. Musically, fashion, none of that,” Veal said. “So I said, ‘Well if I can give people something that they can look to, then they won’t have to look to New York or California to feel involved. They won’t have to feel like they have to leave and go to a place like Atlanta or Texas to find opportunities in things they love.’”
Veal said he plans to work online with other student-run organizations and businesses on campus to keep Noir open to all.
“With Noir, I want to network with everyone here, like the members of Chase Life, MSU Fashion Board and MOD,” Veal said. “All the musicians, club owners, anyone I can get in contact with, to basically keep everything fresh and new.”
Noir seeks inclusivity, but the company has experienced backlash for its name choice. Veal said he named the company Noir, which is the French word for black, for a simple reason: he likes the color.
“My favorite color is black, and Noir translates into black in French. I thought it was catchy and liked it,” Veal said. “Though a lot of people ask me do I only work with blacks or make the inference about us only being black-oriented, but it has nothing to do with that. It has nothing to do with race.”
Veal said although Noirprints T-shirts, they are only for marketing. Veal said Noir has bigger plans for fashion coming from the company.
“I don’t want people to think that we’re just some basic T-shirt company,” Veal said. “I’m getting students to create a clothing line for Noir. The basic T-shirt is really used for promotional purposes.”
Veal said the shirts are not meant to generate much revenue but instead are a visible way to alert people to Noir.
Brittany Henderson, sophomore human sciences major, already owns a DIY apparel company on campus known as Panache Flair. She said she signed onto Noir and she also helps organize and find models for Noir fashion shows.
“I’m mainly the styling consultant. But I also help in the casting process,” Henderson said. “We recently had our first casting for a fashion show that’ll be in Jackson in November.”
Veal said Noir attempts to bring another shade of local color to Mississippi, just like all locally owned businesses. In a place rich with culture and history that is, at times, overlooked, Veal said he hopes Noir can join the movement to help push Mississippi into the forefront of originality.
“Most people are trying to copy the style they see on TV with the snapbacks and tattoos, but I’m not about that,” said Veal. “I want to show people Mississippi has its own style. We’re original and I want to make everyone see that.”
More information about Noir may be found on its Instagram account, @_AffairesNoir_ or by contacting [email protected].
