If you live in the Caribbean, near a beach or in close vicinity to a pool, there’s a high chance you’re a lover of good swimwear. The founder of Pas Jalou, Kashima Montoute is a Saint Lucian born alumni from Leon Hess, Sir Arthur Lewis and Monroe College respectively. At the University of Leicester in the UK, Kashima also studied Finance and Information Technology.
Dazzle: Tell us about Pas Jalou
Kashima: Originally I launched Pas Jalou in 2018 at the Royalton Resort. It was small and intimate and it started off with a lot of challenges as it was my very first business launch. It was too much of an investment in the beginning and as I moved along in the business I realized that initially I didn’t have to invest so much when launching as it pertains to inventory and products.
Moving forward, things slowed down a little. For my women’s line, some of my products were not manufactured satisfactory so there was the challenge of having to go back and forth to have things replaced and redone. When I first launched, people knew Pas Jalou for the sequins and the glitter. Sequins are not the most comfortable to wear so at the time when I launched, perfecting the product and working with various manufacturers has been a challenge. I’m at a point where the manufacturers I work with are great.
I had my second launch in 2019 for Miami Swim Week which was based in Florida and that was great exposure for the brand. One of the representatives from Miami Swim Week came across Pas Jalou on Instagram and they said they thought the brand was different and wanted to know if I was interested in participating.
Dazzle: The fashion industry is quite broad. Why did you choose swimwear?
Kashima: I started with swimwear because I loved it. I changed Pas Jalou swimwear to just Pas Jalou because I wanted to create a household brand where I could take the name Pas Jalou and place it onto any product. For example if I wanted to branch out and do a skin care line, I would be able to put Pas Jalou on there. Usually people would go on vacation and buy swimwear but right now, no ones really traveling so it becomes very challenging when you’re selling just one product. I had to change up a lot of things as it pertains to the brand and thinking more outside the box.
Dazzle: How did you go from studying finance to designing swimwear?
Kashima: After I graduated I worked with my college for about a year or two and I realized that I loved to have my own time and be on my own schedule. Having your own business could help you move in that direction. When you’re first starting there are things you have to do on your own before you develop a routine. For me it was more about the passion; like what am I working on today? Or what can I do to make the brand different?
Initially when I started the brand, it wasn’t just about swimwear for me. Pas Jalou means ‘don’t be jealous’, so for me, I see people comparing themselves to others and being insecure or envious. So the brand is trying to say don’t be envious of others.
Dazzle: Which company do you compare your brand to?
Kashima: When I was in Miami for Miami Swim Week, I met the owner of Bfyne. It’s almost like an African print type of brand and I admire them. I feel like they focus a lot on their culture and the designs are mostly African in nature. Even with Pas Jalou I’ve thought to myself, “what can I change within the brand to make it more local?” I’ve thought of making something with madras to tie in St. Lucia with my designs.
Dazzle: What is your inspiration currently?
Kashima: As I mentioned with the madras, that’s what I’ve been mostly focused on; a design that relates closely with the St. Lucian culture. I’ve met people and they’ve asked why I haven’t been a part of carnival before and that’s a funny thing because the swimwear has a lot of glitter and it fits the carnival look. In 2020 I did speak to one particular band, we signed a contract and everything. I was excited to do this new thing for 2020 carnival, but there was one concern that I had. Brands and organizations in St. Lucia don’t really work together. They don’t uplift each other in the way that they should.
Dazzle: What challenges do you face producing your product out of St. Lucia?
Kashima: I started working with a local manufacturer here in St. Lucia and let’s say I did 100 pieces with that particular manufacturer, the quality of work was 90% but the cost of production is expensive. If I’m based in New York, I set up my designs and I say this is what I want, I need to purchase the fabric, ship it down and clear it. Then I have to pay the manufacturer to make the swimwear. It’s great to say your stuff is made in Saint Lucia; that’s what I want, but when it pertains to someone asking for a bulk order, I really have to drive up my cost to make a profit.
Moving forward, one of the things Pas Jalou has been working toward is having the product physically available for customers to view. Pas Jalou is mainly online and that has been a challenge. I’ve been working towards having pop up shops so customers can have a feel for the product.
Dazzle: Do you have a team?
Kashima: Yes I do have a team. I feel like 2020 has really given me the opportunity to sit back and say, hey, this is what you should be doing. During that time it was a lot of restructuring and making sure I had the right manufacturers and someone to give me a little bit of advice.
I’ve been in St. Lucia for a couple of weeks and my main focus has been finding St. Lucian based brand ambassadors to help promote the brand.
Dazzle: How do you deal with criticism?
Kashima: I actually really love criticism. I like when someone points out something that isn’t good or isn’t working because it helps me improve my brand. I want feedback from the brand ambassadors as well. I’ve told them, “you guys are brand ambassadors but if something isn’t working or doesn’t feel comfortable, I want you to tell me. I would rather you tell me so I can improve on whatever needs improving.” I try to be personal with my customers and ask them for feedback on how I can improve the brand.
Dazzle: What have been your challenges so far?
Kashima: I think 2020 took the cake for most of my challenges thus far. In terms of sales, it dropped tremendously because of shipping. I would go through with an order and then ship it out but a month later someone would come and say they haven’t received their product as yet. It became very stressful so I stopped sales completely so I could see how things were going shipping wise.
Pre-Covid, I didn’t really have any challenges. The brand was just picking up being that I had just launched in 2018 and then the following year with another launch internationally. So for me, I feel like the first two years was more about getting the brand out there and perfecting the product.
Dazzle: Tell us about your biggest achievements.
Kashima: I’ve had two big achievements. Miami Swim Week was an amazing opportunity in 2019 and 2020 was having Mya wear my swimwear. She took part in Girls Cruise which was a series by Lil Kim on VH1. Mya and I originally connected in Jamaica. She was doing a collab at the time with Jah Cure and I was there for a friend’s wedding and we met there. I met her in 2018 and we reconnected the year after and she contacted me looking for swimwear.
Dazzle: We noticed you start a new fitness line. Tell us more about it.
Kashima: I recently did the line Pas Jalou Sports because I think that fitness and swimwear coincides alittle. Everyone wants to look good in their swimwear. A lot of people go to the gym and love working out and for me it was about creating lounge wear for mainly females so far. It’s all based here in Saint Lucia for purchase.
Dazzle: Where do you see yourself and the brand in the near future?
Kashima: I’m thinking I’ll just take things one day at a time and see how it goes. For 2020 I was really looking forward to partnering for carnival and hopefully expanding the brand.
Dazzle: What advice would you like to give upcoming entrepreneurs?
Kashima: Study your market in whichever business that you’re getting into. You should have passion for whatever it is you’re doing, especially now with Covid. If you don’t have a passion for it the drive won’t be there either and you need that to make it work.
Dazzle Magazine wishes Kashima and Pas Jalou all the best for their respective future endeavors! Follow Pas Jalou online (@pasjalou)
