“In this NEW NORMAL, we are rebels reinventing footwear, bringing back creativity, individuality, and freedom of expression through the art of style and slow fashion.”

Husband-and-wife team Justice and Leslie Jackson-Bessent are a true fashion love story. Agnes Bethel, the chic footwear brand, is named after Justice’s beloved mother who had a desire to make it big in the fashion industry but was denied the privilege to be world-renowned and showcase her incredible talent. She continued to design on a smaller scale but eventually abandoned her dream to focus on family. As fate would have it, Justice and Leslie, both military veterans, met, fell in love, joined forces and took years of shoe designs that Justice kept in a box to give birth to the brand. Handcrafted in Italy with meticulous attention to details,  this women’s shoe brand of showstopping and certainly collectible pieces is made from love with love.  Against many odds and obstacles, Leslie’s wit and business acumen coupled with Justice’s God-given design talent is true testimony that what you believe, you can conceive and ultimately achieve. May the Agnes Bethel legacy continue!

To whom or what do you give your inspiration for designing women’s luxury shoes?

Justice: My wife. She’s my muse and inspiration for everything that I do. Her, and my children. She inspires me, I really got lucky with her!

Leslie: He’s incredible! I wish I could take the designs he has and show them to the world. His creativity is endless. He can totally realize a full shoe design from anything in seconds. He can see a flower and from that, sketch an entire design.

What has been your greatest challenge/challenges or deficit in becoming a shoe designer?

Justice: So far, we’ve done everything on our own. Everything I’ve learned has been self-taught. I’ve had no one to hold my hand through this process. I have survived five heart surgeries and have been diagnosed with lung disease, so my health has played a part in disrupting my workflow from time to time. During hospital stays I can’t be hands on, so my wife takes the reigns. These are my challenges.

Leslie: Both of us are veterans. One of the challenges we faced as veterans is learning that assistance is made available for those leaving the military interested in tech and engineering, but there aren’t a lot of tools and resources available for veterans wanting to venture into the fashion industry. So, when we first started, it was hard trying to find resources available for one veteran. Black people trying to do something in the fashion industry is not considered luxury. When you put a black face to it, they don’t consider what you’re doing as luxury. It’s considered an urban product. We did everything by ourselves with no help and were determined to succeed by any means necessary.

As an emerging luxury shoe designer in the current day fashion business, what advice or words of wisdom would you give to someone wanting the same success?

Leslie: Stay consistent and don’t worry about the numbers – it does not equate to success or quality. Continue to do what you do and build the brand of your dreams. Stay creative. People will come, they will find you. It will be a slow process, but they will eventually come, and you’ll grow! Be true to who you are and stay authentic and the rest will come.

Justice: I can’t put that any better.

IG: @agnesbethelshoes

Web: www.agnesbethel.com