Marshall Talbot, designer behind the Danzy Designs brand, grew up in Tulsa and attended Jenks for most of his school years before attending ORU.
While there, Talbot decided that she wanted to make it in the fashion world, and that dream is coming true.
Talbot explains: “I started with the idea of marketing, but I never thought I would actually use it. But now that I’m running my own business, I’ve realized how much I actually use it. It’s unbelievable.”
Discover fashion and early influences
Talbot became interested in fashion at an early age, inspired by family outings with her mother at Woodland Hills Mall. As he remembered,
“I remember when we were little, my mom and my cousins and aunt would go to Woodland Hills Mall every Saturday morning, and we’d run around to Dillard’s, JC Penney’s, Lineburg, etc. , I think I was looking at the polo section and all the other shopping.”The colors were really double-edged in my head, so I kept going back and looking at the old stores at Welton Hills Mall. I remember running through a rack that looked like a corner. “Set the stage,” Talbot said.
The first step in fashion
After graduating from ORU, Talbot moved to Los Angeles, where he began working in television production. In my free time, I started painting white Velcro shoes from Walmart. This led to a chance encounter that changed the course of his career. Talbot explains:
“I was walking in and out of stores on Melrose Avenue, and when the winning boutique came out, a guy saw me, saw me, ran out, and started asking me where my shoes came from. And I was like, oh, I just painted it yesterday, this was my first summer in L.A., and he was like, “Well, are you selling it?” And I was like, “No, I’m not. ” he said. So I immediately said, “Of course.” So I kind of tripped and fell on the bandwagon,” he said.
inspiration and fashion week
Talbot’s inspiration for Danzy Designs comes from his Tulsa roots and ’90s fashion trends, where he grew up.
“A lot of that comes from growing up in Tulsa. To be honest, I remember going for walks with my mom in the morning and seeing the other women’s clothes and their families and the things my dad introduced me to over the years. It goes back to my childhood of summer camps and sports, but a lot of it is based on Tulsa, and it’s based on 90s fashion and TV shows. Like, I’ve really grown up,” Talbot said.
Talbot’s journey in the fashion industry includes the honor of being featured in Vogue magazine. When he looked back,
“That, for me at least, is the crown jewel of being trendy. Now, I’ve been there before, but this is just like me being trending above and inside. Fashion I’m still a very small brand, and I’m still the only one running this company, so it’s nice to get that kind of recognition in a magazine, especially at a time like this. It’s a huge thing to gain. It’s incredible that I was able to get to where I am today in my career, without any training, just jumping into fashion and showing at fashion week. “I had someone from Vogue come and look at my rack, and I had no idea I was going to be in the magazine,” he said.
If you are interested in Talbot’s designs, please visit www.danzyus.com.
