Founder: Barry Airuoyuwa

A Little Bit About Barry and Barry Air…

I am a Nigerian-Canadian fashion enthusiast. I started getting into men’s fashion/men’s style before I graduated from my undergraduate program from York University in 2013. During that time, I realized that in addition to looking good I also felt really good.

I remember talking about starting my own clothing line, and for years, it was just that – “talks”. However, in 2016 when I faced an unexpected situation it pushed me to start what I had been talking about for years. A lot of things had to be put in place before launching the business as anyone can imagine, but my determination was to launch my company and learn as I went on.

Barry Air was birthed from my passion for fashion. I started this business to contribute to the fashion world and to also make sure that men and women could not only look good but feel good as well. Barry Air seeks to provide unique fashion products and to also make custom products for our clients.

Favourite Thing About Being a Millennial Entrepreneur…

My favourite thing about being an entrepreneur is the freedom – freedom to express my creativity when and how I like, the freedom to set my schedule, the freedom of a work life balance. I can plan out my day and make any adjustments as the day goes by. I also enjoy the flexibility of managing my own schedule, which enables me to finish a product even in the middle of the night if I must.

Challenges of Being a Millennial Entrepreneur…

Some of the challenges with being a millennial entrepreneur would be creating awareness of your business, sustaining your business and setting your business apart. Yes, social media is a great platform for getting the word out but there are many other businesses that compete for the same “spotlight”. Persistence and consistency pay off. I always say that starting a business is not the hardest part, sustaining it is, and this could be quite challenging but hard work and divine grace go a long way. It may be challenging to set your business apart seeing that there are many other similar businesses out there, but God has given us ideas and creativity and once we tap into that, we can achieve anything

Advice to Other Millennials Looking to Attaining Greatness in the Fashion and Apparel Industry…

One piece of advice would be to DO IT NOW! Do you have that idea or passion? I say do it now! Why wait? There is never a perfect time to start your business. There will always be that one thing that’s just not quite right or something you want to make perfect. My advice will be to start now and learn as you go. Yes, you will make mistakes as you go and there will be frustrating times but pull through and keep your eyes on the end goal and find fulfillment in what you do.

Cool Things Coming Up for Barry Air…

There have been high demands for us to have a female line incorporated in our business, and that is something we are currently working on. We plan to include other items to the current accessories collection to create a complete look for both ladies and gentlemen. Watch out for more of these.

Find out more about Barry and Barry Air at https://barryair.com/ .