Welcome to HTDOGWTR: Home of Never 2 Fly 2 Pray & JeffreyLee Feather

Jeffrey Lee was very enthusiastic to interview with UPNEXTMAGAZINE. He started off with this opening statement: "Thank you so much for this opportunity to interview with you. I'm excited and appreciative of the platform to talk about my passion creative design and my company. My name is JeffreyLee Sawyer, first name is JeffreyLee and I'm from Charlotte, NC. Shout out to the 704! Htdogwtr is the house company I have two other brands under it Never 2 Fly 2 pray and JeffreyLee Feather."

During the fall 2006 semester, on campus of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University the company name: HTDOGWTR was born. The idea was bred by an innovative and fashion savvy young man named Jeffrey Lee, a fashion merchandising and design major on A&T’s campus. Jeffrey’s idea was to create an exclusive clothing line that would not only attract the attention of campus life, but also expand worldwide. 

His line was not just the type of clothing geared to a specific audience, but a brand that every group, race, gender, and culture could appreciate. What started off as a small line of hand-made couture purses has now grown into what HTDOGWTR is today. The vision of HTDOGWTR has transcended past  A&T’s campus and college campuses in general, but people from NY to Cali can be seen with the infamous HTDOGWTR logo. 

The brand now consists of tee shirts, dresses, jeans, jackets, hats, jewelry, baby wear, car exterior and interior, and bathroom accessories. It doesn’t stop there for the flourishing product line, the possibilities are boundless. As the future approaches the CEO of HTDOGWTR is busy in the studio producing tracks exclusively for HTDOGWTR! All this goes to show that HTDOGWTR clothing line is not just a fashion, it’s a lifestyle.

His primary focus and vision for anything he does is that he first and foremost acknowledges GOD, from whom all blessings flow, and he gives praise for how truly blessed he is. He has the ability to do that through his talent as a designer and stylist. He gets to make some powerful garments and spread inspiration and positive energy through something that is seemingly mundane, such as clothes. So he is doing two things: praising God and helping his community look and feel their best! In his line of work public speaking is a major part of what we do. He empowers the youth to always “BELIEVE IN THEIR FLYNESS” and never to be ashamed of who they are. 

What makes his brand unique from the others who have clothing lines is that he feels all three of his brands are in a league of their own. He is always just ahead of the trends but the message stays classic. For example, over 905 of the items his company makes are hand done in very small quantities with limited supply. So they do not remake anything no matter how fast they sell out or who wants it. They treat every item like a collectors piece. Also, fashion can make a bold statement, so what inspired him to use those words "NEVER 2 FLY 2 PRAY" on his clothes is by the acceptance that sometimes people will be highly affected by the words they read.

In addition, to the growth of his company celebrities have taken noticed of him too. His company has already had celebrities Rock his product. He knew that with any starter company there would be a couple of setbacks though,  but he was blessed to have a product that resonated with people. He anticipated that it would not be smooth so he had buffers in place. He adds advice, saying "The key is to anticipate a setback and make adjustments. Never change your vision just adjust for turbulence." Some of his setbacks have been deal breakers for others. The major one is money and that follows time, trust and not going insane. Being an entrepreneur is not for everybody.

 In his reflections he offers advice to a child or anyone who may want to follow in his footsteps by saying: "To any one who has an idea and believe it can work should try it. Whenever I want to do something new I find myself thinking about Steve Jobs. I'm sure when he told his friends that he had an idea to have a phone that takes pictures better than high quality cameras people laughed at him and now this is a constant thing in billions of people's lives. Do it." 

His website is the best place to find his work: Htodgwt.com, Never2Fly2pray.com and JeffreyLeeFeathers .The goal he says in his conclusion is to get people to spread the message to whoever will listen. Sometimes just wearing the merchandise  will help sprad it. He also has some pop up shops and collaborations scheduled in the near future too. Email him at HDWJL@yahoo.com

FUN FACT

His fans know that he makes dope fashion, but what they didn't know is that growing up his mom would make him dance for her friends when they came over! He can see some choreography and hit it after watching it only once. He gives out  "Shout out  MaMa a.k.a Sherry lol"