30 www.ReadMPM.com | www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.MountPleasantPodcast.com The Mount Pleasant community is a place where entrepreneurship flourishes. Shopping locally at small businesses can serve as motivation for anyone aspiring to become an entrepreneur or business owner themselves. Lucas Taylor, owner of Kick It Kicks in Mount Pleasant, had just that experience. A high school graduate of Philip Simmons High School off Clements Ferry Road, Taylor’s parents are entrepreneurs as well. His mother runs a hair salon while his father owns an area painting company. “I’m 19 years old. Both of my parents own their own businesses, and I didn’t want to go to college. My family and I were in LA shopping at boutiques and my mother came up with the idea. I was totally down,” recounted Taylor. Soon thereafter, Kick It Kicks was born. A Melrose Avenue boutique vibe that would bring any sneakerhead to their knees, the store buys, sells and trades new and pre-owned sneakers, skateboards, apparel and designer wear for men, women and children. Kick It Kicks carries a variety of sneakers from Nike Air Jordans, Adidas Yeezy and Off-White to Travis Scott. You can walk out with clean, stylish kicks made for “the Gram” (Instagram). Clothing brands they offer include A Bathing Ape, Supreme, Essentials, Spider, Denim Tears and Gallery Dept, high-quality attire that will enhance your wardrobe. Looking for luxury but don’t want to travel downtown to purchase it? No worries. They carry luxury apparel and goods too. “People will bring in their Jordans or Louis Vuitton collection and we will buy them out,” Taylor said. “They can either have cash or store credit.” Entrepreneurship is when an individual who has an idea to open a business acts on that idea, often to disrupt the current market with a new product or service. It starts with a concept, a purpose and passion, and gradually grows into something bigger. Taylor is doing just that. “Take the risk,” Taylor added. “There is no point not to. You won’t know unless you take the risk to open your business.” One of the things Taylor enjoys the most about owning his own store is that he gets to make all the decisions. It’s empowering, boosts his confidence and sets a standard not only for him but his co-workers and colleagues. Taylor plans to open more stores in the future, but currently he’s busy growing and perfecting his brand. Kickin’ it New School Teen opens boutique shoe store Kick It Kicks is open Monday-Saturday from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. It is located off Highway 17 at 1113 Market Center Blvd. Suite A in Mount Pleasant. You can find them on Instagram @kick.it.sneakers. BY MAURICE J. FRAZIER our town
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