My Story

When I was 15-years-old, our mom decided to move to the United States from South Korea and bring my sister and I.

In the beginning, I barely spoke English and everyday was an adjustment and learning. The school, friends, and culture were all new to me and I was forced to adapt and learn the changes. 

Our mom wasn't the type of person to give us any explanations on her decision, hence we were confused why and how we ended up there. The most confusing part was when our mom decided to leave us and move back to Korea by herself. Since then, my sister and I turned on our survival mode. 

After mom moved back to Korea, we found out that dad had lost his job and we didn't have any source of financial support to sustain. Everything fell apart and we were broke. We were always behind on rent and utility bills even though my sister and I both worked multiple jobs to make the means.

There were times when we didn't even have food in the fridge for over a week, and I'd ask my sister for $5 so that I can buy lunch but she didn't have any to give to me. Thankfully, our school allowed kids to have “seconds” after their first serve, so I used to take my friend’s tray and got seconds.

During this tough time, I was struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts and the only thing that helped me was making art. I spent my high-school years to build portfolio and win several art awards. After years of art making, I eventually got into Otis College of Arts and Design and luckily received significant amount of scholarship.

As soon as I started college, I began working as a photographer and photo editor immediately. I couldn’t afford not to work so I applied to every photography jobs possible and took every opportunity I could. On top of school and freelance work, I spent hours and days in the lighting studio to build up my portfolio and practice. The hard work and dedication led me to start making high income straight out of college, and my life kept progressing from there.

When I say things get better, I mean by “You learn to deal with obstacles better.” When you go through so much your whole life, things become extremely numb. Nothing matters anymore but money when you come from financial hardship. I worked non-stop to the point where I didn't have a single day off for two months straight. I was being called workaholic and hard worker but the real reason behind my hard work was the fear of not having food in the fridge. I wanted to be rich. I still want to become really rich.

As far as I know, there are far more people out there who struggled more than I did. The saddest thing is that there are still people living in poverty and kids having to give up their dream because of the concept of “Money.” and I want to be that person who can stop them from giving up their dream just because of money. 

 Since I started photography, I always wanted to become a fashion photographer due to my love for fashion. Luckily, I did achieve that dream but it wasn’t fulfilling me 100% because I didn't feel like I was providing anything valuable to the world.I felt like there are ways to do more meaningful work than merely taking photos clothes for fashion companies that didn't align with my values. Hence, I started Eight Cats. 

Even when I was at my dark time, I always wore colorful and bold outfits. It was my way of making myself feel more confident and happier even just for a little bit. I think fashion is representation of yourself and what you wear influences your day. With Eight Cats, I want to convey these positive feelings to other people who might be struggling with insecurities, feeling down, or any obstacles that they are going through.

I want Eight Cats to be more than just a clothing brand. I wish for our brand to be an inspiration for people with big dreams and be a positive representation of an immigrant building a business and community.