Before there was a brand, there were women. Five women whose lives — their grace, their fire, their faith, their love, their pain, their resilience — became the blueprint for everything A.B.O.D.E. is and everything it will ever be. Each letter of this name belongs to one of them. They are the home this brand was built inside of.
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(A) Alice Andrews
“Aunt Alice” - She was a firecracker. Sharp, fashionable, and magnetic in every room she entered. Alice loved loudly and lived fully, and being in her presence felt like a gift you didn't know you needed. She taught us that joy is not frivolous. It is necessary. And she found it in the simple things of life.
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(B) Barbara A. Parrish-Johnson
“Nanna” - Barbara had a heart of gold. She knew pain and disappointment intimately and loved anyway. Wholly, generously, without reservation. There was not a bad bone in her body. She taught me that love is not the absence of suffering. It is the choice you make in spite of it.
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(O) Osie Seire
“Ma Osie” - a real live Proverbs 31 woman. Without force, without apology, she lived each day with purpose and with grace and dignity. Life wasn’t no crystal stair, but she alchemized it all. A voice soft as cotton and presence strong as a lioness. She taught me how to be a force without being loud. My left-handed twin, my Capricorn twin, my brown-skinned twin. She is my North Star.
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(D) Dorothy Peterson
“Gamma Dot” a bonafide spiritual warrior. Fiery and faithful in equal measure, her prayer was not a ritual, it was a practice, a presence, a energy. She taught me that faith is not passive. It is the most radical act of resistance there is.
The Founder
Shanika Lachelle
S.L. / Es·Elle (E)
I am a woman shaped by a full village. But these four women and my mother, are my lifeline in ways I am still learning to name. I carry Southern roots baked in resilience, faith, love, and natural beauty. I am healing my bloodline. Literally and figuratively. And everything A.B.O.D.E. makes, writes, and creates comes from that work. I am an artist. A creative. A builder who moves slowly on purpose. I believe that healing is the revolution. And that when Black people come home to themselves, fully and without apology, everything good becomes possible for us individually and collectively. That is the dream. That is the work. That is A.B.O.D.E. From that, everything good flows.
The Inspiration
My Momi. Karen Michelle.
The woman who knew.
Who knew at the age of 21, even though I had her and my father, she would need a village to raise a young girl. The woman who worked tirelessly to ensure I had a great childhood and balances being my mother and confidant flawlessly. The One who prays fervently for me. Who sacrificed everything for me. Who believes in every dream I’ve ever dreamt. Who supports all of my artistry, talents and desires to see me live out the life of my dreams.
Without her I wouldn’t be. The very heart of this brand. Mom, I love you.