Meet Sydney Renwrick

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sydney Renwrick. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Sydney, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?

My work ethic comes straight from my mom. My mom has instilled in me “God bless the child that has their own.” I’ve always worked hard to have my own everything. I don’t like to rely on others but I like to be sufficient enough to allow others to rely on me.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

Ever since I was five years old I wanted to be a Fashion Designer. I would sketch clothing designs all the time and take multiple sewing classes growing up. When it was time to start college, I attended the Art Institute of New York City majoring in Fashion Design. A few months in a professor told my class that we didn’t need degrees to become successful Fashion Designers. Immediately I thought to myself, “what am I doing here?” The school was great for my creativity but I didn’t feel like I was being challenged enough. I transferred schools and ended up graduating from LIM College with a Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising and International Marketing in 2019. I started my career working at the corporate offices of multiple retailers but my creativity wasn’t being fulfilled. I started my own business as a creative where I do freelance designing, styling, and photoshoot set ups but it still wasn’t enough. In 2022, I started making great strides by traveling to do work both for my business and at my 9-5. I was set and ready to focus on creating my own clothing brand. Then I found out I was pregnant and I put everything on pause. During my pregnancy I stayed on TikTok. I would watch multiple cake decorating videos and couldn’t wait until my pregnancy was over to try my hand at it. About six weeks postpartum, I decided I was going to bake one of my close friends a heart shaped cake for her birthday. I grew up baking a lot because my mom knew how to bake. It was something that came easy to me but I never decorated a cake before. The day I decided to decorate the heart shaped cake, it fell apart and I was extremely discouraged. I’m so used to being good at things immediately that I felt like cake decorating wasn’t for me. Fast forward some months to Thanksgiving in 2023, I baked a cake that my family thought was so good that I should sell it. So during that holiday season I sold a few cakes and cookies. I continued to bake here and there and decorate cupcakes and treats that were simple. By June 2024, the same friend who I tried to make the heart shaped cake for, was having a baby shower. For her baby shower I baked and decorated a whole assortment of treats. I also decorated her treat table. I told myself that if it looks great and does well, I will start a business from it. Needless to say, it turned out great so I started my baking business “The Vanilla Spice.” It hasn’t been a year yet but I’ve fell with decorating cakes. It can be frustrating and a little stressful but the outcome is worth it. The meticulous creative process from start to finish is something I never knew I needed. I’ve always knew my purpose in life is to create but I’ve always thought it was clothes. However, it’s much more deeper than that. I’m a creative in every sense of the word.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

The three most important qualities to have that I find to be very impactful are patience, belief in yourself, being coachable. Patience is important for multiple reasons. It’s easy to look at what others have and become discourage as to why you’re not there and the answer is simple: your path is different. As humans we want instant gratification, but instant gratification isn’t as rewarding as hard work. You have to enjoy the journey and appreciate the struggle of it. This is where you have to have faith in yourself. You have to trust and believe that your time is coming. If a passion has been put on your heart and your mind then it’s already yours. It’s already achievable. There’s some work that has to be done. Often times when we’re good at something, we believe we know everything about it. There’s nothing wrong with being open minded and learning more. You have to be coachable. You have to be open to obtaining more knowledge because it will only push you further.

Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?

The most impactful thing that my parents have done for me is simply support me. My parents taught me that I can do anything I put my mind to and I truly believe that about myself. They didn’t punish me at 4 years old for writing on the wall (although they should’ve), they encouraged the creativity. I wanted to play an instrument, they bought me a clarinet. I wanted to play basketball, I joined a basketball team. I wanted to learn how to sew, they put me in sewing classes. It’s something as simple as being supported and knowing someone has your back that’ll not only strengthen the belief in yourself, but the love you have for your passion. To this day, I’ll send pictures of my cakes to my mom and she replies with “Awesome!” or “Beautiful!” and that still means so much to me.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @thevanillaspice_
• Other: Personal Instagram: @sydcharisse_
  Fashion business page: @ask.syd