For Julia Phipps, the journey of starting her own clothing brand represents far more than just an entry into the life of an entrepreneur. Heart of Gold 24k is a streetwear clothing company with a powerful message behind it: hope. One day, Phipps hopes the brand will be a nonprofit offering jobs to formerly incarcerated individuals.
Offering t-shirts, hoodies, and hats with customized designs, the brand is centered around the founders’ core mission. As Phipps explains, “Heart of Gold 24k, inspiring intention and integrity through apparel. We embody relentless pursuit, pure relationships and gratitude, infusing love and sincerity and all we do with purity and commitment. We inspire others to pursue dreams with determination.”
The Shoreline CC student launched the business this past March alongside her husband, Lane Phipps who is currently incarcerated and awaiting trial. For the couple, Heart of Gold 24k represents a hopeful future, a means of earning an income, and a dream for the two to build the brand into a nonprofit organization which could offer jobs — and a means to survive — to formerly-incarcerated individuals.
Since their launch the brand has gained significant traction online through the couple’s presence on TikTok, where they have over 7,000 followers. Phipps elaborates, “I’ve had brands reach out to me on there to do collabs and stuff like that. And, I’ve had a lot of support for our business on social media. And so that’s been a huge blessing.” This past Valentine’s day, the brand even launched their first retail collection at the Waffles in Paradise boutique in Bellingham, Washington.
Once faced with a possible prison sentence of her own, Phipps’ goal to turn Heart of Gold 24k into a beacon of hope for those coming out of incarceration is dear to her heart. “When I was younger, dealing with my own personal experiences, I remember that I had one public defender who didn’t give up on me,” Phipps explains, “That’s always stuck with me, you know, because of how much that she saw me as a person and not as somebody that the courts were trying to perceive me to be.”
Following her husband’s incarceration last year, Phipps set out on the long path to bring him home — herself. “Finding access to a private attorney is difficult, because that would be over 200,000 [dollars] and I don’t have that type of money. I was like, ‘I need to do something.’ I need to go back to school. So that was where things first started. I came to Shoreline because they have a really good criminal justice program,” Phipps elaborates.
Phipps’ husband, Lane, is currently facing life in prison for multiple charges including first-degree assault and unlawful possession of a firearm. As the creative force behind the brand’s designs, Heart of Gold 24k presents a means by which he can generate income for his family while incarcerated.
“I know it means a lot to my husband too, because he really has always wanted to be able to provide for me and his daughter, you know, and always has tried to do everything he can to do that. And this is his way of doing it, because he’s made mistakes, right?” Phipps says.
Ultimately, Phipps hopes she can inspire others with the journey she has embarked upon — all at once academic, entrepreneurial, and founded on love.
“I want to be able to use my story as an example that all the things that you think that you can do are not unmanageable, and I think with the right support, and the right people in your life, and the right resources, it is manageable.”
