New York City is a city of immigrants, and these immigrants play a crucial role in driving New York City’s economy. Immigrants are more than twice as likely as native-born residents to start their own business, and they comprise almost half of the city’s more than 220,000 small businesses, among them is Garifuna entrepreneur Iván Carlos Moreira.
Iván Carlos Moreira is a Bronx based Garifuna entrepreneur, fashion designer, founder, president, CEO and Chief Creative Officer of the clothing fashion line JRC Garifuna Collection who, by developing his brand around the image of Garifuna Pride, built one of the most successful Garifuna fashion enterprises.
The Early Years
Ivan grew up in Puerto Cortes, Cortes, Honduras. During his childhood, he started applying his God given talent of freehand drawing from direct observation (otherwise known as drawing from life), which is the basis for all kinds of art. However, he was encouraged by his parents to pursue a vocational career, therefore, he graduated from the Technical Institute of Electricity and Electronics in San Pedro Sula, Honduras as a Computer Technician. He continued Freehand Sketching to improve his art skills at a deeper level.
As most children, Ivan dreamed of being many things, a professional basketball player like Magic Johnson, clothing designer like Ralph Lauren, or a rapper like Dr Dre. At the age of eighteen his parents made the decision to send him to the United States, to seek better opportunities.
A New Beginning in the Cultural Capital of the World
After completing his secondary education, Ivan left Honduras to New York City, where enrolled in a trade school where he learned graphic design and screen printing. As most immigrants, he has performed several jobs from construction, maintenance, security guard, graphic designer, etc.
However, he soon recognized the large size of the New York Garifuna community, he also noticed that Garifuna youth had adopted other cultures such as Rastafari. He was inspired to begin designing his own clothing line, and in 1996 he went into business for himself, marketing his unique line of merchandise to promote Garifuna Pride.
Ivan applied his freehand drawing skills to create his own designs, combining his graphic design and screen-printing skills, to create the Garifuna T-shirt Collection and became a freelance merchant, while holding a full-time job to provide for his young family.
He participated in different events and festivals such as the Central American Parade and others around New York City. He also would set up a stand at the various parks where Garifuna gather, such as Trujillano Park, Ferry Point Park, Bill Rainey Park “Waporu” and Starlight Park “The Blue Park”, to sell his Garifuna branded merchandise. The merchandise became a symbol of pride for New York Garifunas, customers appreciated that the line was owned and operated by a young Garifuna and the designs were fresh and unique. The Garifuna Collection became a nationwide sensation and orders started flowing in from other states and internationally. Ivan’s vision appealed to a wide spectrum of people, and his brand quickly turned into one of the most successful Garifuna fashion enterprises.
He decided to create his brand JRC Garifuna Collection, which was inspired by the initials of his daughters' names at the time, Jennifer and Rihanna and his middle name Carlos. His third daughter Arianna was born a few years after the brand was created.
The world has changed immensely for Ivan since he first launched JRC Garifuna Collection, in July 2022 his dream of opening his own boutique store became a reality, with the support of his brothers, sister, and partner. The store is in the HUB, the heart of the 3rd Avenue Business District in the Bronx, at 509 Willis Avenue, on the third floor.
JRC Garifuna Collection Store
In the store and website, JRCGARIFUNA.COM, customers can find the JRC Garifuna collection, which consists of a wide variety of products and designs that highlight the Garifuna culture, ranging from T-shirts, baseball caps, sweaters, dresses , phone covers, active wear, swimwear sandals, water bottles, caps, hats, jackets, flag, accessories, etc.
