Women In Fashion - Carol Celico

One of Brazil's greatest influencers, Carol Celico realized at a certain point in her career that she wanted to promote not just products for other companies but to have a brand of her own, aligning with her values. This led to the creation of NIINI, a women's fashion brand founded in 2021, inspired by the type of clothing Carol herself enjoys wearing: modern, elegant, with details designed to make the clothes functional. NIINI quickly became one of the leading representatives in Brazil of what are known as "creator brands": brands created by content creators who have become influencers.

Carol Celico, founder and CEO of the women's clothing brand NIINI

Carol Celico holds a degree in fashion business from the Marangoni University in Milan, a city she moved to when she was newly married and still quite young. Her focus at the university was entrepreneurship, as she knew she wanted to develop a business but wasn’t clear about what kind at the time. Since one of Milan's strongest courses was in fashion business, she chose to persue that degree: "After all, it is the city of fashion," she states.

Her entrepreneurial spirit first manifested in an events company. After organizing her wedding alongside a specialist in the sector, Carol decided to start her own events business along side a partner of hers at the time. The two organized not only wedding ceremonies but also other types of events, such as corporate ones. While her partner focused more on the decorative aspect, Carol handled the administrative side, dealing with suppliers and all the logistics. She reveals that this experience provided her with a very important foundation as an entrepreneur: having a 360-degree vision and always being attentive to all details. "I think this is precisely NIINI's differentiator, having a leader who is very involved from the choice of the collection, the fabrics, the colors, to the final product reaching the customer; that's the brand's differentiator," states Carol.

Always in search of new challenges and opportunities, Carol then decided to open a franchise of a Spanish brand in Brazil. "I bought the franchise, secured a space in a wonderful mall, completed all the brand training, hired people, and when they were about to start the construction in the mall, the lawyer called and said: the franchisers went bankrupt in Madrid and didn’t tell you," Carol recounts. After this episode, she decided she would never work with someone else's brand again; next time, she would work on her own brand.

During our interview, I asked Carol about the origin of the brand's name. She explained that she didn’t want the brand to carry her own name: "I don't want this brand to be tied to the image of this person—me—however I do want it to to have my strength." Thus, to maintain the connection without using her name, Carol opted for a childhood nickname given by her grandmother, who called her Nine, from Caroline. Carol transformed the original nickname into NIINI, a stylized version of it.

In the company, Carol reveals that each era brought a new discovery. The brand has been in existence for four years, if you count the year beforehand where she was planning and building up the business. During each stage, Carol felt more connected to one sector. She recalls that she was once very connected to working on the brands style—and remembers that the brand was born targeting young people, but later she realized her audience was more like her and wanted to buy what she wore, so she adjusted her proposal. At another time, Carol became very connected to marketing and reports, where she had to learn about finance, accounting, fiscal areas, and taxes. Currently, she is much more connected to the commercial side, which includes the purchasing department.

Carol also shares the strategy she likes to use in her company. She explains that she has always been a very realistic person who does not like to take big risks, preferring to act more cautiously. With that, she has always opted to produce smaller batches of pieces, preferring to have products that end up selling out rather than having excess products, even if it means sacrificing some profit. "In the fashion world, many brands face a huge problem with excess stock," she justifies. The strategy also has the added bonus of adding greater exclusivity to NIINI's production.

Carol Celico, founder of the women's clothing brand NIINI, and Laura Gurney

Being an entrepreneur has its pros and cons: "When you own your own business, you have it all in your hands, which is very good. However, the downside is that you have it all in your hands and you become the only one to blame if it doesn't work out," she evaluates.

Carol cites another benefit, which is having confidence in herself, rather than being at the mercy of others’ risks. She offers some advice for young women wishing to venture into the fashion industry. She believes that the most important characteristic for entrepreneurship is the ability to lead. "People with a tendency to lead find it easier to create," she explains. She emphasizes the importance of developing one's image within the leadership of the group, as this strengthens the brand’s identity since the creator connects with it.

Furthermore, Carol reveals that, in founding her own company, she sought what she felt was missing as a consumer. "Find the point where your market hurts (...) always look for that place of opportunity because it's likely where you'll have the most success."

Besides being an influencer and entrepreneur, Carol is married to fellow entrepreneur Eduardo Scarpa, the father of her third child. She draws a parallel between the role of a mother and a leader in the company. "I believe in a motherhood that raises strong children, children who will walk on their own feet, who will dream their dreams, who will pursue their goals. And it’s the same thing I foster in the company: I want a company that doesn't depend on me, that can walk on its own, that can sustain itself. All of this—the principles and values of motherhood—extend to the company, which I think is very healthy, both in caring for the employees we have and the collaborators. I think this care and empathy that motherhood brings is very important and very healthy for the company’s community.