AFTER years of contemplating a business of his own — one he would enjoy building while engaging his creative energies — Richard McGhie had a light bulb moment in 2008. He would design clothes!

Now, two years later, he has designed an entire line — branded RAAH Material. The brand is supported by the tagline “Waste not, want not”, which also captures McGhie’s philosophy.

“Waste not, want not is Jamaican and it’s how we live. My grandmother Miss Avis and other family members always told us this as children. It is something that we get taught. Really and truly, that is what we are about as RAAH Material. It is about making every day count,” he said.

The first pieces from the line — polo shirts — are now available in stores locally, an achievement of which McGhie is most proud. It is for him one of the first steps toward the creation of what he hopes will be an empire.

“Jamaica is very competitive on an international level in all other industries. RAAH Material wants to show the world that Jamaicans can also design and produce the best clothes; we want to turn Jamaica into ‘little Italy’,” the founder and head designer for RAAH Material told Career & Education.

“I don’t just want to make clothes; I want to make clothes to Jamaica what music is to Jamaica. I want people to own RAAH Material like they own reggae, so anywhere they go they identify it,” he added.

In addition to the polo shirts, which are on sale for between $3,000 and $4,000 at SHHH Boutique and Glam Culture in Kingston, the line designs include T-shirts as well as ladies’ and men’s suits, with plans for the addition of a host of other items, including accessories, later.

“We are rolling out the line in different stages. (For now), you will only find RAAH Material two-tone polos in stores,” noted McGhie, who was quick to add that other pieces from the line would be available in the coming months.

“By now and December you will see some crazy stuff, including our concept polos. The concept will be designed according to the name so you will see it and you will know that it is a ‘whatever’ RAAH Material polo,” said the man who currently has a team of five people handling marketing and sales, in addition to having design input.

“When RAAH Material actually goes formal wear like dress pants and so on, all of these will be tailor-made to the (customers). We are going to try our very best to make ourselves available to people because we believe that suits are to be tailor-made to the individual,” he added.

“The idea is not to rush this. It is to take our time and make it something big, something we can export abroad,” McGhie said further.

According to the 30-year-old, who currently holds a full-time job as senior customer care inbound manager with telecommunications giant Digicel, getting the line started has not been easy.

“Finding the right people to work with who will stick to timelines and produce top-quality clothes (has been the number one challenge). From time to time there were (also other) hindrances, but I pray a lot,” McGhie said.

Thankfully, however, he has been able to find all he needs to make a success of the business at home.

“Two years of searching and sampling, from Fiji to India, and we found what we needed here in Jamaica,” McGhie said.

Not only has he been able to source the material for the shirts and a manufacturer locally, he also managed to secure the needed financial support from a local bank for the business in which he has so far invested half a million dollars.

Still, McGhie said he continues to grapple, like many other entrepreneurs, with “producing in Jamaica without paying very high overheads”. But, he’s working to address that.

“We already started outsourcing the fabric we need, but we plan to keep the manufacturing on island,” he told Career & Education.

According to McGhie, RAAH Material — a name that combines his and other family members’ names for a result that is uniquely Jamaican in its expression — was intent on distinguishing itself from other players in the market.

For starters, he said, “we have the most vibrant colours you will ever see and our blends are outrageous”.

At the same time, he said his target market was “eclectic people”.

“(These are) the people who feel comfortable in their own skin. We will allow them to express their RAAH self,” noted McGhie, who admits to having a healthy respect for clothes.

“In most cases, what people wear defines them. Clothes also allows you to create a perception of what you want others to believe. (Whether or not) a person is successful can most times be seen in how they dress and for that same reason, others will want to do business with you,” he added.

Among the people who currently wear RAAH Material are Flippa Mafia, Tony Matterhorn, Serani, and Delano — all of whom, McGhie said, epitomise the spirit of the brand.

“There is nobody who knows more about himself than Tony Matterhorn… He is one of the first who said ‘I am not just a disc jockey’ (and who then went out and created music). He, to me, is being his own RAAH self. Then you have Delano. He has one eye and he never made anybody stop him. He is known all over the world… There is nothing to dancehall like Delano. He is being his own RAAH self to get what he wants out of life,” McGhie told Career & Education chuckling.

“Serani is truly a musician… A lot of people in Jamaica don’t know how big Serani is overseas… And Flippa Mafia is just Flippa Mafia. RAAH Material is flossing and him a de flossing king,” he added.

Meanwhile, McGhie said he is optimistic about what the future holds for his line.

“In terms of development, we aim to have RAAH Material competing on every level with all the premium brands out there. From a peak cap to the pen top, you will see in RAAH in years to come,” he said.

“RAAH Material for me is more than just a make money thing, it is about creating a legacy. I am not going to put anything out there that I wouldn’t wear. When I put on a RAAH Material polo, even though it is from my clothing line, I want to feel like I just went out and bought my favourite polo. That is how I want everybody who buys my clothes to feel,” a confident McGhie added.