Today, we’d like to introduce you to Melanee Schneider. Melanee was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Jose Lawrence.
Hi Melanee, we’re so thrilled to have you sharing your story with us today. Maybe we can kick things off by having you introduce yourself to our readers? We’d love to have you go into your story and how you got to where you are today.
Growing up, I’ve always had a strong love for water. My father knew how to swim but my mother came from a long line of non-swimmers due to generational trauma. Although she taught my siblings that fear, I was determined to swim. My father taught me how to swim for safety but I never knew how to enjoy it. As I grew older, my love for water only grew.
Fast forward to adulthood, I stumbled upon this beautiful mermaid store. I quickly grabbed everything that I could get my hands on and rest to check out. These were incredible mermaid finds but I paused the realization that none of the mermaids looked like me, not one. I kindly put everything back and decided that something had to change. I left the store upset and determined to create something for people like me.
I built Afro Mermaid to bring love, happiness and black representation in aquatics ultimately growing the community and culture. We are at the kids first swim safety and ocean preservation through entertaining, teaching, and hosting beach cleanups.
Afro mermaid is currently a company that offers products and services. We have a small variety of apparel and accessories and we host children and adult parties.
Once a year I host the very first mermaid convention in Miami called Afro Mermaid Summit. It’s an adult only event and it’s all about connecting with water. We have a meditation session, swimming workshops, vendors, a live dj, and photographers.
I am so grateful to have the opportunity to create a company like this and I have no intention on stopping. I have a lot of new things coming up and I’m super excited to grow and share the love of water and mermaiding with my community.
Please tell us more about your brand, Afro Mermaid Corporation
Afro mermaid is a lifestyle brand. I have been using this company as an opportunity to build and positively transform a community of diverse water lovers. I’m proud to say that this is the very first black mermaid company that offers products, services and does community work on a monthly basis.
Jose Lawrence and JLaw Inspired Images have been great to us and I know you’ve got a great relationship with them as well. Maybe you can tell our audience a bit about Jose Lawrence and JLaw Inspired Images and your experience with them.
Working with JLaw Inspired Images is always an absolute pleasure! We connected through Instagram quickly learning about each other’s brands and goals. Shortly after that we had scheduled a photo shoot and got to work.
When we met, Jose was a gentleman and guided me through the photo shoot the whole way through. He asked what type of music I like to listen to and proceeded to pull out a speaker to create and the vibe. Once the music was going and I was feeling good, I felt comfortable enough to dance, be playful and be free in the photo shoot. He captured great shots and even tweaked my poses so that I looked more graceful in front of the camera.
I have been recommending him to everyone I know ever since. This is not just a hobby for him, I can feel the passion behind the work that he does and it shows in the imagesI have been recommending him to everyone I know ever since. This is not just a hobby for him, I can feel the passion behind the work that he does and it shows in the images.
Jose was also able to make it to the very first Afro Mermaid Summit that I hosted and he walked around taking photos of everyone in action, gifting me with moments that I could never forget.
Website: Www.afromermaid.co
Instagram: @afromermaid.co
Facebook: AfroMermaid.co
Youtube: AfroMermaid.co
Other: My personal Instagram is @carrie_wata and the event page is @afromermaidevents
Image Credits:
Manuel Figueredo JLaw Inspired Images
