Meet Austin Fink | Entrepreneur & Clothing Brand/Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Austin Fink and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Austin, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
– Generational Wealth – Leaving behind a way to continue impacting, inspiring and empowering people even when God says my time is up
– Staying true to myself, doing something that I love
– Make my parents proud
– BUT AT THE CORE OF IT WAS I WANTED TO START MY OWN BUSINESS BECAUSE WHEN YOU REALIZE YOUR PURPOSE NOTHING STEERS YOU AWAY FROM WHAT YOUR PURPOSE IS

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

My art comes in the form of putting my creative thoughts into the designs for my streetwear brand, Create Your Own Wave Apparel that opened for business online in August of 2021. It was a dream since I was about 12 as I started gaining an interest, or maybe a small obsession with sneakers especially Air Jordan’s. This passion towards shoes turned into spending thousands of dollars, often times camping out up to 18-24 hours to get a pair. My crazy dream was to have a shoe and clothing store but as time went on, I started to go a slightly different direction. A few reasons for this was initial investment was much more realistic, I felt I had more freedom with a brand, and the more I was set on starting a brand, the more my purpose became clear to me.

The key to how I even am blessed to be able to go after my dream, is my parents did everything they could to give us all the opportunities for me and my brother. If it was easy, everyone would do it. Owning a business is not for everyone and to me, the mindset of a successful entrepreneur is the one thing they all have in common. Knowledge and hard work are keys to success but will only get you so far. I can’t see into the future but I am a big believer in manifestation and seeing yourself in those positions. Can you name someone who has a multi-million dollar business or is a pro athlete that did not plan or see themselves at that level … that does NOT mean everyone who says they are going to be rich or an NBA player actually accomplishes it. But manifestation is very powerful.

Overcoming challenges is something that is necessary to succeed but I look more at the challenges as opportunities to learn and grow. I am lucky to have a dad who I have been able to admire his incomparable work ethic for 20+ years that he instilled in me. As I mentioned above, your mindset is a big part of overcoming the daily challenges. Also I feel understanding your purpose, finding your passion and staying true to who you are is at the center of how I overcame and continue to overcome challenges. The main lesson I have learned is it is hard, stressful, can result in damaging relationships with friends maybe even family but I have shown to the ones that matter that I am putting my all into this and that I believe the impact I can make can be significant. That is why I recommend you learn balance. As you have heard before ‘everything in moderation’, and I struggle with the balance of working too much and going out with friends because I treated my business as fun, but it is still a job I just enjoy it more. I hope I can be someone who leads future generations that it is important to find and understand your purpose as early as you can in life. Instilling in kids the reward for inspiring people around you through your passion that others clearly can see gives you a purpose and when you do it from the heart, for the right reason, you will get rewarded and people’s reward may be different as most think money, but it is not always about that.

I leave you with this : ‘We work so hard and dream about what it is like at the top. You get there and there is nothing up at the top. It is cool for a time but it gets old. Remember when you were 15 and you couldn’t wait to drive. Then you could drive, and couldn’t wait to move out and go to college. So on and so forth. Point is. Enjoy the present, I promise it worth it.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

I was born in the exact same hospital as LeBron James in Akron, Ohio and my early years were in Cuyahoga falls which is about 10-15 mins outside of Akron. The big music venue, Blossom Music Center was less than 2 miles from where I grew up until 18 when I moved back to Akron on my own, graduated from University of Akron in 2019. To me, Ohio is a place of contentment and a place that is what you make of it. I say this because people have dreams but when you can get a sustainable job that keeps you comfortable those dreams stay as dreams. I started my clothing brand, Create Your Own Wave Apparel, thinking of where I come from, a dream I had since a young kid that probably would have stayed as a dream. As I found my purpose, the mission for the brand became clear to create a brand about empowering and inspiring highly determined people who work endlessly at their passion and stay true to who they are, overcoming their struggles and taking those hard times to impact those around you. To me this was just a dream, then losing 8 family and friends in 3 years and my friends in the most horrific ways to pass away is what officially pushed me to create my wave. Sorry for ranting about Northeast Ohio and how it made me who I am today, but I felt it was a good way for you to understand my answer to this question. In my opinion, it is average with what is in the city but may be due to being around it my whole life.

AKron/Cuyahoga Falls Itinerary :

Eat : 1. Swensons 2. Luigis

Drink : Cashmere Cricket / Heinen’s Grocery Store Downtown Cleveland to see what it looks like inside of an old bank, walk around the store with a glass of wine or a beer on draft

Visit : 1. CVNP – Brandywine Falls is a must see either hike or just take the short walk to see the waterfall (Cuyahoga Valley National Park) 2.  Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame *Cleveland – 40 mins drive* 3. Blossom Music Center 4. The Workz *barcade* 5. LeBron James Museum 6. Akron Art Museum 7. Kicks N’ Cuts   8.Layr Official *Cleveland/Beachwood mall*

If it weren’t for LeBron James, majority would have never heard of where I am from, the city of Akron. I only listed 2 Clothing/Shoe stores and that is because this is just proof of how hard it is to be able to have a brick and mortar for your brand as people are not coming to visit here so we have created this bubble. I am pleased to say ‘Kicks N’ Cuts is a store in Falls started by a young entrepreneur who is doing his thing, making an impact so check them out on Instagram, go check out the store, and big shout out to the homie, Marvin @marvin.montjr on Instagram. My hopes are to create a brand that is more than a brand, one that is more recognized for the impact and inspiration around the community and beyond than the clothing. I feel as clothing is the canvas but the purpose, message and impact is what separates me from other people and majority of the streetwear brands, not only in Ohio but around the world.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?

No one deserves it more than both my parents as well as my brother.

– My parents sacrificed a lot to be able to provide the life I am so grateful for. I grew up middle-class and did not struggle for your everyday necessities. Thankfully, they instilled in me that I had to work hard and make sacrifices to get where I see myself. I moved out at 18 to Akron where I went to college. Once I did that, everything fell on me. I decided instead of taking the easy route and getting help from my parents, those 4 years of college were my toughest years for many reasons. My early twenties was when I started dealing with family & friends passing away.
– My brother, financially is what pushed Create Your Own Wave from my dream to a reality.
– Besides family, which is at the core of CYOW Apparel, losing 8 friends and family in 3 years was the concrete reason I stopped ‘talking’ about my dream to start a brand, but actually to the steps to get my LLC and officially be an owner of a business.

Website: https://cyowapparel.myshopify.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/createyourownwave2021/

Image Credits
Row 1 – Left to Right 1 ) Friends&Family 1st ever release : Alex&Eirini – Greece 2 ) Hearts Logo Windbreaker : Eirini – Antarctica Row 2 – Left to Right 1 ) Love Your Passion Sweatshirt : Troy – CLE Cavs Arena 2 ) Cropped Windbreaker : Eirini – Antarctica Row 3 – Left to Right 1 ) New Arrival : ‘CYOW Stars’ Hoodie (Neutral) 2 ) New Arrival : ‘CYOW Stars’ Joggers (Neutral) Row 4 – Left to Right 1 ) New Arrival : ‘CYOW Wave’ Sweatshirt (Neutral) 2 ) Founder of CYOW Austin Fink, Mom, and Grandma