Rising Stars: Meet Erika Turner of Shawnee

Today we’d like to introduce you to Erika Turner.

Hi Erika, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, you could tell our readers some of your backstory.
I have always had a passion for, well, anything pretty. That got me into wedding planning, and I did that for 20 years. From my own business, I worked with other planners to run two wedding venues and plan with their venues. Seeing couples getting married was so much more important than the wedding itself. I love the prettiness of love, of their love. I may have loved planning, floral design, and owning a wedding attire boutique, but I didn’t have a passion for it. I am in a stage where passion for living is more important than anything. I wanted so much more from the wedding industry, not just real diversity and change within LGBTQIA spaces. I wanted something more. I was talking to a friend, and she told me that she wanted a transformative experience when she renewed her vows, looked for another gown, and wanted someone to pour love into her. I realized that is what I do with these ladies that come in. I hear their love stories, but I also hear their stories about how much they dislike their bodies, legs, thighs, hair, and arms, and a woman is the prettiest creature because of their power. They hold so much power over their beauty. I speak to the things they say they hate or dislike. I speak love about the things they don’t like in their wedding gowns, and I see how they embrace their “flaws” by the time our appointments are over. I realized that is my purpose and passion. When my health issues couldn’t be stopped, and I needed to focus on them, I realized I had to close the brick-and-mortar of Lanea Grace, formerly Pearl & Lace. I prayed for my next steps, what I wanted to do, and how I wanted to do it, and then I just got myself ready. I love empowering all women, and I love helping them have transformational experiences when dealing with me. In the middle of the night, it came to me, and I decided to put my business online and still provide an outlet for wedding gowns, but I realized my passion is being a lingerie expert. Funny how it went from weddings to lingerie?! But that is where I found myself. Right before COVID, I started my bra line and pursued it, but COVID shut down a lot, as we all know, so I had to put that on the back burner. I did what I’ve always done and what I am good at, but I kept thinking about the women I had helped while running my lingerie boutique and all the women that had reached out because I helped them find something they were missing. Lingerie is such an experience and not just an intimate one. It is for you. I hear, “Who do I wear this for?” My first thought is, “YOU!” You don’t need a partner to wear lingerie; you must find your inner goddess and strut. Girl, work! I speak love, joy, passion, and beauty into women. Lingerie is the most intimate form of all those things, so I want to embrace it. Just thinking about my shop makes me feel giddy and so happy. The prettiest thing to me is seeing a woman realize her beauty, transformation, and main character, and I am so blessed to help her find that.

Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
No, it hasn’t been smooth, and that is only because I am a creative person, so my brain is always all over the place. I want to do it all. Seriously, I want to do it all. However, my purpose makes this path easy, even though it will be hard for a while. In the long run, it will be worth it.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might need to become more familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I run an online lingerie boutique called Leading Lady Lingerie. We sell numerous lingerie options, from everyday and boudoir intimates to “I’m feelin’ myself!” lingerie choices. I specialize in finding options that fit women from all walks of life, paths, and moments. I find lingerie choices that are sustainable, loving, and bring out women’s Main Characters. As I am recently starting, I would love to be known for finding pieces that make women see and feel their inner goddess. I want to be known for reaching out to clients and seeing how their experience with us was, what makes their next purchase even better, and doing my signature lingerie/bra questionnaire – which helps me pick out personalized bras, panties, lingerie, etc. for that specific woman and her goddess. I want to be known as a lingerie expert and remove some myths about lingerie. I am most proud of stepping out of my normal wedding industry life, stepping into my passion, and not worrying about what others think of me. I am proud of myself for following my truth and speaking love and beauty to other women.

What are your plans for the future?
I want to put my name out there in the lingerie world, creating custom/indie pieces that are comfortable yet sexy and give off confidence. We custom-made a bra, and since we had to stop, I have had numerous drawings and feedback about the prototype we made during COVID. My plans include restarting my bra line for full-figure bra wearers. I plan on attending as many vendor events as possible, networking events, and putting my face to the title, Lingerie Expert.

Pricing:

• Pricing can range from $19.99 – $300
• We have a loyalty program offering pricing discounts and specials.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.leadingladylingerie.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leadingladylingerie/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leadingladylingerie 

Image Credits
Makeup on Erika by Devon Burns (https://www.instagram.com/dev_magik/)
photo credit: Elizabeth with E-Golden Moments ( https://www.egoldenmoments.com/)