UMD Alum honors women with new business launch
From left to right: Arthur Stewart (Grandfather), Maggie Stewart (Grandmother), Liana Stewart (Courtesy of Liana Stewart).
Liana Stewart walked across the graduation stage six months ago with a degree in neuroscience. Today, she is a small business owner with a line of clothing that caters to one of fashion's hottest trends.
Many people consider crochet a pastime for older women. But recently, the craft has become increasingly popular with Gen Z. On TikTok, #crochet has 27.8 billion views. According to Vogue, the craft is also taking over the fashion world. In 2022, they called it “a trans-seasonal trend that’s here to stay.”
In early November, the University of Maryland alumna and Prince George’s County native launched Thee Matriarch. The online store specializes in colorful hand-woven crochet hats. The website features classic uni-sex beanie and bucket hat silhouettes. The signature designs are caps trimmed with extra-large ruffles.
Stewart’s family matriarch is her grandmother, Maggie, who inspired the name of the faith-based company. Her mother, Cassandra Stewart, is the “DIY queen” and her aunt, Katanya Lee, whips up extravagantly decorated cakes straight from her kitchen. They are just a few of her role models.
During Stewart’s childhood, her grandmother always crafted creative projects and encouraged her to do the same. Her grandmother taught her how to bake, sew and wrap Christmas presents. After suffering a stroke last year, her grandmother can no longer do those things but Stewart still holds the memories close.
“Thee Matriarch really embodies what it means to be a creative woman” said Stewart. ”When I look to them, that is who I want to be.”
Among her other female role models was Mira Azarm, her mentor at the university’s C.D. Mote, Jr. Incentive Awards Program. The program connects students from underserved communities with financial resources and mentorship. Azarm introduced her to knitting in December 2022 during what Stewart described as a difficult time in her life.
As a challenge to recreate a hat for a friend on their upcoming birthday, Stewart learned how to crochet.
“It was puffy at the top and tight at the bottom. It was a mess! And then it had these huge ruffles which were just over the top. But I was so proud that I completed my first project,” said Stewart.
After her test run, she completed her friend’s hat and was hooked.
A couple of months later, friends began asking when she would begin selling her creations. Stewart was reluctant.
“I’m like, ‘girl I haven’t even been crocheting for a year. What are we talking about here?’”
Liana Stewart in one of her hats (Courtesy of Liana Stewart).
Regardless, she jumped head first into creating a Shopify storefront, workshopping pattern prototypes and promoting her business on social media. Stewart then grabbed a few friends, her brother and her iPhone to shoot the hats for her site.
The campus community’s warm reception of her art shocked Stewart. As an executive board member of the Black Engineer Society and captain of the Star Strutters majorette dance troupe, Stewart was a familiar face among the campus’ Black community.
“I’m pretty sure 80% of my customers are UMD students, whether they knew me personally or not,” said Stewart.
Stewart is no stranger to business. She began braiding hair in the 10th grade and continued to offer hair care services to the campus community throughout her undergrad. She stopped braiding hair but some of her former clients, like Jason Okorie, became her new customers.
“They’ve been asking me, ‘oh yeah, like where did you get the hat?’ And I would always fight between the fact of gatekeeping them,” said Okorie, a senior computer science major.
Thee Matriarch prices its hats between $30-$50 depending on the style, which is on par with other small crochet businesses. However, it must compete with fast fashion companies as the demand for the hats grows. Amazon currently has a selection of crochet-style hats for a third of Stewart’s price. Still, she stands behind her pricing.
“People are used to purchasing beanies for like $10-$15. When it's two to three hours of me creating every single loop. It takes time, it takes skill…So that is why I price my items the way that I do,” said Stewart.
Left Maggie Stewart, Right Liana Stewart (Courtesy of Liana Stewart)
Stewart's craftsmanship during his hair appointments was why Okorie pursued her new product rather than a faster and cheaper alternative because he was confident she would continue the quality service.
The Black Business Association is an organization on campus that aims to provide resources for future business professionals and entrepreneurs like Stewart, regardless of their major. The club invites companies to help students build their LinkedIn and resume. Last semester, they also held a panel featuring small businesses on campus to discuss balancing schoolwork with entrepreneurship.
“There’s a lot of opportunities and resources that we get as business students compared to other students. We try our best to reach out to other schools such as information science and engineering [and] allow students to also tap into those resources when possible,” said Dorian Houssou, vice president.
Stewart’s advice to other students considering starting a business is to just do it.
"Honestly, I was considering waiting until next year. And I was like, why? I want to do this. I will do it now," said Stewart.