Toni Jones

My passion for fashion and image consulting was inspired at a very young age by my grandmother, who was a seamstress. Watching her creations come to life for her clients was one of the highlights of my day when getting off the bus. That experience, combined with my love for creativity and really helping to bring out the best in people, is what inspired my love for fashion. I started my formal training at Niagara Career and Tech in high school, where I studied fashion and interior design for two years and earned a Nocti certification. While I loved fashion, I realized that fashion design wasn't for me, so I decided to go into the field of image consulting. I furthered my education at Buffalo State University in fashion and textile technology, which helped me create and establish a network, understand the nuances of business, and get entrenched into the world of personal styling. I then studied at Regents University in London, focusing on fashion, photography, and styling. This was an amazing experience where I was able to submerge myself into a different culture, style individuals in the city of London, and learn about the different elements of fashion and how to embrace cultural differences. From there, I went to the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) and studied textile and marketing development. I worked with Brandy Joy Smith, a celebrity stylist, being on set for Harper's Bazaar and Vogue, meeting different people, going to networking events, and visiting amazing showrooms in the financial district and Soho. I started my own business as a sole proprietor, styling clients and helping them maintain and organize their wardrobes. Eventually, TJ Divine Image was birthed as a consulting firm dealing with personal branding and image consulting. As an image strategist, I help my clients understand that their wardrobe should be paying them back in some way, whether it's a compliment or walking into a room and people finding you interesting or eclectic. I work with C-suite executives, politicians, and public figures to instill credibility so that when they go to speaking engagements, people are able to build trust and see that they are leaders, not just because of what they're saying, but because of how they're looking and their nonverbal communication skills. I also created Style X-Rite, the tech part of TJ Divine Image, which scans someone's face and body shape so they can understand their color palette and what silhouettes look good on them. We also have a digitized closet where people can take pictures of their wardrobe, so they're no longer buying the same black top because they can look at their Style X-Rite closet and see what they already have.