Ever wonder who influences the influencers? Then meet Julia Lang, founder, and creative director of VEERT. The entrepreneur and designer made her way from Germany to New York City and would manifest a career that most every kid ventures there to the Big Apple to achieve. It started after graduating from a University in Nuremberg, Germany, flying to New York for a four-month internship with a ‘no-name’ marketing agency over 15 years ago.
Julia Lang, the Tanzanian-German marketing specialist turned creative director, was born in East Africa and migrated to Germany with her family at the age of 4. Today, she is working her magic for bigger corporations and small-business brands on social media, and other platforms and outlets. In 2015, Lang would receive an O-1 Visa, designated for “individuals with extraordinary ability and achievement.” This would give the entrepreneur an advantage in positioning her business in a global hub.
“As a European, it was super hard to actually move permanently to the U.S. without being married or tied to a company,” she describes. “I work for myself, I’m not tied to anyone. Once I got the Visa - which is not easy - it was a no-brainer to move to [New York City.] Been thriving ever since.”
Notably working with music mogul Kareem “Biggs” Burke, Lang won over the hip hop businessman with an ‘elevator pitch’ by Lang as a branding expert. Shortly after she would no longer have to even introduce herself to the gamut of influencers in street culture. VEERT happens to underline all of her efforts - attending and networking at fashion weeks in Milan and Paris, entrepreneurship, and manifesting a particular ‘cool’ that other businesses would be hard-pressed to try and replicate.
She dives deep into her brand over the phone during our Saturday call, explaining “work never stops. I work every single day. I run 3 companies, so it never stops. We also work on global time. I’ve always had the philosophy [that] ‘I work hard now, so, later on, I can live comfortably.’ The past ten years for me - I don’t know what a weekend is.”
Lang continues by stating “at this point, I’m kind of like a workaholic. It pays off, but I’m used to it. In New York, the work you put in here really shows. I also lived in London and Berlin, and I had the same work ethic, but it really didn’t give me the same results. In New York, if you’re a hustler, and you just work hard, you can really go - far. That’s why I love New York. ”
Lang mostly wears her signature green in her clothing, true to her brand VEERT, a play on the French translation for “green,” “vert” VEERT is born and has thrived through the accumulation of individuals in Lang’s extended network. Early on in her journey, Lang founded 1 of her 3 agencies to focus on image consulting and marketing, now having over 10 years of experience. She would manage PR opportunities for herself and would gain clients through garnered interest.
Ideally, Lang is associated in circles with names like the late Virgil Abloh, Miguel, and ASAP Rocky. She hustled her way to the top, consulted with her clients, and strategically positioned them at Milan and Paris Fashion Weeks, giving cache to their personal brands. She took these talents from the U.S. market into the global market. Lang’s client list includes athletes and entertainers, as well as other entertainers located around the world, Tokyo, Seoul, and Germany to name a few.
Her cool would create an orbit that attracted hip-hop culture as much as fashion and business savvy individuals. After front-row seating arrangements that put her next to cult-influential rapper Westside Gunn in January 2020 at Paris Fashion Week, who Lang was at the time, oblivious to who he was. “I made an impression on him, and people started to tag him underneath my pictures on Instagram. He reached out to me [during] New York Fashion Week, a week after Paris [Fashion Week.] We went to the Palm Angels show together and happened to be seated, again, next to each other in the front row.”
Gunn would become interested in Lang’s prowess and the irony of them being seated next to each other at separate fashion weeks. Lang’s ‘cool’ influenced the hip hop artist from Buffalo, NY, to create a significant moment in street culture and hip hop history. “We became really good friends. I met his mom, his daughter, and his wife. So it’s not just a superficial industry thing. I think he thinks highly of me, so bless him. One day he just called me and was like ‘Yo! I made this song, have a listen. And I want to do a video next week.’ So he is super spontaneous - creating the song ‘Julia Lang.’”
Westside Gunn called Lang about a year later to surprise her with a song named after her. The “Julia Lang” track would solidify her status among the industry as a businesswoman influencing male-driven culture, not just street culture, but hip hop culture, and fashion, respectfully. Somehow this has been the underlining fabric of the VEERT success, showcasing often feminized jewelry items onto masculine canvases, exploiting the genderless qualities of the accessories and lifestyle products.
She wouldn’t get the idea for VEERT until late in her career after a decade of the hustle and motivated missions that have, if not at all, eliminated her ability to have a proper vacation. “When I started VEERT, this [became] my whole heart. I guess that’s also why it’s successful. I’m taking what I’ve built with my agency over ten years, and taking that network and those already in my corner, building a brand on it,” Lang says. The workaholic does find her balance and has received advice from the friends she has put around her, building a business aesthetic she has maintained for herself.
The story of VEERT spawns from the smallest moment in Lang’s journey, from a trusted friend and fellow influencer of culture. The late legendary hip hop photographer Chi Modu would run into Lang in between Paris and New York Fashion Weeks at Soho House in January of 2020, just before the pandemic hit. She recalls his words that changed her life, stating, “I remember [Chi Modu] telling me, ‘Julia, you are so powerful. I see the world in you. You have no option but to start a product line. Your agencies will work you to the ground.’ Now is the time,” she thought.
Chi Modu passed away in May of 2021, but not before seeing his words have an impact on Lang who eventually launched her line in November of 2020. Lang saw the pandemic as an opportunity to learn as much as she could about the jewelry-making business. She recalls “working day and night during an intense period,” learning trademarks and other aspects necessary to properly launch the VEERT lifestyle and accessory label.
VEERT uses recycled 925 silver in most of the pieces while using 18-karat gold, gold vermeil, and other materials like green onyx, peridot, and malachite, which Lang adores for its healing powers. VEERT also offers all of the creations in 18-karat solid gold. She currently donates 1% of the gross income from its sales, allocated for sustainable causes for the planet. Lang also boasts a 100-year plan for the VEERT lifestyle brand, aspiring to a heritage label. She is currently in talks with luxury companies, building out lifestyle products under the VEERT name, like home fragrances, porcelain, candles, and self-care products.
Jewelry is the VEERT brand’s best-seller, helping bring in close to a million in sales in its first year. Lang doesn’t rely on big-money backers or investors to operate either. She is a hard worker - working through the weekends per our call - who wants the younger generation, and young women, to know this life of hers “wasn’t easy,” and that she “really worked hard.”
