Henderson native, NC A&T student, contributes to Urban Outfitters HBCU Collection

GREENSBORO, N.C. (WTVD) -- U'lia Hargrove's designs are gaining national attention, thanks to her role in Urban Outfitters HBCU Collection. Hargrove is a native of Henderson NC and a student at NC A&T.

"The main thing I wanted to get across was basically a little history of my HBCU, and some of its culture including our fonts, our colors, and some of the slogans that we have on-campus," said Hargrove.

The retail company reached out to North Carolina A&T to identify a student to take part in their internship program. Hargrove, a junior double-majoring in fashion merchandising and design and supply chain management, was chosen by professors in the spring to participate following a round of interviews and review of her portfolio.

She then took part in a 10-week internship in Pennsylvania, working both on her products as well as other aspects of the company.

"The five interns actually had full control of the designs. They chose every single aspect of the design - from the fabric to color, to designing the logos," Hargrove said.

Hargrove created five pieces for the company: a sweatshirt, sweatpants, varsity jacket, tote bag, and playing cards, all of which highlight NC A&T. The web-exclusive collection has garnered a strong response, with the varsity jacket already selling out.

"My two sisters actually ordered some of the apparel for Christmas, so when they opened the gifts, they had it out. So it was pretty exciting, seeing them wear it, and seeing them flashing the merchandise around," said Hargrove.

NC A&T is one of three HBCU's featured in the collection, along with Clark Atlanta and Howard. Urban Outfitters made a donation to each school.

"It feels kind of surreal, it feels kind of amazing to be able to kind of be a spokesperson or to bring advocacy to their market of individuals who do shop at Urban Outfitters," said Hargrove.

Hargrove hopes to eventually launch her own fashion brand, using this experience to help achieve that goal.

"A lot of representation isn't necessarily shown throughout the fashion industry. It's not very diverse. So when major companies do take on the initiative to increase representation, it is very important, and I think everyone else should follow," Hargrove said.

If you're interested in purchasing products from this collection, click here.