Hawaii has no shortage of creative and entrepreneurial individuals, and each success story reinforces the notion that anyone can build a business from ground up, as many have. But for many designers the typical success story begins and ends at home. Few are able to make the leap to national — much less international — success.

The World Famous Co. wants to change that. Brand expert David Tyreman and fashion partner Theo Garcia are out to help businesses build up their brands and take their businesses to the next level as national players. Among Tyreman’s success stories is a company started by Ralph Lifshitz — maybe you’ve heard of Polo Ralph Lauren? Other clients have ranged from Nautica to Citibank.

Although the World Famous Co. handles many types of businesses, after working with Hawaii Fashion Incubator and Hawaii Red magazine and getting to know the issues local fashion startups face, it decided to offer a workshop specifically oriented toward designers.

The "Launch Your Line Bootcamp" will take place Aug. 27 at theVenue, to be followed by a networking workshop. Attendees will have access to an interactive refresher tele-class in October.

The one-day intensive Boot Camp with Garcia, a fashion designer and WFC creative director, is designed to create momentum, vision and focus. He’ll be sharing five steps needed to turn concept into reality, whether passions run from streetwear to couture, T-shirts to tailoring.

Garcia got his start while still in school in Dallas, where designing clothing for Midwestern sensibilities led him to decide he had to get out of there. After moving to Los Angeles and designing casual wear, he was invited to become an instructor at Brooks College and found his second calling.

"That’s how I made the transition from fashion to helping other people getting their concepts to market," he said.

Teaching led him to Seattle and later San Francisco, where he launched his fashion line, Theo-S.F., which gave him enough notoriety to draw the attention of MTV. He appeared regularly on the network’s "Fashion Friday."

When he met Tyreman, he saw the genius of working through the World Famous Co. "Rather than teaching to a class of 35 young men and women who are half interested, I take in private clients who are 100 percent interested now."

Launching a line has to start with a plan, but Garcia said designers tend to be artists who start on mere whimsy, selling little by little as they create, without establishing a strategy for growing their business.

"A lot of designers are intimidated by the business of fashion. They don’t want to work at marketing, selling, accounting. I’m here to help them develop those skills," he said.

"The great thing about Hawaii is it’s a small place. They can get attention and do a soft launch. It’s a tight-knit community, so they’re able to penetrate the market if they have a great idea. In that respect it’s a benefit to use the islands as a test market."

He said there’s even an accessible celebrity pool here if designers want to tap into getting entertainers or beauty queens to wear and help promote their clothing.

But to get the attention of national buyers, it’s important to be seen at important trade shows like MAGIC in Las Vegas or L.A. MART, where it can cost thousands of dollars to show, and if you double your money you’re doing well. Garcia advises designers to visit the shows before attempting to sell there, to determine what buyers are looking at and whether they have something worth selling.

Toward that end, Garcia said he helps designers analyze their lines, typically charging $3,400 to $4,500 for six meetings, with a higher scale for established companies, depending on size and type of business.

"I can look at it with a critical eye and say, ‘OK, this is what you need to do to make it saleable.’ They can’t judge their own collection because they’ve been looking at it too long, creating in a kind of vacuum."

He said he learned the hard way, once having been told by an instructor about one of his student creations, "You have five dresses in one dress."

"Usually I don’t curtail my words. I can’t fake it. It’s not in me. I try to say things diplomatically because it isn’t about being negative. I tell them, ‘This is what works, this is what doesn’t.’ Building confidence is crucial to get them to market."

He’s a believer that entrepreneurs can start a business in any economy, and the most important ingredient in success is a passion that’s palpable to others.

"There are people who really love to help, especially when they see a struggling designer who’s passionate about their work. They really want to take care of that person."