Lathan Lane has been getting clothes from your favorite kids’ brands for free. Sounds great right? Getting paid to create content for those brands sounds even better. Doesn’t it?

But if you’re a parent looking at all those ridiculously well-dressed kids on Instagram wondering how their parents are getting clothing brands to send them products, here’s the part you might be missing: the free clothes usually aren’t where the relationship starts.

Ashley, the mom and creative force behind 4 year old kid fashion creator Lathan Lane, took the opposite approach.

She bought from brands first.

She styled the clothes.

Her husband, Luther photographed the looks.

They tagged the companies and created the kind of content brands want to be associated with. Once they are on the brand’s radar that’s when Ashley pitched.

This approach has helped turn Lathan’s Instagram presence into collaborations with multiple fashion brands and viral content. Ashley says one brand collaboration generated millions of likes and helped the company gain more than 10,000 followers in a single weekend.

So we talked to Ashley about exactly how she does it: how she approaches brands, what she says when she pitches them, how she styles Lathan Lane’s viral looks, what parents should do before asking for free clothes, and the biggest thing she believes makes kid content take off.

And no, it isn’t having the most expensive outfit.

Who Is Lathan Lane?

Lathan Lane is a rising kid fashion creator and model whose bold outfits and outsized personality have helped him build a growing social media following. With his mother Ashley behind the styling and creative direction and his father handling photography, Lathan’s content has turned family creativity into viral fashion moments and brand partnerships. But what separates Lathan from the increasingly crowded world of kid influencers isn’t just the clothes—it’s that his parents are committed to letting him be a kid first and a content creator second.

Now, enjoy our interview with Lathan Lane’s mother Ashley.

Lathan Lane’s Mom Ashley on Going Viral, Getting Brand Deals and Raising a Kid Creator

FITGRADES: When it comes to working with brands, how do you decide which companies to reach out to? What does that process look like for you?

Ashley: For me, the biggest thing is that it has to align with Lathan’s style and the style that I want him to have. I don’t want him to only wear streetwear. I feel like Jordan Craig brings that energy. They have classy pieces and they have streetwear pieces, so it was real versatile. I like versatility.

When I reach out, I also know what we can bring to the brand. My husband is a photographer, so we can provide high-quality content. I know we can come with the creativity and the quality, so my pitch is really, “If you give us a shot, this is what we can create for you.”

FITGRADES: What have been some of your favorite looks that you’ve put together for Lathan?

Some of my favorite looks have been the ones where I’ve had the most creative freedom. I love the more vibrant, fun pieces because they let him still look like a kid.

I’ve also noticed that my posts tend to do better when it’s completely my creativity bringing everything together. Collab posts do well, but when I get to put the entire look together myself, those are usually the posts that perform the best.

FITGRADES: When you see a piece you like, do you immediately know the outfit you want to create around it, or do you build the look over time?

I build it as I go. Lathan has pieces that have probably been sitting for a year because I’m like, “Nope, not yet.” It has to be right when I finally pull it out.

That’s also why I’ll size up when I buy certain things for him. I don’t want to rush an outfit just to get it posted. I want it to be perfect when I release it on Instagram.

Sometimes he’ll even ask me, “Mom, can I wear it?” And I’ll say, “No, not yet. You don’t have the right shoes for it.”

I might love one piece and buy it, then slowly style everything else around it. I’ll go to different places for the accessories, shoes and other pieces until the whole look feels right.

FITGRADES: What was Lathan’s journey into modeling and creating content like? Kids can lose interest pretty quickly. What advice would you give parents who want to create content with their children?

For us, Lathan watched his big sister do it, and that made him interested. She had already done some local modeling and really enjoyed it, so it was easier getting him into it because he had already watched her.

With Lathan, we really just let him be himself. We don’t make it super strict. We let him have fun with it.

If you watch his videos, he’s dancing and showing his personality. I might put a trending audio over it, but what you’re really seeing is who he actually is. I don’t want to make it boring or make him perform a certain way.

He enjoys it, and I think that comes across in the content.

Meet Ashley, The Woman Behind Lathan Lane’s Style

FITGRADES: When you’re working with brands, how do you deliver what they need while still maintaining your own style? Some brands can be very specific about what they want.

Before I accept any collaboration, I make sure we’re in agreement. If it’s something I’m not comfortable with, I’ll decline the collaboration.

Even if it’s gifted or paid, I won’t accept something that doesn’t align with our style. It wouldn’t be good for either party. If I already know his followers aren’t going to engage with that type of content, what’s the point?

The whole idea behind the collaboration is for the brand to reach people. If I know our audience isn’t going to respond to it, then it’s not the right collaboration.

FITGRADES: Lathan has built an audience where people feel like they know him. As a parent, how do you balance building his public presence with protecting his privacy?

We really haven’t personally run into the bad side of it, but we make sure that the things that should remain private stay private.

People know Lathan, but they don’t know everything about him. They know he goes to school, but they don’t know what school he goes to. We’re intentional about what information we make public.

FITGRADES: When you’re styling Lathan, how do you coordinate all the different pieces and accessories? What are you looking for when you’re putting a complete outfit together?

I look for the unpredictable.

If there’s an obvious way that most people would style something, I’m probably going to go in the opposite direction. I don’t want his style to be predictable.

I also use my collage app a lot. I’ll take pictures of different pieces and merge them together so I can see the entire outfit before I actually purchase everything.

That helps me see the top, the bottoms, the shoes and accessories together before he ever puts it on. I want people to see the final outfit and not automatically know what shoes or accessories we’re going to pair with it.

Lathan Lane’s Biggest Brand Moments

FITGRADES: How long did it take before Lathan Lane had his first viral post?

About a year. I started when he was around two, so it was difficult in the beginning because, you know, two-year-olds don’t sit down!

But once he went viral, it was almost nonstop after that.

As he’s gotten older, he’s started enjoying it more, and people have gotten to know his personality. People really take to Lathan because I allow him to be himself.

That’s the biggest advice I would give parents: let your kid be themselves.

He’s had so many more opportunities lately because people enjoy seeing him have fun. He’s worked with brands where his content has gotten millions of likes and helped bring thousands of new followers to their pages.

Sometimes the golden ticket really is that simple: record your kid being themselves and let their personality shine.

FITGRADES: How do you present yourself when you reach out to a brand? What advice would you give other parents who want to pitch companies?

When I started the kids’ pages, I started by actually buying pieces from brands that I wanted to work with.

Support first.

I would buy their pieces, create content, tag the company and let them start seeing us. Then I would pitch myself.

My husband and I are really a package deal. He’s the photographer, and I’m the mind behind the locations, styling and everything else. So when I pitch a brand, I can say, “We can provide high-quality content, and we can get it to you within this amount of time.”

I normally give brands about a one-week turnaround because I don’t want them waiting around for their content.

But I think the biggest thing is supporting the company first. I don’t want people thinking it’s just about trying to get free merchandise. For me, it’s about building healthy relationships with different brands.

FITGRADES: So for a parent starting from scratch, you’d recommend supporting and creating content around the brands they genuinely like before asking for anything?

Absolutely. Support would be the biggest thing I think parents should start with.

What’s Next: YouTube, Acting and Beyond

FITGRADES: What’s the ultimate goal? Where would you like to take all of this with Lathan Lane and your family?

We’re trying to get them into acting classes and expose them to different things.

I feel like Lathan is really built for the public eye. I think he’s made to do something big. Now we’re trying to figure out what area that might be, whether it’s acting, modeling or something else.

He’s actually about to start taking singing lessons, too.

We’re trying different things because he’s really talented and people naturally gravitate toward him. I feel like he’s too big to just put him into one box.

He’s small, but he’s huge.

FITGRADES: Is YouTube part of the plan, too?

Yes. We’re actually getting ready to start Lathan Lane’s YouTube channel now that he’s older and more interested in YouTube.

We want to create a few pieces of content first so that when we launch it, we already have the ball rolling.

We’re also looking at getting Meta glasses because the things this boy says and does are unbelievable. People wouldn’t believe us if they didn’t actually see it.

He’s truly one of a kind.

Knowing When to Pull Back

FITGRADES: What signs would tell you that it’s time to pull back? How do you know when creating content is becoming too much for your kids or they simply don’t want to do it anymore?

We allow our kids to express themselves. If they say, “No, not right now,” we don’t treat that as disrespectful. We allow them to lead.

Normally, we try to have one content day where we shoot the pieces we need to do for that week. That way, we’re not making the entire week content-heavy.

And then we follow his lead.

If I see Lathan’s face getting long or he’s not dancing and acting like he normally does, I’m pulling back. I want everything to look and feel natural. I never want somebody to watch one of his videos and say, “That kid doesn’t look happy.”

If he’s not in the mood, we try again another day. It has to be done in good spirits.

My daughter actually took a six-month break. She told me, “Mom, I’m just not into it.” My husband and I said, “Okay.” Everything went on pause.

Then she eventually came back and told me she was ready to work again, and now we’re getting her content going again.

We let our kids take the lead. We don’t treat them expressing themselves as disrespect.

Kids in this industry can have big emotions and big feelings. They’re expressive. If you kill that, you can kill their confidence along with it. I want my kids to be who they are, so we listen to them.

FITGRADES: That seems especially important for parents who might start seeing opportunities coming in and feel pressure to keep producing content.

You see it so often, and it’s sad because you can literally just try again another day.

With our daughter, if she doesn’t like it, we’re not going to make her do it. It’s not mandatory. We’re not going to force our kids into this.

My daughter has told us when she only wanted to do local modeling, and we listened. She does things like modeling for Target, but we let her tell us where she’s comfortable.

If your kid is going to be the face of what you’re doing, you have to let them take the lead.

FITGRADES: Are there any resources you use—books, websites or other creators you follow—to learn how to create better content?

Not really. I think it’s been a lot of trial and error for me.

Of course, I can get inspiration from other content creators, but I think what my husband and I do as a team just comes naturally because we both truly enjoy it.

Our kids see us enjoying it, and then they enjoy it.

That’s what makes everything feel organic.

Thank you for taking the time to talk with us we wish you the very best in the future.

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