Hello!

Hi there! I’m Nita Mann and thank you so much for stopping by! I’m the editor behind Next With Nita (NWN) and started my blog a year into law school in 2015. I wish I could say that I’ve always wanted to start a fashion blog and I’ve been so intrigued by the industry since high school, but none of that is true. Here’s my story.

My Story

I grew up as a pretty shy tom-boy. I didn’t even wear makeup until I was in my early 20s so being in the fashion and beauty industry is definitely new to me even today! I majored in Finance and Business Administration and worked for JPMorgan for a number of years until I found something on Facebook that changed my whole life plan. I saw an article about gas chambers in animal shelters and I couldn’t ignore it. I read the entire article and then spent the next few hours researching more to find ways to help put an end to it. I spent my entire summer researching, writing, and helping out the Texas Humane Legislation Network to pass a law within Texas to ban gas chambers as a way of euthanizing animals in shelters. I even went to Austin, TX for the hearing and was so happy when the bill passed in May 2013!

After that experience, I really wanted to help animals on a higher level. I made the decision to take the LSAT and further my education by going to law school. I also applied for a Government Relations Internship at ASPCA and spent summer 2014 in DC (best experience of my life till this day!!) working to help the team in passing legislation, lobbying and their overall efforts to help animals on the policy side. Immediately after the internship ended, I started law school. Keep in mind, I went to law school because I felt like it was necessary for me to learn the laws and overall educate myself in order to help animals in the future. However, I did not realize how competitive law school would be. Most law students were out to get that big-time corporate job which is incredible but I simply wanted to help animals so I did feel a little out of place. Fast forward three years, I graduated law school and I’m so glad I stuck with it. I learned SO much about almost every subject you can possibly think of (criminal law, animal law, contracts, copyright laws, torts, etc) and it truly helped me grow as a person. Plus, during law school is when Next With Nita was born so…everything happens for a reason? I think so.

A year into law school is when I realized I needed a creative outlet. Law school was very intense, very black and white with few shades of gray, and quite time consuming. I remember spending my entire day just either in class or back in my dorm room reading and writing. My passion for writing grew so I took that skill and decided to create my own blog. I had already started following other fashion and beauty bloggers and that’s when my true passion for the industry began. I was mesmerized by how these gorgeous, unique girls shared their personality with their everyday looks and beauty tips. I loved the creativity aspect so much– I guess being in law school made me realize how much I wanted to be part of that creative space. Over the last couple of years, I found myself spending more and more time researching the digital world, watching makeup tutorials, and reading magazines to stay in touch with current fashion trends.You will find that fashion makes up the majority of my content but I also cover other topics on my blog including relationship, beauty and travel! Over just a few years, what started out as an escape from the stress of law school and simply a hobby now is my full-time job. I never ever would have imagined being here today if you asked me a few years ago. Just reading my story, you can see that I’ve touched on a lot of different careers and passions. The best part of my job right now? I get to incorporate animal advocacy on my blog and share that with you. Educating others about animals in need and being able to help put the word out about animal rights is incredibly rewarding and doing that + talking about my newly found obsession for fashion and beauty is a dream come true.

My Mission

My brother-in-law once told me that every good business should have a mission statement. I sat for a while wondering, what’s my goal here with Next With Nita? I don’t want to just post pretty pictures and hope for the best. I want to educate, inspire and create a real connection with each and every single one of you. Overall, my mission and ultimate goal with Next With Nita is to not only share the trendiest must-have pieces, but to remind you that this industry is more than that. It’s about staying true to who you are and being confident in your own beliefs and overall style. I want to be there to educate you on what’s going on in the animal world, inspire you with the latest trends and styles, and create a real connection with you by being there whether it involves giving relationship advice or simply making your online shopping experience a little easier!

Next With Nita is here to not only make your online shopping experience easier, but to help educate you about animal laws, inspire you with the latest trends and create a real connection through communication and thought-provoking posts.

The Day My Last Name Changed

I simply can’t write an ‘about me’ section without talking about my husband. Ajeet and I knew each other from school/mutual friends and followed each other on social media before we actually got to know each other. We ended up exchanging phone numbers at a friends birthday party and well as they say, the rest is history. A few months into talking, we ended up going to Las Vegas in May 2014 and that’s when he asked me to be his girlfriend!

Ajeet and I spent the first few months of our relationship doing the whole long-distance thing since that’s when I had moved to D.C. for the ASPCA internship. After that, we continued long-distance (a little closer though) as I lived in Houston during my first year of law school. I ended up transferring back to Dallas to SMU Dedman School of Law because I really really missed home. During that first year in law school away from home, I would talk about blogging, fashion and beauty quite a bit over FaceTime with Ajeet. When I moved back home after year one, that’s when Ajeet went out of his way to buy a basic DSLR camera so that we can start this project together. I remember that exact moment too. We were in Costco and we were looking at cameras but it was all so expensive and I couldn’t justify spending the money. We walked out of Costco and the Dallas sky looked insanely incredible that evening with yellow, pink and purple hues. He stopped me in the parking lot and said, let’s do it and from there, we got the camera and he picked up photography. Three years in and he’s still my photographer and I wouldn’t change a thing. He was the push I needed to pursue my dream and without him, I’m not even sure if I would have came this far in my career today!

Los Angeles

I’m updating this section on Nov. 14, 2017. We moved to Los Angeles from Dallas, Texas on Nov. 2, 2017 and although it’s been really hard being away from my family, I have a strong feeling this is going to the best decision we have made yet. Ajeet now works at Warner Bros. all the while helping me run Next With Nita. We are both in this together and spend most of our time shooting, filming, editing, brainstorming, and writing. It’s about the hustle here in Los Angeles and we wouldn’t have it any other way! There are so many fun things and events to do in the city and now that we’re finally settled in, we are so excited to start our journey here and try out new restaurants, learn new roads, and create new memories in the city we now call home.

Before I go, I just want to say that I am incredibly thankful for each and everyone one of you for following along and supporting me over the last few years. You are the reason I’m able to live my dream and it just means the world to me so THANK YOU!