Malia Pickard presented her first fashion show as a 17-year-old student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and never looked back, taking every job she could dealing with the various aspects of hair, makeup, styling and production to make sure she knew she’d have what it takes to make it in the fashion business.

Coming from Maui, where she graduated from Baldwin High School, the 24-year-old said: "I was very young and starry-eyed. I was impressed by anyone and everyone and feel like some people took advantage of me, but I paid my dues and worked extremely hard, and it paid off."

She made her way to Los Angeles and found work producing fashion shows and styling the celebrity clientele she continues to design for, but since moving back to Hawaii in 2009, she’s found she’s having to start all over again.

"My husband laughs at me, saying, ‘These people don’t know who you are,’ not that I’m a big deal," she said, but it still feels a bit like deja vu. Been there, done that.

Consider her fashion show tomorrow night — marking the grand opening of Hard Rock Cafe Waikiki at its new 280 Beachwalk address — her calling card.

During the show, she’ll introduce her newest collection, Rocco Li by Stizar Couture, about 20 one-of-a-kind ensembles created with her alter ego in mind.

"I dress very plainly, so the collection represents everything I would wear if I dressed like my alter ego, strong and sexy."

Key to the collection are a series of hand-embellished minidresses incorporating leather.

Having grown up in a close-knit Maui family, it’s no surprise that her mother and sisters are active participants in the business.

"My mom assists with the sewing. Sisters help with P.A. stuff. Most of our staff are either longtime friends or have worked for me since we opened.

"My whole family is involved with the arts, and my mom has always been my biggest inspiration. She’s still hands-on and the joke is things don’t get shown unless my mom does all the finishing touches."

Pickard returned to design through her styling assignments. When she was unable to find clothing her clients wanted, she started making her own pieces from scratch. After a while, she said, "I wanted to style people with only my garments."

She still works with a created to spec mentality, such that, "I don’t want to manufacture," she said. "The whole point is that when someone buys one of my pieces, they can be assured it’s one of a kind."

Minidresses range from $150 to $425, with other pieces priced higher. Even so, a small collection of one-of-a-kinds won’t pay the bills, and Pickard continues to do work in L.A., as well as create custom pieces for her established clientele. If not for that, she said it would be tough to make a living here.

"Since I’ve been on Oahu, I’ve learned that there’s a lot of people who will work for free. It’s horrible for everyone. People who are in the industry should get serious about it, maybe start a union."

She said it’s different in L.A. because of a combination of money available for productions, and a cadre of professionals who understand you get what you pay for.

"They see who’s succeeding and know that they’ve worked for it. To the average person there, success seems unattainable. Here, people can decide to call themselves a designer, a model, and everyone accepts it. They think they can do one show and be equal to the person who’s done 100 shows."