What running a small business at 21 looks like through my eyes...
If you would've told me a year ago that I would be running my own small business within one of the most amazing jewelry companies in the nation that includes investors such as Ashton Kutcher, I would literally look at you like you were crazy. One year ago, around this time, I was quitting a job I wasn't in love with and questioning where God was taking me. Today, I am a Merchandiser Manager with the jewelry company Chloe + Isabel and have my own team of women that I am able to coach and empower on a daily business. My job is to help motivated, hard-working, and wonderful women become successful in their careers. How cool is that?! Let me take a minute to share with you all my journey to this job...
My only jobs since I've graduated high school have been retail jobs. Let's be honest, with only a high school diploma and being in my late teens, that's all I was going to get. I needed money for gas, my car payment, and other random things that a teenager feels she needs to spend money on so I sucked it up. Well one day, I had a major meltdown. I didn't feel like I was making enough money to cover what I needed to pay for and every time I went to my parents for help it felt like someone was punching me in the stomach and in the back of my mind I felt like a failure. Budgeting has never been a strength of mine but I made my new year's resolution to open a savings account for 2013. I made sure that was done but I constantly found myself wiping it out to pay for the most random things. This major meltdown I speak of lead me to the website LinkedIn. I had a professor at the time send me an invite to connect and create a profile but I read the e-mail and never did anything about it. It wasn't a requirement for the class so I naturally ignored it. (College student mentality at it's finest, wouldn't you say?) Well, being beyond desperate for another job that allowed me to still have a life, I decided to check out what LinkedIn was all about and made my way to the job listings. Within the first couple minutes of looking, I found a listing for Chloe + Isabel, a jewelry company based out of the Tribeca neighborhood in New York City. This company had posted that they were looking for "merchandisers that would make 30% commission and get paid to do what they love!" Ummmm what? The natural thought that crossed my mind as I did my research was, "this is way too good to be true." Well, it wasn't. When you search Chloe + Isabel on LinkedIn, you are lead to a page where their job listing is posted:
[We are currently looking for fashion-loving, socially savvy, modern women to become Merchandisers – an elite group of socialistas, fashionistas, tastemakers and budding entrepreneurs who make money doing what they love.
We want you to be successful being YOU! With our guidance, tools and leadership training (not to mention fabulous jewelry) you will have everything you need to become a social-selling star. Right away, you will discover and grow the empowered, entrepreneurial YOU!]
At this moment, I knew God had lead me here for a reason. I needed to have a moment that included lots of tears and an embarrassing phone call to my mom to stumble upon this job. Even though it wasn't the most graceful of moments, it truly needed to happen and I couldn't be more grateful that it did. I didn't hesitate a bit once I read through the job description. I sent in an application right then and there and heard from Jensine, our fabulous SDA (Sales Development Associate) on the west coast first thing in the morning. She continued to explain to me what being a Merchandiser was all about and what the job description truly entailed. She explained that I would have the freedom to basically run my own small business and design my own online boutique. Not only that, but I would receive my "starter kit" which included our best selling pieces, as well as all of the look books, order forms, etc I would need to kick start my business. Jumping ahead a bit, this starter kit allowed me to kick start my business and I began throwing trunk shows full of my friends and family that were excited about my newest adventure. At the end of our conversation, I told her to call me back in a couple of weeks so I could have time to save up for the greatest investment I've ever made in my career.
Once my starter kit arrived, I started planning my grand opening Pop Up and began inviting all of my friends that I thought would be interested in Chloe + Isabel. Pop ups are my way of displaying my jewelry for all to see and truly sharing the beauty of the product and the perks of shopping with me. I am always sure to include yummy food, delicious sweets, and drinks that mostly make up of wine. Not only am I able to work with my customers one-on-one, I can also guarantee that they are spending their money wisely. This jewelry provides them with a lifetime replacement guarantee as well as pieces that are designed by the most detail oriented design team I've ever seen. Once you receive a piece of jewelry from Chloe + Isabel, you'll know exactly what I mean. These pieces are flawless and i'm so grateful that I am able to share the beauty of these pieces with the people closest to me and that they are able to pass along the message as well. I'm not the only one that can host a Pop Up, therefore I am always encouraging my friends to take advantage of our amazing hostess program. If someone decides they want to host their own Pop Up with me, they receive free jewelry credits based on the sales of their Pop Up. For every $200 spent, the host earns $50 in free jewels. Let me tell you folks, I've had girlfriends earn hundreds of dollars in free jewels just by having their girlfriends over for a night of girl talk, wine, and shopping. Yes, it is as simple as that.
To say I've been blessed with this job is an understatement. Since day 1, I have had the backing of every single person I've met within Chloe + Isabel and they have been my biggest cheerleaders. In my eyes, the beauty of this company lays within the leaders.You don't have a "boss" or the cliche job of a "manager", you truly just have coaches and cheerleaders. You have complete freedom within this company to run your business the best way you can and in return you are given the biggest support group out there and access to one of the most beautiful jewelry lines to hit the fashion industry. I have been with the company since August of 2013 and I give so much credit to my leaders when it comes to my success within this company. We are a new and learning company as well as a brand that strives for improvement. We are constantly growing and learning as a company and I am constantly growing and learning as a business woman and an entrepreneur. At 21, to be able to say that I am both of those things blows my mind. Like I said in the beginning, if you would've told me that I would be here today, I definitely would not have believed you but because of the confidence and knowledge I've gained, I wouldn't have it any other way. I look forward to helping my team succeed and growing in my business every single day.
To those of you that have helped me make my business what it is, thank you. To those of you that are at all interested in seeing what the fuss is all about, I encourage you to visit my online boutique and see what I have to offer you. I promise you that you won't regret it.
Thank you so very much for taking the time to read about my journey and how i'm making my dream come true. I hope this brings inspiration to those of you going back and forth with job opportunities or even just struggling to find their niche in the business world. There is something for everyone and I am living proof of that. I have a job that I can continue to grow in as I get older, as I finish my schooling, and something I can continue well into a marriage and family. I will forever be grateful for Chloe + Isabel family and I look forward to growing within this company as long as I can. I hope you all can take the time to visit my website and see why i'm so passionate about what I do. It truly is an honor that so many of you have already invested in me and my adventure. Again, I thank you all.
XO-
Riley
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