April 4, 2024 • 30 mins
From the heat of a firefighter's blaze to the warmth of a welcoming boutique, Ashley Brown's journey is as unconventional as it is inspiring. Our chat this week peeks behind the curtain of Boutique 540, where Ashley has turned a passion for vinyl decals into a bustling hub of fashion and community. Her story isn't just one of change, but of the audacious pursuit of a dream, revealing how a side gig can ignite the entrepreneurial spirit and push us toward uncharted success.
Picture a Tee Party, but not as you know it. Ashley's innovation has brewed a fresh twist on the classic social gathering, turning Tee Parties into a thriving cornerstone of her business. These aren't your grandmother's affairs; they're dynamic, digital extravaganzas that blend tradition with technology. Join us as we traverse the ins and outs of these events, from the first sip of strategy to the sweet taste of a growing nationwide customer base, proving that even the most time-honored concepts can be reinvented for the modern market.
Lastly, Ashley doesn't hold back on spilling the leaves on the realities of entrepreneurship. She's candid about the tenacity needed to keep a business blooming and the agility to adapt in an ever-evolving digital landscape. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur or a seasoned pro, there's a steep learning curve that Ashley helps flatten with her insights. If you've ever pondered bridging your passion with your profession, this episode is a blend of encouragement, strategy, and real-world lessons steeped in the experience of a businesswoman who's done just that.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome back to Turn Down the Hustle podcast.
Today I am interviewing my veryfirst guest here on the show.
We have Ashley Brown fromBoutique 540 with us tonight and
we're going to be talking allabout Tea Party.
So she's pretty well versed inquite a bit of areas in the
small business world from TeaParty to subscription boxes to
(00:23):
launching her very ownstorefront.
But I'll let her share more.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
You're listening to Turn Down the Hustle, the
podcast dedicated totransforming how you run your
creative online t-shirt businessby working smarter, not harder,
so you can spend more time withyour why, people and passions
that matter most in your life.
So throw on your favoritegraphic tee and turn up the heat
.
Press, because it's time toturn down the hustle.
Here's your host digitalmarketer.
(00:50):
Cold brew lover, t-shirt maker,freckled hype girl and owner of
Sunkist Virtual Assistant, amy.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
I want to welcome Ashley.
Thank you for joining andcoming on the show as my very
first guest, so tell us a littlebit more about Ashley.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Thank you for having me.
First of all, I am so excitedto be here.
I'm Ashley Brown.
I am from Stanton, Virginia.
I started kind of started mylife as an adult as a
firefighter paramedic where Imet my husband and I'm mom to
four boys.
So very busy in my personallife, never a dull moment there.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
You got a lot going on, so I do.
Yeah, why four boys?
That's not four girls, fourboys, yeah, that's a lot to keep
up with, so all right and thenokay.
So that's a little bit aboutAshley.
What about boutique five, fourzero.
When did it start?
And tell us more about that.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
So I had dabbled in some MLMs for a little while and
was mildly successful in one ofthose about 2016.
I had my first son and at thetime was able to stay home, but
I was honestly bored.
I hate to say that as astay-at-home mom, I was blessed
to do that, but I was bored.
I needed like a creative outlet, a way to express myself and
(02:13):
make a little side income.
So I bought one of the veryoriginal silhouette cameos and a
whole bunch of vinyl literallya roll of vinyl in every color
and just started making decalsfor friends and family and it
slowly well rapidly I guessexpanded and I added a
sublimation printer and thatkind of just took off.
(02:34):
And then I decided that I wasgoing to dabble in some
embroidery.
So I bought a single needleembroidery machine and was just
kind of literally playing in mybasement making things for
friends and family, just kind ofhere and there for some extra
income.
And then 2020, covid happenedand everything kind of changed.
(02:54):
I also experienced some majorlife changes at that point
Rebranded my business, I gotmarried and I moved back home to
Stanton, kind of where I grewup, and my super supportive
husband painted our entireupstairs warehouse for my office
.
He painted it bright pink tomatch my brand yeah, it was.
(03:16):
He was just so supportive and Isaid I think I'm going to buy
another embroidery machine.
And he said go for it.
So we did and it just kind ofhas taken off from there.
I love that.
I added a DTF printer, whichhas really been a game changer
for my tea parties and theprinting side of my business.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Awesome, and is that the pink room that he painted?
Speaker 3 (03:40):
Actually this is my storefront, oh, this is your.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Oh okay, and you said you moved back to Stanton
Virginia, so it's just all fullcircle.
And then what did you do inStanton Virginia just recently?
Speaker 3 (03:55):
I opened my storefront in September,
September, middle of Septemberthis year.
We had kind of just expandedand I outgrew my upstairs, my
house, and I had shirts andthread and stuff everywhere.
And I went to my husband oneday and I said I think I'm going
to open a store and he saidokay, and I went and looked at
(04:17):
some properties a few weekslater and then about two months
after that, here we are in ourstorefront.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
So exciting, I love that and so okay, so you were,
were you doing the side hustle,were you full-time storefront or
how did that transition kind ofhappen?
Speaker 3 (04:36):
So when I opened my storefront thankfully my
customers were reallyunderstanding of like hey, I'm
going to post a calendar andthese are the days I'm going to
be here, because I was stillworking 24 hour shifts at the
fire department and I was prettymuch here at the store every
day.
I wasn't at the fire department, which was kind of chaotic and
hectic, but in the end it hascompletely paid off.
(04:57):
In February I was able to takethis full time and kind of
flip-flop roles.
I stayed on part-time as afirefighter, paramedic and now
spend the most of my time hereat my store.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
That is amazing and I don't think I really realized
that part.
I knew you were still workingfull-time and then you opened a
storefront, but I guess I neverreally thought into the
logistics.
So I love that that you said,hey, here's some of the times
I'm going to be here.
And then did you use that aslike a deciding factor, Like,
hey, people are coming to makethat leap and leave your
full-time job.
Speaker 3 (05:28):
Yeah.
So I had people being like,when are you open?
Because at the fire departmentwe worked every third day.
So it was really random thedays that I was here and it was
really tough if I was up allnight there, you know, running
calls.
Then I was coming here and Iwas just kind of dragging and I
had a friend that offered tohelp me out some so actually
kind of all at once brought heron as a part-time employee and
(05:51):
said you know what I want to dothis, let's do it.
And I just made the leap to dothis full time.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
I love that, and I love that you stair-stepped it
too, because I think some peopleare ready to make a lot of
changes all at once, like hey, Ineed to leave my job, I want to
open a storefront.
And you did it with baby steps,you know, and gradually
approached, and it worked out.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
I did.
It was super scary and I had amillion questions.
But again I'm so thankful thatmy husband I have all the things
to him he had a solution forall of them.
He said just do it.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Just do it.
You know, and it makes all thedifference to have somebody that
is supportive and encouragingyou just when you want to doubt,
like no, we're doing it, we'repainting the walls pink, we're
doing it.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
And I had, you know, friends and family that helped
me move everything in.
And, yeah it's, it's been acrazy journey, but it's
definitely been worth it.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
I am jealous all of those that get to visit.
So I have been a customer ofyours on the receiving end, and
I loved my product with you,which was your subscription box.
So when did you start yoursubscription box?
I know we're talking about teaparties today, but you just have
so many fascinating thingsabout your business.
I got to do it just as to givea little bit of light to those
(07:07):
subscription boxes.
So tell us more about that.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Sure.
So I kind of started dabblingin subscription boxes in 2020
and just kind of didn't reallyknow much and just said, hey,
I'm going to offer thesemonogram boxes each month.
And I had five to 10 peoplekind of each month at first.
We're just, we're like, yeah,sure, we'll, we'll do it.
And they started and we justput together a box of three to
(07:34):
five items each month.
One of them is personalized,each month has like a different
theme.
Everything kind of coordinatestogether.
Since then it's grown I'm up toabout 50 subscribers now and
we've added a few othersubscriptions kind of
coordinates together.
Since then it's grown.
I'm up to about 50 subscribersnow and we've added a few other
subscriptions kind of branchedoff of that.
We have a kids club and asticker club and a t-shirt club
and all kinds of fun things.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
You are living the creative dream.
Like people listening are likeoh my gosh, a storefront, I
would kill for that.
Oh my gosh, not going to a nineto five, I would kill for that.
But a lot in subscription box,more than like two people.
Like you know, like you havefound what is working.
You have found the rightaudience.
You have found what they want,what they like, versus.
You know, I'm sure you've triedthings and it just didn't work
(08:14):
out, which we might be talkingabout a little bit later on tea
parties and pivoting just a bit.
Um, but you found what worksand you continue to do that well
, and I just admire you and Iadmire your customer base and
how you engage with them, likethey love you, they love your
products, and so I guess, withthat, we'll just transition on
into tea parties, what we camehere for.
(08:35):
But yeah, so for tea parties.
So tell us more about when yougot.
Well, actually, let me back upsome.
So for the listeners, what areTea Parties?
So, if you are listening and youdon't know what a Tea Party is,
it's an online party.
It's where you either can havea host or not have a host.
(08:55):
You invite them, the party'sall about them, which would be
for a hosted party.
You play games, you have fun,themed engagement.
They can pick out theirengagement for their party that
they want to have.
There's a lot of engagementquestions.
They're inviting their friends.
(09:16):
I'm going to be curious to hearwhen you got started with tea
parties.
I got started with tea partiesin the height of COVID, so it
was kind of like a fun way toget people in a virtual
gathering and then they'reshopping products and what's
unique is that coming to ahandmade product party.
So a tea party is that wheneveryou're, the more you shop,
you're actually supporting me inthat I'm creating the products
(09:38):
for you.
It's not like I'm, you know,not doing that.
So it's pretty exciting to havesomeone support you in that
manner.
And then the host won someawards.
So if you want to learn moreabout tea parties um, that
explanation did not do itjustice Uh, go to episode nine.
You can go to wwwsunkisscom,forward slash nine and you can
(10:00):
listen to the tea partyone-on-one episode.
So with that, now that we'velaid the foundation for tea
parties, ashley, when did youget started with tea parties?
Speaker 3 (10:09):
So I found you with Sunkissed VA, in April of 2022.
I bought my very first teaparty planner, which I didn't
really remember off the top ofmy head what it was.
I went back and looked it wasthe Summer Beach Tea Party,
which I still actively use withhostesses.
They still love it.
And with that I also foundBrittany and ended up purchasing
(10:30):
her lifetime drive, which Iabsolutely can't say enough
amazing things about.
The two of you together havereally truly changed my business
, the way I do tea parties.
I use the graphics and theproduct drop organizer and
everything pretty much in myeveryday business, but as far as
tea parties, I bought thatcontent calendar, that tea party
(10:52):
planner, in April of 2022,which is crazy to think.
That was almost two years agoand I've probably hosted I was
trying to count probably wellover a hundred tea parties Since
then.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Some of them have been wildly successful and some
of them have been crickets andeverywhere in between and that's
kind of just the nature of teaparties Like you never know what
you're going to get, like itcould not go well to start, and
then you're discouraged and it'slike no, just try again.
Or you get that wildlysuccessful one up front and then
you get that first dead andyou're like ready to quit.
You know so it's a balance.
But wow, over a hundred.
(11:26):
I'm just thinking about theamount of members you've had to
remove.
Do you delete your groups or doyou keep them?
Speaker 3 (11:33):
So I've kind of dabbled with both and, honestly,
I just kind of keep them, andusually they just kind of go by
the wayside.
I had an issue with some spamin one and things got.
I deleted all of thatappropriate content and whatnot.
So I've I feel like I'veliterally experienced all the
highs and lows and the crazythings that could happen with
them, but overall I usually justleave them put.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Okay, I was thinking if you were deleting them.
I'm just thinking about all themembers.
You had to delete all themembers.
You had to cancel the invitesand then delete.
Delete the group.
Like that's a lot of work.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
If you've done 100, that's great yeah, I typically
just leave them and I don't knowwhat happens in Facebook land
with them, but they just, Iguess, stay there yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
So with those tea parties that you've done, how
have you seen those help youlike?
What success have you had withtea parties and what?
How has that shaped or morphedthe business that you have today
?
Speaker 3 (12:30):
Yeah, I think it's been super helpful for the
business that I have now.
I started out with my veryfirst hostess that happened to
be a friend and a good customerand just said, hey, would you be
willing to have this tea party?
She also was involved in someMLM so she was a little familiar
but had never done a tea partywith like a handmade seller.
(12:51):
And I think having a hostessthat kind of understood how it
worked for my very first one,she was very much engaged.
She was very active and taggingfriends and commenting and
encouraging people of thingsthat she thought that they might
would like.
I think all of that was wildlyhelpful.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
And then she invites someone or he, then they invite
their friends, and then someoneelse wants to host and it kind
of just catches on from there,like it really just starts with
one.
And that's what I always try toencourage people with, like
just getting started, like Idon't have all of these people,
it's okay, you just need onelike that one friend, that one
you know, sister, that thinkseverything you do is just great.
(13:34):
You know, like those people inour lives that no matter what
you do, like, they just thinkit's amazing and they're going
to support it.
You know that's where we wantto start and then go from there.
So so that was a little bit agothat you started, so just
almost two years ago.
Like you mentioned, I would say,the platform in which we host
(13:56):
tea parties on Facebook.
It's ever changing.
Just when you got a good systemdown, they either added a group
tool, removed a group toolalgorithm has either plummeted
or it's going well, it's alwayschanging.
So since you first started,thinking back to then, how have
you kind of seen tea partiesevolve?
Like, is there something youused to do for tea parties that
maybe is no longer working, oryou didn't try before that, now
(14:19):
you are and it is working.
So how have you kind of evolvedyour business with tea parties?
Speaker 3 (14:24):
Sure, so when I first started tea parties, I posted
everything to the group manually, one by one.
It took a long time because Ididn't really understand all the
tools.
Honestly, I didn't really knowwhat I was doing, so I posted
everything, had them comment toclaim.
Since then I've learned aboutSentShare through you.
Thankfully, that's been alifesaver.
(14:45):
As we know that's about tochange, but that has been
incredibly helpful.
I've also shifted from commentto claim to adding everything,
moving everything to my websiteto make it a lot more automated.
There are some weeks that I runtwo and three tea parties at a
time, so it just makes it a loteasier with everything being on
my website.
I recently participated in yourtraining about using switching
(15:10):
from page parties, so I'm goingto try out some of those things.
I have a couple of partiesscheduled.
I may try and do a page partyand at the same time, also do a
party where I kind of scheduleeverything manually through meta
just to see if there's adifference and compare those to
how long things take.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
I am really interested to see because I have
definitely noticed a turn inthe algorithm, and it wasn't
even the start of this year, itwas the start of last year, 2023
.
So I'm really curious to seehow page parties function, if
those are the new thing, ifthat's helpful or if it's not.
We're sticking with it becauseFacebook groups offer a lot of
value for tea parties, right?
(15:51):
The private like this is yourparty, like there is an
exclusivity aspect that I dolove about tea parties, so
that'll be interesting.
So, with all the parties thatyou host, I'm curious do you
usually throw a party a week ordo you like double up so you can
give yourself a week off?
How do you balance all of thetea parties that you're trying
(16:12):
to throw?
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Most weeks.
I typically do two tea partiesa week.
I kind of just set everythingup one Sunday and run the party
throughout the week and I tryand actively engage in both of
those throughout the week.
I typically don't give myself abreak.
I took a break from opening mystorefront in September through
the end of the year and then Ijust started back up hosting tea
(16:35):
parties again mid February andI'm already booked through kind
of early May.
Speaker 1 (16:41):
I love that.
So with that, I am just reallycurious about a lot of the stuff
.
So, with the parties thatyou're getting, do you have like
a wait list for hosts or youusually just book them as far
out, like if you have a host,you try to get them on the
calendar.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
So I actually just recently, when I picked back up
doing tea parties, I created asignup genius form with just
kind of like my availability andadded two slots to each week
and I posted it in my VIP group.
Since a lot of those customersknow me, trust me, have shopped
with me, have maybe hostedparties before or wanted to or
(17:17):
were curious, so I just kind ofgave those people first, first
shot at claiming a date and Ijust it took kind of the I hate
to say the begging, but theasking for hostesses out of it.
I just posted it and saidhere's the link sign up to host
your party.
I'll be in touch as it getscloser to work out all the
details.
And then I also post that linkin my tea parties now to search
(17:40):
for new hostesses and say I know, you know, we post the graphic
of this party's ending host yourown party.
This has been so much fun.
And then I usually throwsomething in there of hey, my
calendar's filling up.
Here's the link Go ahead andclaim your spot before, before
it's too late and you miss out.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
I love that and so are those, would you say.
Are those new people signing upor are those repeat hostess?
Like what is, like thedemographic of those?
Speaker 3 (18:05):
I would say it's honestly well, since I kind of
took the break from Septemberthrough, I took probably about a
four or five month break andhonestly I I needed that break
with opening the storefront andeverything.
So I think that it's probablyprobably 60, 40 previous hosts
and new hosts.
New hosts of people thathaven't hosted with me, but
(18:25):
maybe my current customers orshop in my store, not
necessarily new hosts that I'veobtained from other tea parties,
which I'm still trying veryhard to work on.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
Oh yeah, which I got asked the question doing it for
two years like I know a slightbreak so you could go work hard
on something else.
Sure, that's a break.
That's the creativeentrepreneurs.
We are sick, but okay, so likeburnout.
Do you ever feel like, oh mygosh I've seen this content
again and again like I am justnot feeling it Like, have you
(19:00):
hit those ruts?
And if you have, like, how didyou come back from that, when
you're just like you know it'sworking for your business tea
parties, but it's just like thefeeling the motivation is kind
of starting to leave you.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
And I think that was me last fall.
After I had spent all summer, Itook one week off the week I
was on vacation with my family,but otherwise I probably hosted
40 some tea parties.
Last fall or leading up to lastfall, when I opened my store
and I was, I was kind ofmentally drained and I just
needed that little bit of abreak and to shift gears, but I
knew that it was working.
(19:34):
I knew that I was kind ofmentally drained and I just
needed that little bit of abreak and to shift gears, but I
knew that it was working.
I knew that I enjoyed them, Iknew my hostesses enjoyed them
and I honestly knew that was agreat way to bring in new
customers.
I now have customers from allover the country because they've
found me through tea parties.
Some of my best customers in mystore that I never knew before
found me through a tea party.
(19:55):
So at the end of the day I tookthat little mental break and
said this is what's working.
This is what my customers want.
They love supporting me, a realperson, somebody that they can
follow and see.
They follow my socials or theystop in my store or they see my
kids on my Facebook lives orwhatever, and I feel like
(20:16):
building that, that no, liketrust factor.
They're going to come back andsupport me.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
I agree a hundred percent and that word of mouth
is so powerful, like it'sdifferent from like posting.
Like, maybe seeing a strangerpost a shirt or something like,
okay, that's cool, we're seeingin your newsfeed, but when, like
somebody you know isrecommending somebody, it's like
, of course, I trust theiropinion, they wouldn't lead me
astray.
And that is what is so powerfuland I think it's working really
(20:43):
well for your business.
Like you said, storefront andonline.
That's amazing.
I love that and I wish that foreveryone.
Like your story, I wish I couldjust copy and paste it for
everyone, but it comes with work.
It didn't just happen, you know,yeah, it has it.
Yeah, I mean, you've been at itfor quite a while.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
Yeah, I was thinking about that the other day.
I, you know, I started this inmy basement in 2016.
So it's been eight years.
So, while you know from theoutside, looking in it's, I have
all these things a successfulstorefront and website and
subscription box but I've beenworking really hard at it and
building my audience and nichingdown to my ideal customer for
(21:22):
the last eight years.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
I love it and I think , even at the beginning before,
you saw a lot of this growth,because what you mentioned maybe
around 2020 or so, that's whenyou pivoted was that just now,
four years ago, which I meanwell, four, already four years
ago.
But what were you doing inthose years before?
You were starting to perfectyour craft.
So you got the cameo, you gotsublimation.
We all know the hours that gointo a sublimation printer.
(21:45):
It's grueling, grueling, um, but, like you were starting to
figure out what works for you,honing in on your craft and, and
I think, because you found yourprocesses, you found your skill
, like what your heat press, thesweet spot, all of that good
stuff.
Now you get to focus on growingyour business, so not worrying
about growing it too fast beforeyou have a product that's worth
(22:05):
scaling, and I think you got tothat point and that's really
exciting, especially in thestorefront.
Okay, so, yeah.
So evolving with tea partieswhat about?
Do you have any advice forthose looking to start tea
parties, or any advice you wishyou would have done before you
got started with tea parties?
Speaker 3 (22:26):
I think you kind of hit on an earlier when you said
just start.
That is the biggest piece ofadvice I could give to someone.
I didn't know anything abouttea parties.
I didn't really know anythingabout what I was doing.
I ordered screen prints frommultiple different vendors and
have since refined that process.
We've all been there.
(22:48):
Uh, go get a tea party planner,find a host, ask your best
friend, ask your best customer,ask you know whoever, your mom,
your sister, just ask someoneand do the first one.
Once that first one is underyour belt, it's, it's so easy.
From there you can figure outwhat works.
You can tweak it.
Another thing that I kind ofpicked up, amy, from your group,
(23:11):
is the hype team.
I didn't have that when I firststarted.
But get your bestie.
If that's not your host, getyour bestie or your hostess
bestie to hype up your tea partycomment like share.
You know, be engaged with thatBuilding that excitement around
it is awesome.
Speaker 1 (23:31):
Yeah, absolutely.
And so do you rotate your hypeteam members?
Do you have like a differentone for each party, or is it not
really set?
Do you just kind of ask friendshere and there?
Speaker 3 (23:41):
I don't typically use hype team members.
I have like once or twice whenI've done you know, kind of
traded hype teams with otherpeople in your group.
I don't typically use that, butI think that would be something
that's incredibly helpful forsomeone just getting started,
especially if you're doing,maybe, a mystery host or doing
your first party in your VIPgroup and you don't want it to
(24:02):
be crickets having, you know,one or two people join and reach
out to me.
I'm happy to join for you guys.
I'll be your hype girl.
Um, I love it Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
Uh, for your host.
Have you ever had where, like,a host is not not the ideal host
?
Do you try to coach them up, ordo you get to a point in the
party where you're kind of like,okay, this party is maybe not
successful?
I'm going to just try to writeit out and now just focus on
building the next week's partyso I actually had a party
(24:35):
probably the middle of last year.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
I reached out to the host to plan everything and got
it all set up.
I sent her the link to inviteher friends and it was crickets
like up until Wednesday orThursday, and so I just kind of
was like, well, I'm not going tobe active if no one else is.
There was no one had been eveninvited.
Um, so I reached out to herSunday night when the party
closed and I said hey, you know,I'm really sorry, but there was
(24:59):
no one invited to your party.
And it was kind ofdisheartening when she reached
back out and said oh, I'm reallysorry, I hope I still get my
free t-shirt for having a party.
So I was mind blown.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Oh, that's so awkward .
Speaker 3 (25:13):
And I thought on it for a while, like how do I even
handle this, um, and just kindof explained that we could try
again or whatever.
But I just couldn't imaginesomeone asking that when, oh my
gosh, they didn't even invite asingle person no, don't you get
a shirt for hosting a party.
Speaker 1 (25:31):
Is that what you would consider host?
But I mean, everyone'sdefinition is different.
I see free tea and like okay, Ijust gotta sign up.
My gosh.
That is so defeating andfrustrating.
Speaker 3 (25:41):
But usually most of them are pretty good.
I send them your hostess tipsor the hostess tips guidelines
that come kind of with the partygraphics and just ask them if
they have any questions.
Most of my hostesses have donesome kind of online party,
especially now that most partieshave shifted online.
I actually don't know anyonethat does at-home parties
anymore.
(26:02):
It might be a cool thing to getback into.
But I feel like all myhostesses kind of understand hey
, I just need to tag somefriends or be engaged, comment
like share, and they've usuallygone pretty well.
Speaker 1 (26:16):
Yeah, I love that.
Well, you are definitely one ofthe more seasoned tea partiers,
and not just seasoned, but Iwould say, consistent with it,
even though, like you mentioned,like if it's working, keep
doing it.
I mean there's a balancebetween, you know, burnout,
making sure we're in it for thelong haul, but, like you are
just proof that, like, ifsomething is working, continue
(26:36):
to do it.
We don't always need to try toswitch it up, like we're always,
you know, but I think that'sthe downfall of creative sellers
we're always wanting to trysomething else, even if maybe
it's just working and we justneed to stay put.
So I want to talk more aboutyour storefront.
So tell us more about yourstorefront, maybe some displays
you have in there.
I think you even have a tea barin there, is that right?
(26:58):
So tell us about the tea bar.
Speaker 3 (27:00):
I do so.
I have a two-story storefront.
The downstairs is kind of homegoods, trendy items, seasonal
decor, things like that, andthen upstairs I have a
build-your-own tea bar, similarto like a Build-A-Bear.
You come in, you pick a printout in.
(27:20):
You come in, you pick a printout, and I have a ton of
different blanks.
We have teas and tanks andsweatshirts and hoodies and kids
blanks and tie dyes, and so Imean you literally can build
your own tea right there.
We take them in the back, usethe heat press, put it together
and a minute later you'rewalking out the door with your
tea.
Speaker 1 (27:35):
Again, you are living the dream.
A lot of sweat, maybe someblood and tears have gone into
it, but that is so exciting, andjust to see it play out and
unfold in our group, I'm just soexcited that you share with us
as you're going along thosesteps.
It's just been fun to watchyour journey and I can't wait to
see where else it takes you.
So thank you so much.
Yeah, with that.
(27:56):
Um, so if anyone listeningwants to shop with you or maybe
stop in by your storefront,where can they follow you?
Where can they shop at yourwebsite?
Share all of your links with us.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
So our storefront is in Stanton, Virginia.
Uh, we finally made it toGoogle.
That's exciting.
Someone told me the other dayyou're on you're on Apple maps,
you're on Google.
Uh, so we're in Staten,Virginia.
My website is boutique540.com.
We are on Facebook andInstagram.
Speaker 1 (28:24):
I love it Okay, and then, uh, they can also sign up
for any of your subscriptionboxes, right?
Speaker 3 (28:30):
Those are right on our website as well.
It just says grab a box,there's a link, and it has all
the information for all ourboxes there.
Speaker 1 (28:36):
It just says grab a box, there's a link and it has
all the information for all ourboxes there Awesome.
Well, thank you for joining us,Ashley.
This was really fun tointerview you and just kind of
pick your brains about some ofthe different things, some of
the burning questions that Iknow people have, specifically
about tea parties, and then justthat added bonus of hearing how
you left that nine to five.
So if you want to check outAshley, or if you are driving
and you get a chance to get herlinks, they will be in the show
(28:59):
notes.
I'll put all of the links whereyou can find Ashley and shop
with boutique 540.
If you're learning, wanting tolearn more about tea parties,
you can head over tosunkistvacom forward slash nine
and you can learn more aboutthat tea party one-on-one
episode.
So thank you, Ashley, forjoining us and that's all for
this episode.
Welcome back to Turn Down the Hustle podcast.
Today I am interviewing my veryfirst guest here on the show.
We have Ashley Brown fromBoutique 540 with us tonight and
we're going to be talking allabout Tea Party.
So she's pretty well versed inquite a bit of areas in the
small business world from TeaParty to subscription boxes to
(00:23):
launching her very ownstorefront.
But I'll let her share more.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
You're listening to Turn Down the Hustle, the
podcast dedicated totransforming how you run your
creative online t-shirt businessby working smarter, not harder,
so you can spend more time withyour why, people and passions
that matter most in your life.
So throw on your favoritegraphic tee and turn up the heat
.
Press, because it's time toturn down the hustle.
Here's your host digitalmarketer.
(00:50):
Cold brew lover, t-shirt maker,freckled hype girl and owner of
Sunkist Virtual Assistant, amy.
Speaker 1 (00:57):
I want to welcome Ashley.
Thank you for joining andcoming on the show as my very
first guest, so tell us a littlebit more about Ashley.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Thank you for having me.
First of all, I am so excitedto be here.
I'm Ashley Brown.
I am from Stanton, Virginia.
I started kind of started mylife as an adult as a
firefighter paramedic where Imet my husband and I'm mom to
four boys.
So very busy in my personallife, never a dull moment there.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
You got a lot going on, so I do.
Yeah, why four boys?
That's not four girls, fourboys, yeah, that's a lot to keep
up with, so all right and thenokay.
So that's a little bit aboutAshley.
What about boutique five, fourzero.
When did it start?
And tell us more about that.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
So I had dabbled in some MLMs for a little while and
was mildly successful in one ofthose about 2016.
I had my first son and at thetime was able to stay home, but
I was honestly bored.
I hate to say that as astay-at-home mom, I was blessed
to do that, but I was bored.
I needed like a creative outlet, a way to express myself and
(02:13):
make a little side income.
So I bought one of the veryoriginal silhouette cameos and a
whole bunch of vinyl literallya roll of vinyl in every color
and just started making decalsfor friends and family and it
slowly well rapidly I guessexpanded and I added a
sublimation printer and thatkind of just took off.
(02:34):
And then I decided that I wasgoing to dabble in some
embroidery.
So I bought a single needleembroidery machine and was just
kind of literally playing in mybasement making things for
friends and family, just kind ofhere and there for some extra
income.
And then 2020, covid happenedand everything kind of changed.
(02:54):
I also experienced some majorlife changes at that point
Rebranded my business, I gotmarried and I moved back home to
Stanton, kind of where I grewup, and my super supportive
husband painted our entireupstairs warehouse for my office
.
He painted it bright pink tomatch my brand yeah, it was.
(03:16):
He was just so supportive and Isaid I think I'm going to buy
another embroidery machine.
And he said go for it.
So we did and it just kind ofhas taken off from there.
I love that.
I added a DTF printer, whichhas really been a game changer
for my tea parties and theprinting side of my business.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Awesome, and is that the pink room that he painted?
Speaker 3 (03:40):
Actually this is my storefront, oh, this is your.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Oh okay, and you said you moved back to Stanton
Virginia, so it's just all fullcircle.
And then what did you do inStanton Virginia just recently?
Speaker 3 (03:55):
I opened my storefront in September,
September, middle of Septemberthis year.
We had kind of just expandedand I outgrew my upstairs, my
house, and I had shirts andthread and stuff everywhere.
And I went to my husband oneday and I said I think I'm going
to open a store and he saidokay, and I went and looked at
(04:17):
some properties a few weekslater and then about two months
after that, here we are in ourstorefront.
Speaker 1 (04:24):
So exciting, I love that and so okay, so you were,
were you doing the side hustle,were you full-time storefront or
how did that transition kind ofhappen?
Speaker 3 (04:36):
So when I opened my storefront thankfully my
customers were reallyunderstanding of like hey, I'm
going to post a calendar andthese are the days I'm going to
be here, because I was stillworking 24 hour shifts at the
fire department and I was prettymuch here at the store every
day.
I wasn't at the fire department, which was kind of chaotic and
hectic, but in the end it hascompletely paid off.
(04:57):
In February I was able to takethis full time and kind of
flip-flop roles.
I stayed on part-time as afirefighter, paramedic and now
spend the most of my time hereat my store.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
That is amazing and I don't think I really realized
that part.
I knew you were still workingfull-time and then you opened a
storefront, but I guess I neverreally thought into the
logistics.
So I love that that you said,hey, here's some of the times
I'm going to be here.
And then did you use that aslike a deciding factor, Like,
hey, people are coming to makethat leap and leave your
full-time job.
Speaker 3 (05:28):
Yeah.
So I had people being like,when are you open?
Because at the fire departmentwe worked every third day.
So it was really random thedays that I was here and it was
really tough if I was up allnight there, you know, running
calls.
Then I was coming here and Iwas just kind of dragging and I
had a friend that offered tohelp me out some so actually
kind of all at once brought heron as a part-time employee and
(05:51):
said you know what I want to dothis, let's do it.
And I just made the leap to dothis full time.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
I love that, and I love that you stair-stepped it
too, because I think some peopleare ready to make a lot of
changes all at once, like hey, Ineed to leave my job, I want to
open a storefront.
And you did it with baby steps,you know, and gradually
approached, and it worked out.
Speaker 3 (06:14):
I did.
It was super scary and I had amillion questions.
But again I'm so thankful thatmy husband I have all the things
to him he had a solution forall of them.
He said just do it.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
Just do it.
You know, and it makes all thedifference to have somebody that
is supportive and encouragingyou just when you want to doubt,
like no, we're doing it, we'repainting the walls pink, we're
doing it.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
And I had, you know, friends and family that helped
me move everything in.
And, yeah it's, it's been acrazy journey, but it's
definitely been worth it.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
I am jealous all of those that get to visit.
So I have been a customer ofyours on the receiving end, and
I loved my product with you,which was your subscription box.
So when did you start yoursubscription box?
I know we're talking about teaparties today, but you just have
so many fascinating thingsabout your business.
I got to do it just as to givea little bit of light to those
(07:07):
subscription boxes.
So tell us more about that.
Speaker 3 (07:10):
Sure.
So I kind of started dabblingin subscription boxes in 2020
and just kind of didn't reallyknow much and just said, hey,
I'm going to offer thesemonogram boxes each month.
And I had five to 10 peoplekind of each month at first.
We're just, we're like, yeah,sure, we'll, we'll do it.
And they started and we justput together a box of three to
(07:34):
five items each month.
One of them is personalized,each month has like a different
theme.
Everything kind of coordinatestogether.
Since then it's grown I'm up toabout 50 subscribers now and
we've added a few othersubscriptions kind of
coordinates together.
Since then it's grown.
I'm up to about 50 subscribersnow and we've added a few other
subscriptions kind of branchedoff of that.
We have a kids club and asticker club and a t-shirt club
and all kinds of fun things.
Speaker 1 (07:54):
You are living the creative dream.
Like people listening are likeoh my gosh, a storefront, I
would kill for that.
Oh my gosh, not going to a nineto five, I would kill for that.
But a lot in subscription box,more than like two people.
Like you know, like you havefound what is working.
You have found the rightaudience.
You have found what they want,what they like, versus.
You know, I'm sure you've triedthings and it just didn't work
(08:14):
out, which we might be talkingabout a little bit later on tea
parties and pivoting just a bit.
Um, but you found what worksand you continue to do that well
, and I just admire you and Iadmire your customer base and
how you engage with them, likethey love you, they love your
products, and so I guess, withthat, we'll just transition on
into tea parties, what we camehere for.
(08:35):
But yeah, so for tea parties.
So tell us more about when yougot.
Well, actually, let me back upsome.
So for the listeners, what areTea Parties?
So, if you are listening and youdon't know what a Tea Party is,
it's an online party.
It's where you either can havea host or not have a host.
(08:55):
You invite them, the party'sall about them, which would be
for a hosted party.
You play games, you have fun,themed engagement.
They can pick out theirengagement for their party that
they want to have.
There's a lot of engagementquestions.
They're inviting their friends.
(09:16):
I'm going to be curious to hearwhen you got started with tea
parties.
I got started with tea partiesin the height of COVID, so it
was kind of like a fun way toget people in a virtual
gathering and then they'reshopping products and what's
unique is that coming to ahandmade product party.
So a tea party is that wheneveryou're, the more you shop,
you're actually supporting me inthat I'm creating the products
(09:38):
for you.
It's not like I'm, you know,not doing that.
So it's pretty exciting to havesomeone support you in that
manner.
And then the host won someawards.
So if you want to learn moreabout tea parties um, that
explanation did not do itjustice Uh, go to episode nine.
You can go to wwwsunkisscom,forward slash nine and you can
(10:00):
listen to the tea partyone-on-one episode.
So with that, now that we'velaid the foundation for tea
parties, ashley, when did youget started with tea parties?
Speaker 3 (10:09):
So I found you with Sunkissed VA, in April of 2022.
I bought my very first teaparty planner, which I didn't
really remember off the top ofmy head what it was.
I went back and looked it wasthe Summer Beach Tea Party,
which I still actively use withhostesses.
They still love it.
And with that I also foundBrittany and ended up purchasing
(10:30):
her lifetime drive, which Iabsolutely can't say enough
amazing things about.
The two of you together havereally truly changed my business
, the way I do tea parties.
I use the graphics and theproduct drop organizer and
everything pretty much in myeveryday business, but as far as
tea parties, I bought thatcontent calendar, that tea party
(10:52):
planner, in April of 2022,which is crazy to think.
That was almost two years agoand I've probably hosted I was
trying to count probably wellover a hundred tea parties Since
then.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Some of them have been wildly successful and some
of them have been crickets andeverywhere in between and that's
kind of just the nature of teaparties Like you never know what
you're going to get, like itcould not go well to start, and
then you're discouraged and it'slike no, just try again.
Or you get that wildlysuccessful one up front and then
you get that first dead andyou're like ready to quit.
You know so it's a balance.
But wow, over a hundred.
(11:26):
I'm just thinking about theamount of members you've had to
remove.
Do you delete your groups or doyou keep them?
Speaker 3 (11:33):
So I've kind of dabbled with both and, honestly,
I just kind of keep them, andusually they just kind of go by
the wayside.
I had an issue with some spamin one and things got.
I deleted all of thatappropriate content and whatnot.
So I've I feel like I'veliterally experienced all the
highs and lows and the crazythings that could happen with
them, but overall I usually justleave them put.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Okay, I was thinking if you were deleting them.
I'm just thinking about all themembers.
You had to delete all themembers.
You had to cancel the invitesand then delete.
Delete the group.
Like that's a lot of work.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
If you've done 100, that's great yeah, I typically
just leave them and I don't knowwhat happens in Facebook land
with them, but they just, Iguess, stay there yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
So with those tea parties that you've done, how
have you seen those help youlike?
What success have you had withtea parties and what?
How has that shaped or morphedthe business that you have today
?
Speaker 3 (12:30):
Yeah, I think it's been super helpful for the
business that I have now.
I started out with my veryfirst hostess that happened to
be a friend and a good customerand just said, hey, would you be
willing to have this tea party?
She also was involved in someMLM so she was a little familiar
but had never done a tea partywith like a handmade seller.
(12:51):
And I think having a hostessthat kind of understood how it
worked for my very first one,she was very much engaged.
She was very active and taggingfriends and commenting and
encouraging people of thingsthat she thought that they might
would like.
I think all of that was wildlyhelpful.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
And then she invites someone or he, then they invite
their friends, and then someoneelse wants to host and it kind
of just catches on from there,like it really just starts with
one.
And that's what I always try toencourage people with, like
just getting started, like Idon't have all of these people,
it's okay, you just need onelike that one friend, that one
you know, sister, that thinkseverything you do is just great.
(13:34):
You know, like those people inour lives that no matter what
you do, like, they just thinkit's amazing and they're going
to support it.
You know that's where we wantto start and then go from there.
So so that was a little bit agothat you started, so just
almost two years ago.
Like you mentioned, I would say,the platform in which we host
(13:56):
tea parties on Facebook.
It's ever changing.
Just when you got a good systemdown, they either added a group
tool, removed a group toolalgorithm has either plummeted
or it's going well, it's alwayschanging.
So since you first started,thinking back to then, how have
you kind of seen tea partiesevolve?
Like, is there something youused to do for tea parties that
maybe is no longer working, oryou didn't try before that, now
(14:19):
you are and it is working.
So how have you kind of evolvedyour business with tea parties?
Speaker 3 (14:24):
Sure, so when I first started tea parties, I posted
everything to the group manually, one by one.
It took a long time because Ididn't really understand all the
tools.
Honestly, I didn't really knowwhat I was doing, so I posted
everything, had them comment toclaim.
Since then I've learned aboutSentShare through you.
Thankfully, that's been alifesaver.
(14:45):
As we know that's about tochange, but that has been
incredibly helpful.
I've also shifted from commentto claim to adding everything,
moving everything to my websiteto make it a lot more automated.
There are some weeks that I runtwo and three tea parties at a
time, so it just makes it a loteasier with everything being on
my website.
I recently participated in yourtraining about using switching
(15:10):
from page parties, so I'm goingto try out some of those things.
I have a couple of partiesscheduled.
I may try and do a page partyand at the same time, also do a
party where I kind of scheduleeverything manually through meta
just to see if there's adifference and compare those to
how long things take.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
I am really interested to see because I have
definitely noticed a turn inthe algorithm, and it wasn't
even the start of this year, itwas the start of last year, 2023
.
So I'm really curious to seehow page parties function, if
those are the new thing, ifthat's helpful or if it's not.
We're sticking with it becauseFacebook groups offer a lot of
value for tea parties, right?
(15:51):
The private like this is yourparty, like there is an
exclusivity aspect that I dolove about tea parties, so
that'll be interesting.
So, with all the parties thatyou host, I'm curious do you
usually throw a party a week ordo you like double up so you can
give yourself a week off?
How do you balance all of thetea parties that you're trying
(16:12):
to throw?
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Most weeks.
I typically do two tea partiesa week.
I kind of just set everythingup one Sunday and run the party
throughout the week and I tryand actively engage in both of
those throughout the week.
I typically don't give myself abreak.
I took a break from opening mystorefront in September through
the end of the year and then Ijust started back up hosting tea
(16:35):
parties again mid February andI'm already booked through kind
of early May.
Speaker 1 (16:41):
I love that.
So with that, I am just reallycurious about a lot of the stuff
.
So, with the parties thatyou're getting, do you have like
a wait list for hosts or youusually just book them as far
out, like if you have a host,you try to get them on the
calendar.
Speaker 3 (16:56):
So I actually just recently, when I picked back up
doing tea parties, I created asignup genius form with just
kind of like my availability andadded two slots to each week
and I posted it in my VIP group.
Since a lot of those customersknow me, trust me, have shopped
with me, have maybe hostedparties before or wanted to or
(17:17):
were curious, so I just kind ofgave those people first, first
shot at claiming a date and Ijust it took kind of the I hate
to say the begging, but theasking for hostesses out of it.
I just posted it and saidhere's the link sign up to host
your party.
I'll be in touch as it getscloser to work out all the
details.
And then I also post that linkin my tea parties now to search
(17:40):
for new hostesses and say I know, you know, we post the graphic
of this party's ending host yourown party.
This has been so much fun.
And then I usually throwsomething in there of hey, my
calendar's filling up.
Here's the link Go ahead andclaim your spot before, before
it's too late and you miss out.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
I love that and so are those, would you say.
Are those new people signing upor are those repeat hostess?
Like what is, like thedemographic of those?
Speaker 3 (18:05):
I would say it's honestly well, since I kind of
took the break from Septemberthrough, I took probably about a
four or five month break andhonestly I I needed that break
with opening the storefront andeverything.
So I think that it's probablyprobably 60, 40 previous hosts
and new hosts.
New hosts of people thathaven't hosted with me, but
(18:25):
maybe my current customers orshop in my store, not
necessarily new hosts that I'veobtained from other tea parties,
which I'm still trying veryhard to work on.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
Oh yeah, which I got asked the question doing it for
two years like I know a slightbreak so you could go work hard
on something else.
Sure, that's a break.
That's the creativeentrepreneurs.
We are sick, but okay, so likeburnout.
Do you ever feel like, oh mygosh I've seen this content
again and again like I am justnot feeling it Like, have you
(19:00):
hit those ruts?
And if you have, like, how didyou come back from that, when
you're just like you know it'sworking for your business tea
parties, but it's just like thefeeling the motivation is kind
of starting to leave you.
Speaker 3 (19:14):
And I think that was me last fall.
After I had spent all summer, Itook one week off the week I
was on vacation with my family,but otherwise I probably hosted
40 some tea parties.
Last fall or leading up to lastfall, when I opened my store
and I was, I was kind ofmentally drained and I just
needed that little bit of abreak and to shift gears, but I
knew that it was working.
(19:34):
I knew that I was kind ofmentally drained and I just
needed that little bit of abreak and to shift gears, but I
knew that it was working.
I knew that I enjoyed them, Iknew my hostesses enjoyed them
and I honestly knew that was agreat way to bring in new
customers.
I now have customers from allover the country because they've
found me through tea parties.
Some of my best customers in mystore that I never knew before
found me through a tea party.
(19:55):
So at the end of the day I tookthat little mental break and
said this is what's working.
This is what my customers want.
They love supporting me, a realperson, somebody that they can
follow and see.
They follow my socials or theystop in my store or they see my
kids on my Facebook lives orwhatever, and I feel like
(20:16):
building that, that no, liketrust factor.
They're going to come back andsupport me.
Speaker 1 (20:22):
I agree a hundred percent and that word of mouth
is so powerful, like it'sdifferent from like posting.
Like, maybe seeing a strangerpost a shirt or something like,
okay, that's cool, we're seeingin your newsfeed, but when, like
somebody you know isrecommending somebody, it's like
, of course, I trust theiropinion, they wouldn't lead me
astray.
And that is what is so powerfuland I think it's working really
(20:43):
well for your business.
Like you said, storefront andonline.
That's amazing.
I love that and I wish that foreveryone.
Like your story, I wish I couldjust copy and paste it for
everyone, but it comes with work.
It didn't just happen, you know,yeah, it has it.
Yeah, I mean, you've been at itfor quite a while.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
Yeah, I was thinking about that the other day.
I, you know, I started this inmy basement in 2016.
So it's been eight years.
So, while you know from theoutside, looking in it's, I have
all these things a successfulstorefront and website and
subscription box but I've beenworking really hard at it and
building my audience and nichingdown to my ideal customer for
(21:22):
the last eight years.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
I love it and I think , even at the beginning before,
you saw a lot of this growth,because what you mentioned maybe
around 2020 or so, that's whenyou pivoted was that just now,
four years ago, which I meanwell, four, already four years
ago.
But what were you doing inthose years before?
You were starting to perfectyour craft.
So you got the cameo, you gotsublimation.
We all know the hours that gointo a sublimation printer.
(21:45):
It's grueling, grueling, um, but, like you were starting to
figure out what works for you,honing in on your craft and, and
I think, because you found yourprocesses, you found your skill
, like what your heat press, thesweet spot, all of that good
stuff.
Now you get to focus on growingyour business, so not worrying
about growing it too fast beforeyou have a product that's worth
(22:05):
scaling, and I think you got tothat point and that's really
exciting, especially in thestorefront.
Okay, so, yeah.
So evolving with tea partieswhat about?
Do you have any advice forthose looking to start tea
parties, or any advice you wishyou would have done before you
got started with tea parties?
Speaker 3 (22:26):
I think you kind of hit on an earlier when you said
just start.
That is the biggest piece ofadvice I could give to someone.
I didn't know anything abouttea parties.
I didn't really know anythingabout what I was doing.
I ordered screen prints frommultiple different vendors and
have since refined that process.
We've all been there.
(22:48):
Uh, go get a tea party planner,find a host, ask your best
friend, ask your best customer,ask you know whoever, your mom,
your sister, just ask someoneand do the first one.
Once that first one is underyour belt, it's, it's so easy.
From there you can figure outwhat works.
You can tweak it.
Another thing that I kind ofpicked up, amy, from your group,
(23:11):
is the hype team.
I didn't have that when I firststarted.
But get your bestie.
If that's not your host, getyour bestie or your hostess
bestie to hype up your tea partycomment like share.
You know, be engaged with thatBuilding that excitement around
it is awesome.
Speaker 1 (23:31):
Yeah, absolutely.
And so do you rotate your hypeteam members?
Do you have like a differentone for each party, or is it not
really set?
Do you just kind of ask friendshere and there?
Speaker 3 (23:41):
I don't typically use hype team members.
I have like once or twice whenI've done you know, kind of
traded hype teams with otherpeople in your group.
I don't typically use that, butI think that would be something
that's incredibly helpful forsomeone just getting started,
especially if you're doing,maybe, a mystery host or doing
your first party in your VIPgroup and you don't want it to
(24:02):
be crickets having, you know,one or two people join and reach
out to me.
I'm happy to join for you guys.
I'll be your hype girl.
Um, I love it Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
Uh, for your host.
Have you ever had where, like,a host is not not the ideal host
?
Do you try to coach them up, ordo you get to a point in the
party where you're kind of like,okay, this party is maybe not
successful?
I'm going to just try to writeit out and now just focus on
building the next week's partyso I actually had a party
(24:35):
probably the middle of last year.
Speaker 3 (24:37):
I reached out to the host to plan everything and got
it all set up.
I sent her the link to inviteher friends and it was crickets
like up until Wednesday orThursday, and so I just kind of
was like, well, I'm not going tobe active if no one else is.
There was no one had been eveninvited.
Um, so I reached out to herSunday night when the party
closed and I said hey, you know,I'm really sorry, but there was
(24:59):
no one invited to your party.
And it was kind ofdisheartening when she reached
back out and said oh, I'm reallysorry, I hope I still get my
free t-shirt for having a party.
So I was mind blown.
Speaker 1 (25:12):
Oh, that's so awkward .
Speaker 3 (25:13):
And I thought on it for a while, like how do I even
handle this, um, and just kindof explained that we could try
again or whatever.
But I just couldn't imaginesomeone asking that when, oh my
gosh, they didn't even invite asingle person no, don't you get
a shirt for hosting a party.
Speaker 1 (25:31):
Is that what you would consider host?
But I mean, everyone'sdefinition is different.
I see free tea and like okay, Ijust gotta sign up.
My gosh.
That is so defeating andfrustrating.
Speaker 3 (25:41):
But usually most of them are pretty good.
I send them your hostess tipsor the hostess tips guidelines
that come kind of with the partygraphics and just ask them if
they have any questions.
Most of my hostesses have donesome kind of online party,
especially now that most partieshave shifted online.
I actually don't know anyonethat does at-home parties
anymore.
(26:02):
It might be a cool thing to getback into.
But I feel like all myhostesses kind of understand hey
, I just need to tag somefriends or be engaged, comment
like share, and they've usuallygone pretty well.
Speaker 1 (26:16):
Yeah, I love that.
Well, you are definitely one ofthe more seasoned tea partiers,
and not just seasoned, but Iwould say, consistent with it,
even though, like you mentioned,like if it's working, keep
doing it.
I mean there's a balancebetween, you know, burnout,
making sure we're in it for thelong haul, but, like you are
just proof that, like, ifsomething is working, continue
(26:36):
to do it.
We don't always need to try toswitch it up, like we're always,
you know, but I think that'sthe downfall of creative sellers
we're always wanting to trysomething else, even if maybe
it's just working and we justneed to stay put.
So I want to talk more aboutyour storefront.
So tell us more about yourstorefront, maybe some displays
you have in there.
I think you even have a tea barin there, is that right?
(26:58):
So tell us about the tea bar.
Speaker 3 (27:00):
I do so.
I have a two-story storefront.
The downstairs is kind of homegoods, trendy items, seasonal
decor, things like that, andthen upstairs I have a
build-your-own tea bar, similarto like a Build-A-Bear.
You come in, you pick a printout in.
(27:20):
You come in, you pick a printout, and I have a ton of
different blanks.
We have teas and tanks andsweatshirts and hoodies and kids
blanks and tie dyes, and so Imean you literally can build
your own tea right there.
We take them in the back, usethe heat press, put it together
and a minute later you'rewalking out the door with your
tea.
Speaker 1 (27:35):
Again, you are living the dream.
A lot of sweat, maybe someblood and tears have gone into
it, but that is so exciting, andjust to see it play out and
unfold in our group, I'm just soexcited that you share with us
as you're going along thosesteps.
It's just been fun to watchyour journey and I can't wait to
see where else it takes you.
So thank you so much.
Yeah, with that.
(27:56):
Um, so if anyone listeningwants to shop with you or maybe
stop in by your storefront,where can they follow you?
Where can they shop at yourwebsite?
Share all of your links with us.
Speaker 3 (28:08):
So our storefront is in Stanton, Virginia.
Uh, we finally made it toGoogle.
That's exciting.
Someone told me the other dayyou're on you're on Apple maps,
you're on Google.
Uh, so we're in Staten,Virginia.
My website is boutique540.com.
We are on Facebook andInstagram.
Speaker 1 (28:24):
I love it Okay, and then, uh, they can also sign up
for any of your subscriptionboxes, right?
Speaker 3 (28:30):
Those are right on our website as well.
It just says grab a box,there's a link, and it has all
the information for all ourboxes there.
Speaker 1 (28:36):
It just says grab a box, there's a link and it has
all the information for all ourboxes there Awesome.
Well, thank you for joining us,Ashley.
This was really fun tointerview you and just kind of
pick your brains about some ofthe different things, some of
the burning questions that Iknow people have, specifically
about tea parties, and then justthat added bonus of hearing how
you left that nine to five.
So if you want to check outAshley, or if you are driving
and you get a chance to get herlinks, they will be in the show
(28:59):
notes.
I'll put all of the links whereyou can find Ashley and shop
with boutique 540.
If you're learning, wanting tolearn more about tea parties,
you can head over tosunkistvacom forward slash nine
and you can learn more aboutthat tea party one-on-one
episode.
So thank you, Ashley, forjoining us and that's all for
this episode.
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