Interesting that someone had asked my business coach (in the first cohort of The Craft Academy) how she reached all this success. Her response was a mixture of hard work and luck. That, of course, stuck with me. At this time, though I'm starting to gain momentum, I could not and really should not compare myself to Rosie Chhun, TheWanderCrafter (who lives in Los Angeles and has had numerous celebrity clients, and is now a successful business coach). I have to create my own journey, my own path. There is a true learning curve, so many wins and losses but boy were there some wins in 2021.
At the point where I was feeling maybe this should be my last market, I realized one particular event in my town that I should try. I signed up for it, knew it was going to cost more, but I said a prayer and sort of like a plea to God. If this is the right market for me, then show me the way. If not, okay then I will accept it. I just would love to do really well and I would like to grow as a business. So, I clicked "submit" and paid my dues. I knew from experience being a previous customer that the Old Town Flea Market (OTFM) is always frequently well attended, having lots of vendors, and appeared to be well managed and heavily advertised. Though I felt nervous, I really couldn't tell you that "Oh I have a good feeling about this one, or I knew there might be something that would go wrong," I just pushed forward.
The day of OTFM was stressful for me, but I had a lot of help from my family and managed to get everything set up. I definitely am a social butterfly, so I said hello to everyone who walked by. This was also the market that had been canceled due to COVID, so you could definitely see the look on peoples faces. I can tell so many were relieved to just be outside, in the open air, and to finally see people again. Saturday proved to be busier than Sunday, but overall the attendance was great. I was hopeful. On Saturday, a gorgeous young lady came up to me, asked to letter her ornament that she picked from my collection and went her merry way. I had no clue who she was.
Weeks passed and I didn't think anything of it. I was in for the shock of my life when that same gal called and left me a voicemail. After clocking out of work for my split shift and getting ready to eat my lunch I hear this message. I immediately searched for my husband asking "Where are you? Hurry up!" while I screamed and jumped up and down like I was called to "Come on down!" like on that TV game show "The Price is Right." (If you are a younger & have no idea what I'm talking about, please google and youtube Bob Barker. I like Drew Carey the current host, but you gotta see the Barker episodes). Of course my husband was in the bathroom saying "Umm I'm in the bathroom at the moment." To which I said who cares about your bodily needs right now, hurry up! Well, no not really. That's what I wanted to say, but instead I just told him hurry up.
The voicemail was from Vanessa Vasconcelos, news anchor and reporter on our local news channel of ABC Action News 30. She introduced herself, told me that she would like to feature my business on TV, and when would be a good time to do it. You would think I would've been an eager beaver and called her immediately. Surprisingly, I did not. I knew that I wanted to sound confident, clear, concise with my words, and avoid sounding like I was all over the place. Bottomline is, I knew I needed to sound professional. I called her back when I was ready and we had a great conversation. I apologized and said, I'm so sorry I did not know you were a famous person on TV (I explained to her that I hardly sit on the couch, I'm a busy mom, work part time, run this side business, and most days be the Uber or Taxi for my 2 growing children). I loved her energetic personality and how kind she was. Vanessa admired my work and gave me such an amazing opportunity; and to think, I almost didn't sign up as a vendor.
I'm forever grateful to her and the ABC30 team. This will change my business and will lead to more clients in the future. I'm grateful to friends and family for their undeniable support, but it is truly exciting when people contact me and inquire about my work.
My daughter: "Mommy, did you get...(eyes widening)...a stranger?"
Me: (beaming with such pride) Why yes, yes I did!
Click on the link below to view the news feature. A special thanks to family and friends, prior customers, returning ones, and new ones who see the value in supporting a small business.
