Today we’d like to introduce you to Brittany Rios.
Hi Brittany, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Like many of us, the start of the pandemic turned my world around. I was accustomed to always being on the go. I was a teacher, who had to learn to teach online and also be a mother at the same time. Since many places were shut down we were forced to spend our time at home. This time turned out to be a blessing in disguise for what would bloom.
I’ve been a lover of jewelry since I can remember but I many times found myself LOVING pieces that were out of my price range. One day the thought arose in my head “What if I started creating my own pieces?” And that is just what I did. I started researching to see where I could find these pieces and the rest was history. My first big move was creating an Instagram account that would later lead you to my Etsy page. This got me many customers and supporters but I wanted MORE. So I started thinking about how I could become a local vendor. It was a lot easier than I expected.
I remember messaging The Brick Market during Christmas time in 2020 to be a part of their Sunday market. I’ll forever be grateful for The Brick because they opened up a whole new door for me. After my first market, I fell in love with meeting people and gaining new supporters that I wanted more.
Now I’ve done many markets all over the San Antonio area. At each one of these markets, I have met some amazing people and I now call some of these my friends.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
In the beginning, it was a lot easier for me to keep up to date with my inventory, my customers, and my markets. Once teaching started back to normality, I knew it was going to be very difficult to keep the pace going.
I noticed that when I stepped back into the classroom I let go of a huge part of the attention I was giving my business because I had to give that attention back to my students. That was one of the most difficult transitions my business and I have endured.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My work involves creating unique pieces at affordable prices for my customers.
One thing I love to do, and I’m not sure many of my supporters know, get input from my customers on what they think I should create next or what they wish they would see more of. I feel like if you make your customers feel part of the creation, you’re building that rapport with them and building relationships with them as well.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk-taking?
What a great time to talk about taking risks! As many of my followers may know, I’m expecting my daughter Aurora Guerrero in March.
Because of all, that is going on in the world my fiancé and I have come to the decision that it would be much safer if I became a stay-at-home (SAHM) until she gets older.
This means that I would be solely relying on my small business financially and giving it my 100%! Am I nervous, of course, but I’ll be doing what I LOVE full time with my brand new baby girl!
Contact Info:
Image Credits
@emilyzurphotos
