Be Careful What You Wish For

As a business owner, I have goals for the growth of my business. There is a long term vision for what the company will provide for our customers. I have a 5 year plan for what I want my life to look like as a CEO. Most importantly, there are income goals. Everyone wants to make a million dollars but few think about what that looks like. I mean, we can all imagine having a million dollars in our bank account. I'm talking about the amount of work it takes to make the money.

Fancy Free Hair & Skin has been growing gradually. We have had time to adjust our work flow as the sales volume increases. I've had particular monthly income goal for about 2 years that we haven't been quite able to hit. I've been making slight adjustments to our business model and marketing, testing what works and converts to sales. There's nothing worse than not being prepared for a sudden influx of customers commonly referred to as the Oprah Effect. Gradual is good. You can adjust with minimal consequences while keeping your customers happy.

Then it happened. I hit my goal and surpassed it. It was surreal. Almost as if I didn't think I could do it and that number had been some pie in the sky, unrealistic goal all this time. So, of course, I wasn't prepared. I wasn't expecting so many of our Fancy Friends to be interested in the Clay Wash. I mean, I expected a few who would want to try it but not as many orders as I got. It's different and it takes time for people to shift from what they've always done. Orders were delayed. I spent designated family time fulfilling orders and manufacturing product.
via GIPHY

Actual photo of me trying to make sure all of those orders got filled

As a Virgo or Type A person, I do not like scrambling. I do not like disorganization. I do not like feeling like I don't have everything I need. Once the dust settled, I had to do a real self assessment and then an assessment of where I went wrong in the process. Because I've been asking for this for almost 2 years now. Now I got it and I'm walking around looking crazy. LOL!

Now that I know the number of orders and sales attached to my goal revenue, I can certainly learn from my mistakes and improve the process before things start getting out of hand. Here's what I learned:

1. Have about 8 weeks of planning before your launch date.
2. Have label designed at least 6 weeks prior to launch date.
3. Confirm all new labels and packaging orders have shipped at least 3 weeks prior to manufacturing date.
4. Calculate ingredients required for manufacturing 4 weeks in advance.
5. Have supplies for at least 2 batches on hand.
6. Stock the freezer with whipped shea to prevent any shipping delays when there is the possibility of a heat wave.
7. Double check packing slip with actual order
8. When processing more than 30 orders at once, have a second person check that the order was filled accurately (Although my team only missed something in 3 orders out of the 80 that were processed in one weekend)

I prayed for this life. The desires of my heart have manifested with lots of prayer, work and consistency. I'm not going to lie, this is hard! Some days, actually a lot of days, I am not sure how I'm going to get it all done. Especially when getting it done is even more crucial now with three people on payroll. This life is not easy. There is always some fire I have to put out. But I would not change it. Not one bit of it. I am so thankful for my life, my family and my Fancy Friends for believing in me enough to trust Fancy Free with your hair and skin.

Shameless Plug Alert:

Fancy Free Hair & Skin manufactures quality products for hair and skin, as well as provides natural hair consults for women who would like assistance on their natural hair journey. Our motto is "Keeping you fancy and free of chemicals." Visit our website, www.fancyfreehairandskin.com, to see a full range of our products and services. Sign up for our mailing list to receive natural hair tips and stay up to date on sales and the latest happenings with Fancy Free.

Visit www.fancyfreehairandskin.com to subscribe to our mailing list. Become Fancy's Friend to receive a code for 10% off your next purchase.

The Signs Are Right In Front Of You

My husband and I closed on what we consider our "Forever Home" in December 2010. The previous owners had very different taste when it comes to paint colors than we do. The foyer was painted grey and white. There was a navy blue accent wall in the living room. One bedroom was painted royal blue. Another bedroom had a black accent wall. In my opinion, the house was dark and gloomy. Not very inviting.

Our bedroom walls had been painted with neutral colors. Not too bad. My husband's closet came already outfitted with a closet system. My closet was just an empty room with a few shelves in it. Kind of disappointing but we can say it was a blank canvas. My clothes were all over the house. I rearranged and reorganized my closet at least 3 times before I started getting quotes from California Closet Systems and the like. Five figure quotes for the closet of my dreams. How disheartening. We definitely didn't have $10,000 for a closet when we needed to repair the roof, upgrade electricity, open the pool, renovate three bathrooms, so on and so forth. So, I put my shabby chic hat on and got to brainstorming....

I WANTED a closet system but all I really needed was racks to hang my clothes and some more drawers for storing other items. I found some quality Z-racks on Craigslist. My father and I went to the Loading Dock, a warehouse that sells used building material, and found some bottom kitchen cabinets to create a closet island. He had a counter top in his storage unit - very random, I know, but just go with it. He is an investor and rehabber. And the final step was choosing paint colors for the wall.

It's the summer of 2012. I wanted bright and vibrant colors that would make me feel alive when I walked into my closet. I went to Home Depot and picked swatches. They looked good together, in my opinion. Orange, purple and green. Don't ask. I painted the walls. Then painted all of the trim gold.  I spray painted the drawers of my bootleg island gold and the counter top was white with gold trim. The final product....looked kind of juvenile but whatever. It was my closet. My labor of love. And I did it all for under $500. Eff dat California Closets quote.

Fast forward to 2014. I'm becoming a real business woman and decide that this little LLC. I've established is going places, so I need a logo. I hire a graphic designer to design it. She sends me a survey asking questions about my business and personality. I pick the font and the colors based on her recommendations. The colors I chose represent wealth, wellness, and luxury. The colors were orange, purple and green. Go figure. Based on my choices, the Fancy Free, LLC. logo was official. We've gone through some rebranding but the logo and colors remains pretty much intact.

Interior decorators recommend that you freshen up your decor every 5-10 years. We're coming up on 7 years since I "renovated" my closet. Seven years, a pool renovation, 4 roof repairs, a new refrigerator, one cat, two businesses and two children later, I'm ready to spruce my closet up again. Preparing my daughter's bedroom and FINALLY buying a bedroom set for the master suite inspired me. I read  "The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up" and purged about 75% of what was in my closet. Now, I have a lot more space to work. More wall space. More space on my racks. I'm looking around thinking of color palettes and furniture configurations when it hit me. OMG! I chose these colors WAY before starting a business and it was staring me in my face all this time. The colors that represent Fancy Free. Orange, purple and green. Wealth, wellness and luxury.

At 30 years old, I had achieved all of my healthcare career goals. I was just looking to occupy my time when I started my first direct sales business. That business opened my eyes to a whole new way of life. I thought I'd achieve the time freedom and income through that company but Jehovah had already planted the seed. He had something different in store for me. Something that I had full ownership of. Something that I could pursue with all of my passion and remain true to what I believe in. Building generational wealth and helping others do the same. Creating products that support wellness. Having the luxury to spend my time as I choose. Offer "Fancy" products at affordable prices that make people feel luxurious without breaking the bank.

Of course, hindsight is 20/20 but it never ceases to amaze me when I look back at the "signs", good and bad, that were right there in my face. Honestly, had I done a computer composite of what my closet would look like with those colors, I would have switched it up. But I just rolled with it. After all, it's just paint. An inexpensive way to drastically change the look of a room.

So, what's the point? What's for you is for you. Always have a plan but be flexible and open to things that aren't necessarily in your plan. New experiences. Learning new skills. Broaden your horizons. Let Jehovah show you the grand plan He has for your life. Don't fight it. Even if it feels uncomfortable. His plan is WAY better than anything you can imagine for yourself. Had someone told me in 2012 that I would retire from healthcare 5 years later, I would have told them they were crazy. Look at me now, Fancy and Free representing orange, purple and green! Bars! LOL!

Shameless Plug Alert:

Fancy Free Hair & Skin manufactures quality products for hair and skin, as well as provides natural hair consults for women who would like assistance on their natural hair journey. Our motto is "Keeping you fancy and free of chemicals." Visit our website, www.fancyfreehairandskin.com, to see a full range of our products and services. Sign up for our mailing list to receive natural hair tips and stay up to date on sales and the latest happenings with Fancy Free.

Subscribe and become Fancy's Friend to receive a code for 10% off your next purchase.