Women in Business Conquering the World
Writer: Holly W. / Editor: Savannah T. / Photo Editor: Brooke F. / Photos submitted by chapter
Female entrepreneurs are taking the world by storm all the way from Whitney Wolfe at Bumble to women in our own community here at Florida State University. For some, this business has been a lifelong passion and for others, they happened to stumble upon their business idea on any average day. Regardless of how they got here, these women have made a tremendous impact on the business world here in Tallahassee.
Pi Beta Phi’s, Camille L. started her business after scrolling through DIY polymer craft videos. “I thought this was so cool, so I had the idea to start making earrings out of polymer clay instead,” says the Cala Designs owner. Similar to Camille, Natasha M. got the great idea for her business one day during high school, “I started my business [College Tailgate Tees] by making myself a shirt for my senior year of high school because I thought that all of the t-shirts I had weren’t unique or cute. A ton of my friends ended up liking the top I made, asked me to make them one, so I did. Then I thought that if my friends liked them, how many other people might? And I made an Instagram page and followed a ton of college girls and it all just happened from there!”
Kappa Kappa Gamma’s, Saralyn J. was only 12 years old when she started her cake decorating business. “I was obsessed with the show Cake Boss and watched every single episode at the time. I wanted to do the cakes that Buddy Valastro was doing on the show so badly,” states Saralyn. She was given the opportunity to make a cake for an upcoming baby shower at her church, “I don't think they were expecting the cake that I had planned. I showed up to the baby shower with a five tier, intricately decorated cake with hand sculpted figurines and designs fitting the theme.” With that, her business took off and she has worked every day since to make her business as amazing as it can be.
When owning a business, sometimes situations arise that the entrepreneur doesn’t know how to handle. Many of these women have had to develop brand new skills in order to make their business run efficiently.
Juliana L., a member of Alpha Phi, opened up her online shirt/design company because she thought it would be fun to design clothes and make people smile. Since starting her business, she’s realizing new passions. She states, “This whole process has definitely made me think more outside of the box as well. Creativity plays a large role and it has even made me consider changing majors. I am currently a finance major but after seeing how much fun it is being creative, I’ve started looking into other fields such as marketing or advertising where I still get the business aspect but also creativity as well.”
Madison K., a member of Delta Gamma, has also seen how much she has grown since starting her business, Serpent Supply Co.. “I have grown as an artist for sure, allowing myself to become more skilled in clothing and graphic design, and also making a presence for myself in the creative community around FSU,” states Madison.
Through the tough work of owning and running a business, all of the women have seen drastic improvements in their lives. Gamma Phi Beta’s Mallory M. of Mallory’s cakes states, “It has been lots of hard work but such an incredible experience.” Most of these entrepreneurs agree with that sentiment.
Through that hard work these entrepreneurs have had a lot of self-growth. Isabella D., a Zeta Tau Alpha sister, spoke about learning her boundaries when it came to owning her clothing and apparel company, TALLYGALTEES. “I learned it is ok to take breaks and deny orders as I have to make sure I can get everything done therefore if I have a lot of orders to do in a small time period I will overwhelm myself by taking more orders,'' she said. While it is important to make sure your business is booming, Isabella also realizes that without her being mentally ready to take on all these orders, she would not have her business.
Phi Mu’s, Olivia B., owner of Sunshine on 7th, has also had to learn a lot about herself through owning a business. “When I first started, I thought I could be a pro from the beginning but that unfortunately was very much not the case,” she said. Over time she has learned to become more patient with herself and more willing to adapt in order to help the business grow.
Although they have learned a lot about themselves, something all of these entrepreneurs have learned is that one thing that is certain to keep a good business running is having something unique about it. For Delta Delta Delta’s Andrea W., owner of Wolfe Design Co., this is making sure that each item is customized exactly how the customer wants it. “No one item is exactly the same as another,” says Andrea. She gets around six to eight orders a week and continuously makes sure that each one of her customers gets the exact product they are looking for.
Maia B. of Kappa Delta states that the thing that makes her business MM Designs unique is that “every product has a mission behind it - a way to help remind you to either stay thankful, keep smiling or etc.” Maia’s mission for her business is to spread something great and to help people stay positive and happy. The hard work and dedication she has put into MM Designs is all worth it to help her customers spread love, truth and light.
While it is very clear that owning a business can be extremely difficult at times, these women handle the challenges with grace. They have all worked many long days to get their business to where it is now, and they want to encourage other young women to do the same. “If someone is hesitant to start a business or do what they think could be potentially rewarding, just do it!” exclaimed Camille. Juliana agreed stating, “anything is possible.”