It’s Never Too Late: How This Busy Mom Turned Her “Side-Hustle” of 15 Years Into A Full-Time Jewelry Business

Some people think professional jewelry business coaching is only for beginners, but that couldn’t be further from the truth for Susan Collick.

In 2017, Susan Collick’s jewelry business, Daisy Chains, had just turned 15-years-old. It was hard to believe it had been that long, because Susan knew she had hardly scratched the surface of her full creative potential.

Jewelry has always been a passion for Susan, but her day-to-day schedule was always jam-packed with the demands of raising a family and working as a graphic designer. With so much on her plate, she never had the time to take her business as seriously as she wanted to.

She was drawn to graphic design in college as a career that could feed her creativity. But that was over a decade ago, and before she had a family. It was time for a change.

Susan was a passionate creative from day one, but graphic design just wasn’t exciting anymore. She knew it was time to take control of her future – and that future was in jewelry.

Her jewelry business was always in the back of her mind. In her heart, Susan knew that jewelry was her calling.

The biggest hurdle was time. She didn’t know how to stop working so much and make more time for her business. And even if she did find the time, how would she know what to do with it?

Susan didn’t just want to quit her job with no direction, she had a family to feed. If she was really going to take that risk, she needed a plan. She wanted proven strategies she could implement in her business that would actually get results.

Without a clear direction, Susan kept her jewelry business on the backburner. That is until a peculiar Facebook ad caught her eye…

When Susan stumbled across a Flourish & Thrive Academy ad online, it stopped her in her tracks. She thought, “Shoot, this is kind of interesting. Maybe this is what I need.”

But the timing could not have been less convenient.

She had kids at home, a demanding job, and to top it all off, she was smack in the middle of tax season, which we all know is a particularly stressful time for independent business owners.

“I was stretched thin,” Susan shared with me. “I thought, ‘where am I going to find the time for this?”

But after reading more about Flourish & Thrive Academy, and discovering the many success stories from past students, Susan decided to find a way.

She took a long look at her already busy schedule and said, “It doesn’t matter, I’ll do it at night.”

Reservations aside, Susan took the leap and enrolled in Laying the Foundation, our signature online course that teaches independent jewelry designers to scale their businesses online.

Right away, she bonded with some of the designers in our community. They became accountability partners, motivating each other to stick with the course and stay dedicated to achieving their goals.

Since then, she’s never looked back.

WITH A SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY AT HER BACK, SUSAN GOT RIGHT TO WORK ADDRESSING THE BIGGEST ISSUES IN HER JEWELRY BUSINESS…

• 80% of Susan’s revenue was coming from in-person events. She was working herself to the bone. Her very first order of business was to establish a more sustainable revenue stream online.

• When it came to marketing, Susan says, “I was trying to be everything for everyone.” By honing in on her dream client, she got clarity on exactly who her brand was for. She turned her focus to social media, where she could curate an audience and replace some of her in-person events with virtual trunk shows on Facebook.

• Susan learned the value of designing cohesive collections and teasing them online before the big drop. This became her sales strategy, and it worked!

• When the pandemic hit and all those in-person events were cancelled, she dialed it up a notch. Whenever a new collection dropped, she started alternating between Facebook and her website. This trained her loyal social media following to shop from her branded website, boosting her sales even further.

Finally, Susan had a clear direction in her jewelry business. She no longer felt overwhelmed, but instead excited about the future possibilities.

It wasn’t long before her dedication paid off.

SINCE JOINING LAYING THE FOUNDATION, EVERYTHING CHANGED FOR SUSAN’S BUSINESS…

• After only one year in the program, Susan was finally able to quit her job as a graphic designer and focus on her business full-time.

• At the end of 2020, she had a record-breaking quarter, exceeding her sales goal by 440%!

• Her business is fully set up for online sales now. She no longer has to hustle between live events, and her website sales jumped 300% in 2020.

But her biggest takeaway from the program has been the confidence she gained from understanding exactly who her brand is for – her dream client.

“Saying ‘no’ to wacky ideas that don’t fit gets easier as you get more confident in yourself and your brand,” she shared with me.

As a business owner, confidence like that is absolutely priceless.

No matter how long you’ve been in business, it’s never too late to transform your jewelry brand to fit your lifestyle. Don’t wait, apply for a FREE Strategy Audit to be matched with resources that will lead you to success.

Laying the Foundation, was exactly what Susan needed to reach her goals, but every designer is different!

If you’re not sure about professional coaching – don’t sweat it! Book a free Strategy Audit and one of our expert coaches will sit down with you to discuss your biggest hurdles in business and recommend the best resources for your unique situation.

What are you waiting for, m’dear?