Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in jewelry but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Heather Mullins, founder of Après Ski Jewelry, located in Golden, CO, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
I make jewelry out of skis! No, not giant pieces of skis hanging from your ears or neck, small pieces cut from skis that show the wood core, color, and beauty of your favorite sporting equipment that you just skied through the powder on. Après Ski Jewelry. Ski Them. Love Them. Wear Them.
Tell us about yourself
My background and education is in sculpture, art, woodworking, and teaching. I grew up in the mountains of Colorado, playing outside all the time, being active, and doing hands-on house renovations with my family. In college in Montana, I used to build crazy colorful sculptures out of all sorts of materials. Spent a few months in Kenya, where I learned about resourcefulness and using what you have around. In grad school, I started incorporating more ideas of design and function into my work and continued to work with recycled materials. I was a manager in the wood & metal shop for years in Chicago, where I taught tons of students how to use tools. I learned an incredible amount about building objects, furniture, and materials. I started making jewelry out of scraps of anything I came across from my sculpture & furniture projects wood, steel, bike tubes, rubber flooring, even fire hose, and one day I made a table out of skis and realized how cool the scraps were. That was almost 12 years ago. I made them for my friends and family as gifts for a while. When I moved back to Colorado in 2014, I started being more serious about the idea and made it a business alongside my furniture business (www.RelevantReUse.com). Now, Après Ski Jewelry is my main gig, with a little college teaching on the side. What motivates me each day is the excitement that most of my customers have for my idea and business, something I have invented or re-invented each step along the way.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Creating something unique that people get really excited about & being able to actually make a living by doing something creative and mostly fun.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Managing everything: making my product, doing sales, finding stores, managing my website, doing finances, coordinating & managing employees. And figuring out to let go so that I can get the help I need to keep growing.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Be patient - it may feel like your business is in the incubator for a very long time, but it will get there, and then you can look back on your progress and growth.
- Believe in your idea - you thought you could do this for a reason, so stick with it. Some people might not be on board, but that doesn't matter; plenty of others always will!
- Find the wins in your mistakes and failures - there is always a learning moment you can take away from each experience that can help move you forward.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://apresskijewelry.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/apresskijewelry
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apresskijewelry/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.
