Hi fellow Females of Filadelphia readers 🌻 Hope everyone is staying safe and practicing self-care.I’m very excited about today’s spotlight, Taylor! I met Taylor for this interview, and just from talking to her I can tell she is extremely hard-working and driven. I can’t wait to see all the places she’ll go. Taylor started an e-commerce store in April after becoming a 2020 grad and has already grown significantly on her social media account. She took the current global situation, pivoted and made something out of it: Made by Taylor Nicole. If you’re a 2020 graduate or want to start an e-commerce business, this is the interview for you! Before I say more, let’s start the interview . . .
V: When and why did you decide to start your online store, Made by Taylor Nicole?
T: So, I just graduated from Temple in May. I’m the kind of person where I like to have everything planned out. I thought my life would look a certain way after graduation- living in Philly and working in a corporate office. I was a marketing major so that was what I envisioned since I started college. And then all of this [covid, etc.] came around and it gave me a bit of a reality check, like okay I don’t have a job right now and I’m graduating and I’m living at home.Â
Everything started with me being bored and not having an idea of what I wanted to do. Honestly, I was applying to hundreds of jobs and not hearing back from anything. This is kind of embarrassing, but I saw all these girls on Tik Tok making tie dyes, and I tried it out myself. I posted my first try on Instagram and a ton of people were interested. It grew from there and now I’m moving away from tie dye and doing more bleach, upcycling, and thrift items. I’m also working with different partners, like mommy bloggers, to grow the brand. It’s not what I pictured myself doing, at all. But I was always interested in fashion and wanted to own a boutique, so it’s kind of nice how this has turned out.
V: Definitely- that’s amazing. I also graduated with a marketing degree and it’s such a broad major that sometimes it’s hard to figure out what you’re going to do, and now with everything going on in the world, it makes things even harder. It’s great you saw so much interest from the start, was this your first time selling things or had you sold things before?
T: My whole life I’ve always been super crafty and into diys, so I’ve sold little things here and there, but this was the first big project I’ve taken on. When I first started out, back in April, I was doing everything through [Instagram] dms; if girls liked something we would just coordinate through the phone and I would make custom orders. Now, I’m using Shopify and adding more to the platform. It’s incredible to see how much a company can grow, just in a few months. I wasn’t planning on doing any of this and it kind of fell into my hands- which makes me super excited!
V: Yeah and I’ve definitely noticed social distancing has helped e-commerce grow a lot quicker than usual so it’s really cool to see you’ve taken advantage of that. On more of the “technical” marketing side, what would you say have been your methods of growing sales and engagement? Did you have a plan?
T: Honestly going into it, no, because I was not planning on any of this other than maybe selling to my really close friends who were interested in something. But then more people were interested. A lot of customers would, thankfully, post when they received one of the pieces, and tell their followers to check out my Instagram. A lot of the growth really did just come from Instagram and word of mouth marketing, which really is the easiest way to do it. Now, I’m working with two micro-influencers to help me promote some things in exchange for products. It’s really exciting to work with other women that are interested in the same things as me.
V: That’s incredible to see women working together to build each other up and use their creativity during this time! Going back to your idea of always having a plan, do you see yourself growing this and going from there or maybe taking a break to work in a corporate space?
T: As a dream, I would love to continue to grow it, and be able to have my own boutique. I would want to bring in wholesalers, but also continue to make my own handmade pieces- that would be something that would separate me from other boutiques. I would love to do that in the future and have a store in Philly. But that will all just depend on where it goes from here and how much work I’m willing to put into it to make it grow.
V: I would love to see it grow, but I can definitely understand that it is a lot of work! Going off of that a little bit, even though you recently did just start this, what have been some challenges you’ve faced? What is something others should be weary about if they are in the same shoes as you?
T: I think for someone coming straight out of college, the biggest challenge is money and knowing what to invest in. For example, if I make a new tie dye sweatshirt, since everything is coming out of my wallet, I’m not going to go out and buy 100 white hoodies without knowing how many people are going to buy them. It’s about being smart with where you’re putting your money and keeping track of how much you’re investing. If not, then you lose track of what you’re putting into it and how much profit you’re making.
V: Inventory definitely sounds hard and I think it’s something even large businesses spend a lot of time trying to maximize. To wrap up this interview, do you have any advice for the Class of 2020 graduates or anyone who has felt the repercussions of the current situation of the world?
T: I think it’s about being open to the possibilities. The Class of 2020 is really the first class to be hit with it at this level and realize life right now is not what it’s always been. I know it’s the same thing with my friends and my roommates. We all thought we would be working at a specific place and none of it panned out how we expected. None of our lives are where we expected them to be, but it’s great to see people being more creative or going down new paths. I love seeing people do what they’re passionate about more than they’ve done in the past just because we have more free time.
Just keep your mind open, don’t limit yourself to something that isn’t going to make you happy. This project has always been something I’ve wanted to do and I’d rather spend 10 hours a day doing this than 8 hours at a corporate job that doesn’t give me the same purpose.
V: That’s so important! That’s why I myself started Females of Filadelphia because I wanted to do something I was passionate about- although it’s not a business it’s definitely a passion project. But thank you SO much Taylor for letting me interview you and giving me some insight into what you’ve started. In such a short period of time, and despite being a grad in this time, you’ve grown so much and I’m so excited to see how far your business will go! Maybe next time I’ll be interviewing you at an actual boutique!Â
If you enjoyed Taylor’s story and want to read more like it, make sure to follow our Instagram and Facebook to stay updated on new stories coming out! Stay safe 💛 XOXO, V
Very interesting interview. Well done!