Today we’d like to introduce you to Julicia Brown.
Julicia, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Growing up, I was always surrounded by strong women who went out and made a way for themselves. My mother and my grandmother were both crafters so I grew up learning to various types of Crafts. Being raised by women who always used their creativity and sense of business to create marketable products, I was always inspired and encouraged. So once I got to an age where I could see the prospect of starting my own business, I thought “why not?” You’ll never know if you don’t try, right? That’s when I took the leap and started UD Bath and Body Co. (formerly known as Ugly Ducklin Co) with my mom as my business partner. The message and focus of all of our bath and body products was self-care and mental health awareness. A cause that was very close to my heart and important for me to reflect in what we made. As we continue to grow and expand, we aim to be able to give back more to good causes and raise awareness for mental health.
Within the past year, I began to explore more creative outlets and I started crafting again. Much like when I was younger and I realized sharing my Crafts online was picking up the attention of people willing to buy. As a full-time employee and full-time student, I thought another stream of income couldn’t be that bad since I was already making things in my free time. I make and sell Acrylic Paintings, Epoxy Resin-based household items, Jewelry and Tumblers under the name Crowne Crafts.
Both of these businesses were inspired by the strong women entrepreneurs I grew up with and look up to. And hopefully, I can someday use the platforms and the businesses to raise awareness and inspire other girls and women to someday start their businesses.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Starting a business is never a smooth road and I honestly didn’t expect it to be. There are always things to learn, things to troubleshoot and things that can go wrong when running a business. One of the biggest obstacles with starting a business can be money and creating actual profit in the first year or two. When we started UD Bath and Body Co. we needed a lot of new equipment to be able to safely make and produce products we would be proud to sell. We had to invest a lot of our saving into the start-up to make quality products that would receive great reviews and keep customers coming back!
Another big obstacle was creating a space for ourselves in the market. A lot of people stray away from buying handmade or artisan products because it can be expensive. So we had to find a way to make ourselves accessible as well as affordable while still trying to make profit and I’ll just say that’s way easier said than done. It’s not impossible but it did take us some time to figure out the logistics and make our business marketable and memorable.
Please tell us about UD Bath and Body Co, and Crowne Crafts.
At UD Bath and Body Co. we are more famously known for our handmade whipped soaps and sugar scrubs. Those seem to always fly off the shelves and are always a customer favorite. They are also our favorite things to make! With so many fun scents, color and designs, The creative opportunity is endless! Apart from our whipped soaps, we make several other varieties of bath and body products such as: bath bombs, lotions, body washes, bath salts, body washes, alcohol-free body mists and several others catering to both men and women! What sets us apart in the bath and body industry is our motivation and our message. Our motivation for this company is to inspire self-care and to remind people of the importance of relaxing and taking care of yourself in today’s “hustle hard” society.
Recently with Crowne Crafts our resin coasters has become quite popular. I focus mostly on resin-based crafts, acrylic pour paintings and customizable glitter tumblers. Our line of products currently includes coasters, jewelry catches, and several varieties of tumblers. As a crafter, I am most proud of being able to develop a business where the products I get to expire this with and are fun to make are what people want. I get to experiment with a variety of colors, mediums and designs. Being able to create and experiment with mediums, additives and colors and be able to share these one of a kind products with others really inspires me to keep creating.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start all over, I would definitely focus a lot more energy and money on marketing and investing in good advertising a lot more in the beginning. You never realize just how much a good ad campaign can benefit your business and bring the people that are looking right to your doorstep. In the beginning of UD Bath and Body, we focused our resources primarily in other areas and didn’t leave too much of a budget for good marketing. In the end, it all panned out but that would be something I would change. It wasn’t an easy journey but I definitely learned a lot from the mistakes we made and that overall made us a better business.
Contact Info:
- Website: Crownecrafts.com https://etsy.me/2WnC2lG
- Phone: 6784316222
- Email: uglyducklinco@gmail.com crownecrafts@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/crowne.crafts?igshid=jg5rlyhx7rq7 https://instagram.com/udbath.bodyco?igshid=gmxvfxdrd88u
Image Credit:
Julicia Brown
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