Meet Kalyn Rodriguez of KSR Purses

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kalyn Rodriguez.

Kalyn, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started KSR Purses in November of 2019. I am about to make a year with the company. KSR actually stands for my name, (K)alyn (S)antana (R)odriguez, and I started my company because I felt as though I almost had nothing left. I had gone through a really rough year last year and actually almost lost my life. I also went through a really bad party stage. I would go out every day, I wasn’t living at home and I was definitely with the wrong crowd of people. I didn’t have any type of structure in my life whatsoever. Thankfully I never stopped taking pictures or falling back on fashion. I started to get back to blogging as well and started to sell my clothes on Instagram because I was low on money. Money management was something I had always struggled with. I got put onto what vendors and manufacturers were. I always looked up to ‘Girl Bosses’ and wanted to do more with myself to be just like ‘them’… I moved back into my parent’s house and thankfully have the best support system. My mom actually paid for my first shipment of purses and we made a deal that I had to give her the money back once I made it back.

I started to promote my purses on my Instagram (@kalynrodriguezz) and I got some good feedback. A lot of people thought it was different. Everyone expected me to drop a clothing line, but I figured that would’ve been too expected. That’s another reason I wanted to drop a purse line. Now, currently, I also sell fedoras and soon to come, there will be boots under KSR. After that, I hope to drop a clothing line, but one step at a time! I started to get on more and more outfit inspo pages, which got more and more traffic started on KSR. I started off taking orders through DM and realized that I was bigger than I thought! I sold out in 24 hours and couldn’t even grasp the feeling. This past year has been a rollercoaster of emotions but I have taken every bad and completely disheveled it into greatness. I am so blessed to be where I am today. I will forever support small businesses as well, because I am a small business. As I tell everyone, do not stop believing in your dreams and no matter how crazy people might think you are, they won’t stop thinking like that until they see the success… so keep pushing!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Something I struggled with through KSR is managing orders through DM’s. I suggest when opening a business, create a website! It will be a lot more organized and you don’t have to go crazy looking for people and their orders. I also created an Instagram page for the purses, which helped with separating my business from personal.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about KSR Purses – what should we know?
For KSR, I started out doing everything myself. From promoting to packaging orders. Now, I handle emails and have access to the KSR Instagram page. When it comes to making promotion videos and customer service, I have a team to answer questions. I am mostly known for my outfits. I love taking pictures and capturing colors. I specialize in color blocking and making shopping affordable.

As for KSR, I am extremely proud of how far this company has come. From thinking that maybe five people would like my purses to selling out in 24 hours, it has made me into the person I am today. It has given me strength, helps me to keep going. I love to get new ideas and advice from others. Anything to make my company grow and satisfy my customers. Something that sets me apart from others is that I never lose track of where I started. Being new to the business world, I love the process. I love all the learning I do and am super excited to continue to learn every day.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Is this what winning an award feels like? There are so many people who deserve credit. I truly feel like no one can really be self-made. It’s a flex, but a weird one in my opinion. Why not have others help you. Even if you don’t fully agree with their idea, it can help you get on the right path to thinking of something greater. My parents have never stopped supporting my dreams. My family has never stopped shopping with me, either. My friends have been more than supportive. All of my followers, putting their family and friends onto my page and business. Even my high school friends and teachers have supported my brand. All of these people have helped me one way or another and I couldn’t be more thankful. My team works so hard to make sure things go smoothly! I wouldn’t be where I am today without the help of all these people.

Pricing:

• My purses range from $45-$90

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kalynrodriguez.com/
• Email: ksrmngmnt@gmail.com
• Instagram: @kalynrodriguezz and @ksr.purses

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