Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenna & Kayla Elko.
Hi Jenna & Kayla, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
We first started our business in March of 2020. Kayla and I were both at the University of Georgia at the time. I was a junior and she was a sophomore. When we got sent home due to COVID and we were stuck at home we decided to start making tie-dye. We had noticed that tie dye was a trend that year so after making a few items we decided to start posting them on Instagram. Friends and family started sharing our page and we slowly started growing our following and getting orders.
We then had an influencer named Libby Christensen reach out wanting to buy a set. We knew she had a great loyal following and asked if we could send her the set for free in return for a post on Instagram. She agreed and when she posted we had so many people reaching out to order exactly what she had. We gained so many new followers and that was when we knew we could really turn this into a business.
About 3 months later in June 2020 we had a boutique from New Jersey reach out about a tie-dye wholesale order. We ended up making over 300 pieces of clothing for them. By July of 2020, we started our website and have expanded on our products since with now over 300 products available to shop. We still hand-dye our tie-dye pieces and make them custom to order. We have now been in business for almost 4 years and have about 46k followers on Instagram and 175k on TikTok.
Those numbers didn’t come overnight we have focused heavily on growing our social media following. We go live on TikTok every day pack orders and post at least once a day. We have had 2 viral Tiktoks that really helped us grow our following as well. Social media can be challenging but consistency is key. It has taken a lot of work to get to where we are today but we absolutely love what we do and wouldn’t change anything!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Overall it’s been a smooth road but there have definitely been some struggles along the way. We both started this when we were in college and wanted to finish school so during those years it was hard to fully focus on Happy Soul Sisters. Kayla had been living at home so we were able to make it work and I was able to help with stuff from Athens.
We also both had to learn how to run a business along the way so there was a lot of trial and error. We had to learn the best tie dye techniques, how to find reliable wholesale vendors to buy from, and how to continuously grow our customer base. Once we both graduated college we knew this was what we wanted to do full time to really make it successful. We have definitely learned so much but our continuing to learn along the way. I think a lot of success comes from learning from mistakes.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Happy Soul Sisters is an online clothing company founded by me and my sister. We started our business in March of 2020. We are known for our handmade tie dye, seamless collection, and the comfort of all of our products. We focus on athleisure and everyday wear. We are most proud of the customer base we have created. We have built a large community of women who not only support our business but Kayla and me as individuals.
So many of our customers have over 100 orders with us. We want people to know that we take a lot of pride in the products that we pick for our customers and work really hard to stay on top of all our orders. We focus on trying to get orders out the same day or the next day. Until about 2 months ago it was just Kayla and I that did everything. We now have the help of our youngest sister Emily. We love what we have created with Happy Soul Sisters and hope for continuous growth and success!
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out.
Be passionate about your business and what you want to do. There are going to be a lot of hard days of having your own business so you want to truly love it. It also takes a lot of time management and dedication. But my biggest piece of advice is to take the chance. Trust in yourself and your ability to create something you love. If you had told us that 4 years ago we would be running our own business we would have never believed it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://shophappysoulsisters.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/happysoulsisterss/
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/happysoulsisters/
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/@happysoulsisters3872
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@happysoulsisterss
