Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Hawkins.
Jennifer, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
My name is Jen and my husband, Gary, and I created our company in September 2018. We created Georgia Hikes as an Instagram page to share our hiking adventures with our daughter, Penelope. It has evolved into a hiking community filled with dedicated photographers and adventure seekers. We are now a feature account on Instagram, where we share our adventures along with featuring others hikes as well. The community we created is very engaged and has grown to over 27,000 followers. Through our Instagram platform, we discovered that in addition to the demand for information on great hiking destinations in Georgia, there is also a large market of people who simply want to find ways to connect and spend time with their families.
Our page brought new information about our state to many people. We continue to grow daily. In early 2020, we decided to kick off a web-based retail store that is dedicated to providing quality products to lead people on their next adventure. Though our retail store is quite new, we are gaining steam and are excited for this new challenge. We will continue to maintain an Instagram and Facebook page as a source of information about hikes. Our webpage is also a new channel of information.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Beginning our social media channels were not easy. It takes a lot of time to maintain the pages and find new information to share. The retail store has also been a challenge and I found myself working nights in additional to a full-time day job to keep everything running smoothly. We do love sharing information about our state and engaging with our followers.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Georgia Hikes story. Tell us more about the business.
We are an informational source for hiking in Georgia, along with an online retail store. We’ve formed connections with many of our followers and even met many to hike with. We have formed a community that shares experiences, photos, and knowledge. We specialize in knowledge of unique and less popular hikes in our state. We are known for having incredible visual content and providing useful information. We are proud that we are able to help people grow in their knowledge and get them into the great outdoors. We are a family that loves to be outdoors. We are active and want that for other families. We have developed and maintain relationships with our followers and I believe this sets us apart. People feel a personal connection to our page.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
We have not really had “luck” per say, we have just been blessed in the creation of our business.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.gahikes.com
- Email: gahikesgeorgia@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_georgia_hikes_/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/georgiahikes
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