I saw Brandi speak about how easy it is to start a business doing what you love at Pecha Kucha in Denver and ever since I’ve been a huge fan of hers. If you ever get to meet Brandi you see right away how her ebullience melts obstacles and makes it possible for her to not only be a creative entrepreneur herself but to also help tons of other creative entrepreneurs through Fashion Denver. If you live in Denver, Brandi teaches “Do What You Love, Love What You Do” classes that are inspiring, affordable and of course, super fun. You can read about them right here. So here, in her own words and in a lovely shade of plum, is Brandi’s launch story.

I launched Fashion Denver after starting up my own line of handbags, b.shigley designs.  b.shigley designs was simply a passion for creating one of my favorite accessories… the handbag! About a month after I started making bags, I wanted to get the attention of the fashion editor of the Rocky Mountain News, but I didn’t think I was good enough.  A friend said, “If you don’t try, you’ll never know!” I contacted her and the next thing I knew, I was featured in our Sunday paper. That article ended up being syndicated in papers all over the United States and thus, b.shigley designs was born. That article had a snowball effect and articles were popping up everywhere. I had to learn how to have a business fast as the media coverage really launched my business.

Because of the snowball affect in the media, I was forced to figure out how to be able to handle the orders that were coming in so fast. I hired a couple of sewers to help make the bags and because of that, I had to learn how to handle quality control. My communication skills quickly grew! When I was able to manage my sewers and have orders coming in and going out smoothly, I was able to create a sustainable and growing business.

I’ve often overcome business challenges by finding somebody in a similar business and asking advice.  Many people were grateful in sharing what they’ve learned through their own growing pains.  Also, learning to have patience with myself and understanding if it doesn’t work right the first time, there is always another way to make it work.  It’s all through trials and tribulations.

My favorite part of Brandi’s story is the fact that she doubted whether she was good enough to be featured in the paper but she went for it anyway. The most important part of starting a business you love is to actually start it by getting other people involved. If you have any questions for Brandi please post them in the comments below and I’ll make sure she gets them. And if you’re ready to launch a blog and build something that lets you do what you love click here for the step by step guide I wrote, “Build a Life-Changing Website Pt 3.”

Faithfully,

Fernando

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