Today we’d like to introduce you to Ariana Chedraui.
Hi Ariana, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hi! My name is Ariana and I am the owner of the business Vino Cards. Like many, I was working full-time at a start-up company that had nothing to do with what I studied in college. I was working a job that helped make ends meet while hoping that something I was more passionate about came around. By 2018, I was hearing more and more about how young individuals were exploring passive income and how these entrepreneurs were making the shift to e-commerce to supplement their income. They made their own creative products and I wanted to learn more so that I can make a similar lifestyle part of my daily life. I decided to pursue a passive-income route by creating a unique product involved in something I was passionate about learning more – wine! I love the idea of creating a product so I searched for something that did not yet exist, which became Vino Cards – A Wine Tasting Experience Through Flashcards. I began to see the immense growth opportunity and by 2019, I launched a Kickstarter that helped fund my first production run of Vino Cards and sell successfully on Amazon.
Soon after, I was inspired to focus 100% of my attention on my business to grow it more, so I quit my 9-5 job to pursue Vino Cards full-time. Today, I’ve expanded to sharing my entrepreneurial journey on YouTube in hopes others are inspired to pursue their dream life as I have with mine. I also have a separate wine-tasting YouTube channel to teach beginners about wine. Today, I am looking to expand into retail! Vino Cards is the perfect way to easily learn about wines, so you can become a wine expert and host your own wine events with friends and family. With Vino Cards, you will get to lead this new wine tasting experience and share the joy of wine with the guidance of 50 flashcards containing essential information you need to know about wine. Vino Cards is split into 12 different categories including the Noble Whites, Noble Reds and regionally from France, Italy, South America, and all over the world. Each flashcard is labeled from 1-50 and by tasting them in that order not only will you learn all about wine, but you will also get an around the world tasting experience.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Some challenges came about as a first-time entrepreneur! With no prior experience in the business world, I looked to mentors to guide me through the launch process. It helped so much, especially with avoiding some costly mistakes such as misprints, inventory storage costs and shipping! Luckily, the internet provides immense information on any sort of topic, from design ideas, manufacturing, inventory planning and Amazon, where I ultimately launched Vino Cards. One of the biggest challenges in the beginning was funding. With a little amount of start-up money, I shared my concept on Kickstarter which proved to be an amazing opportunity to see interest in the product and raise money to fund my first production run! Following the 30 days of my Kickstarter, I began manufacturing overseas and it took much longer than anticipated. In order to ensure I had the product ready for customers who supported the Kickstarter, there was day in and day out communication with the manufacturer and had to spend extra money on air shipping to get the products in on time. The journey is a long and tedious one, everything from coming up with an idea to launching it online, but with some patience and feedback from people you trust, it’ll come to be and the achievement is oh so satisfying!
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Today, I am three years into owning my business and I’m loving it! I work solely on managing my website and social media to bring attention to my product Vino Cards! I love the culture surrounding wine drinking, it can be so fun to learn about different winemaking styles and the beautiful wine-growing regions around the world. The idea of being surrounded by friends or family, celebrating life, exploring something new and learning how different foods compliment wines sounded like my ultimate happy place. At first, it was intimidating for me as a novice wine drinker to dive into such a massive world that sommeliers and expert drinkers take pride in. Then to have the intention of learning it all without previous education in wine to break it down in flashcard form was a massive challenge for me. I want to help others learn about wine too without feeling intimidated or overwhelmed about wine tasting notes in general. Over the course of just a few years, I’ve had people say that they found new wines they never knew they’d like by using my flashcards and that they were able to share it with loved ones. I think this is what I’m most proud of. It helped me realize what a great product this can be to bring people together. I want to make wine tasting fun, enjoyable and show others that it can be simple to learn essential information that can lead to a long-term appreciation for wine. More importantly, to gain that wine appreciation with your loved ones. It’s an accessible and affordable product as well, making it the perfect product to have at home plus great gifts for birthdays and holidays!
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
I view risk-taking as essential for personal growth. As difficult as it can be to take a leap of faith in something that you have no idea how it will turn out, it’s part of the fun to exploring things you normally wouldn’t consider. For me, it was creating something from scratch that I hoped someone would someday find useful and feel they can spend their own money on. Whether it’s starting your own business or moving to a new city, as long as you approach it with good intention and full belief in your own strength and courage, it will be worthwhile. It’s about overcoming the fear we attach to an idea and surrendering to the unknown. Know that no matter the obstacles that inevitably present themselves, there is always something you can learn from, improve on and try again!
Pricing:
- $29.99: 1 Set of 50 flashcards
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.vinocards.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vino_cards/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbTkToPjqJdIEBlEKOMlVYg
