Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandra Reyes.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Sandra. So, let’s start at the beginning, and we can move on from there.
My business idea came from my love of books, but first, it all started from just a simple Instagram account. I realized there aren’t many people that read for fun. I want to change that. As much as I’m always preaching to people about reading more, I learned along the way that people do not like to be told what to do, so if I wanted them to pick up a book, I needed to lead by example.
So I started posting the books I read, and I would give brief reviews all while showing people how much I love reading and learning. This way I’m not forcing anyone to read, and they will eventually make a conscious decision to pick up a book on their own. And it has worked so far.
People message me all the time about being inspired to read more or about getting back into reading. In addition to getting people to actually read, I want people to start changing their perception of reading as being boring. That’s where my business idea came to mind, and it’s an extension of Literary Sandra on Instagram.
I wanted to make apparel and accessories that had catchy phrases that were sassy and unique to my brand in hopes that people will begin to shift their perceptions of reading as cool instead of boring and nerdy.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
There were a lot of struggles with getting started. Almost every small business I reached out to on Instagram either ignored me or was very evasive about answering my business questions, so I had to figure everything out on my own. Google was my best friend.
There are so many little things to take care of and most of the time you have to get one thing done in order to get to the next step, so it was difficult to move forward. To say it was frustrating is an understatement, but I’m still learning, and my business is a work in progress.
Literary Sandra Boutique – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Literary Sandra Boutique is an extension of my Instagram profile. This is where you can find sassy apparel and accessories to show off your love of reading. My mission is to promote literacy and at the same time make reading appealing to those who don’t like to read.
My shop is very small and I intend to stay that way. I am a one-woman show. Everything is made by me, and everything is packed and shipped by me. I make the designs, I make sure my machine is cutting them properly, I heat press them and pack them. To me, it’s not about making the big bucks as it is about spreading my message that we need to “read more books!” My biggest goal is to spread awareness about reading by leading by example.
What sets us apart from the competition is the sassy and badass phrases I use on my products. I have the “Notorious” collection which features hoodies with the phrase, “Notorious Fiction Reader” or the “Nasty Women” collection which features pencil cases with the phrase, “Nasty Women Read.” These as well as my first collection, “Resting Book Face” are all phrases that are a reflection of my personality. As founder I wanted to include a unique message on the apparel and accessories in order to make reading more badass.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success is subjective. To me, success means I went out and tried something knowing I was afraid and did it anyway. Even if I fail at it, I don’t consider myself a failure because I tried.
With that being said, I do think there are some qualities that I feel are most important in my success. These qualities include fearlessness, flexibility, and perseverance. A lot of times we stop ourselves from doing things because we are too afraid to do them. It’s something that I’ve had to learn to get over. I had my business idea and sat on it for three years because I was too scared to launch it.
After all the hoops I had to jump through just to figure out how to obtain a business license and open a business checking account, I didn’t do anything with my business. Now that I’ve actually launched, I changed the entire direction of my brand. The name is totally different, but the idea is still the same.
Being flexible is a good thing because you have to be okay with trying out different things and knowing that it’s fine if something doesn’t work a certain way. I wanted to launch when everything was perfect, but that’s just not realistic.
We need to take risks to know what works and what doesn’t. Perseverance is important because there are many factors to running a business and there may be times when you hit a wall. It might make you want to give up, but those are the times when you learn the most, so you have to keep going and not get discouraged right away.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.literarysandra.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/literarysandra
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/literarysandra
Image Credit:
l.a.mommaphotography
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
