We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Aly Weinheimer a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Aly, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?
As so many stories begin with troubles as a result of covid, so did the beginnings of what is now Willa Jean Shop. I started building up the ideas and branding of a business that could help support me as a Chronically Ill/disabled individual. I knew that in order for my ADHD brain to latch on I had to make everything about the business meaningful to me. During this time of brainstorming my last living grandparent past away and I found myself grieving the lack of a deep and cultural connection. I regretted not taking advantage of learning more of there lives, especially those that were first or second generation immigrants to the United states who didn’t talk about their childhoods often. I started diving into my genealogy and stories of my family and the countries they emigrated from. I leaned toward the stories of strength, resiliency, and feminine celebration. In an effort to recognize both lines of woman in my line I chose to pick two names that represented the generational wisdom (or non monetary wealth) that they passed down to me.
“Willa” was chosen as a play on my paternal Great Grandmother Wilhelmina: a strong German emigrant who raised her family despite an absentee Husband raising a slew of kids on a sugar beet farm given to them by family in small town Wellings, Alberta, Canada. My grandfather never spoke of his father and as I learned more about her I just knew that she was a monumental force of good that allowed him to become who he was, go to university in the United states, and provide for his family in the sugar cane industry in Clewiston Florida.
For my maternal side I knew I wanted to honor my Grandmother Loa Jean who was the closest grandparent to me while growing up and chose to be an active participant in my life. From making sugar cookies on valentines to silly little games at Christmas, she also taught me how to make jewelry when I was about 11 or 12. Later, I learned more about her past and her immense example in being joyful amidst mental health issues and surviving heinous abuse. She and My mom had hard lives and came out of it with strength, understanding, and the desire to make others feel loved.
and thus Willa Jean Shop was born.
In the spirit of these same sentiments, I decided to name each product after all the women in my ancestry as far back as I could find and honor their individual sacrifices and legacy. Within the many tiny details that go into each product the name is pondered and picked based on what feels like what style would fit that particular name.
Theres a quote that relays the sentiment that you die a second time when someone says your name for the last time and maybe having a necklace named after you might be silly but maybe there is a great thing that happens when someone has there name said again after so long. In effort to share this small special thing I recently opened up a form that others could submit names of their loved ones so that we can all experience the cool experience that is honoring all the woman that came before us.
Aly, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’m 28 years old, a lifetime lover of art in all forms, crafts, people, reading music and literature–anything that brings light, wonder, and a little bit of whimsy into my life. Having been chronically ill on and off since I was really young I had to learn to base my value and the value of my life differently than the usual school, work, fitness, and relationships. In this I became a observer of the little wonderous moments of life and collector of beautiful things that make you feel a little more alive. I think this talent of sorts evolved into being able to see things differently which gives me and my products a bit of different perspective and feel than others similar in the handmade jewelry and vintage reseller industries.
As someone who has a complicated relationship with my body, and such a wide range of ability levels, jewelry and accessories were always something I leaned into especially in high school for a sense of self expression. Which I believe to be a strong reason why I create jewelry and want to make such intention pieces for others to feel that same thing. Although my relationship with my body has also been a large hurdle i’ve had to face while diving into the marketing world for small business. Whether it being the desire to not be percieved, making and posting videos while battling body dysmorphia and disordered eating, and simply trying not compare myself and abilites to others in the same spheres. Although difficult its something that I’m grateful I have been able to see progress in my relationship with my body and that I can represent a cross section of the public that may feel more seen seeing me show up as I am.
in the beginning I wanted my values and love of art and whimsy to be at the forefront of the brand things such as; the importance of sustainability in my materials and in the systems I created since I often found myself having flare ups and needing to prioritize rest. Other values that I wanted to be strong in the brand were the concepts of thrifting, mending, upcycling, and high quality meant to last longer than a trend or season cycle. Some of these values being taught to me by my own grandparents which i value and want to pass on to others.
Styles are inspired by vintage styles, Art nouveau, Bavarian design, and current styles. In an effort to create a classy and nostalgic feeling while being wearable daily. Every portion of the design is specifically curated to represent the brand values and create beautiful pieces that can be worn together. we strive to source high quality materials that last despite wear, vintage beads and other thrifted or salvage materials. There are so many beautiful things already out in the world that we truly dont need to make cheap copies of the same thing that will just be thrown out.
I also strive to be anti-capitalist in the sense that we strive to be conscious of our production, recycling materials from old styles and being more quality based than striving to have the maximum amount of styles sold as possible but rather styles being brought in front of the individuals who value and feel aligned with our values. One of our collections that strives to minimize excess is our Interchangeable charms. Meant to be able to be worn on huggie hoops or a necklace chain that one already owns or can purchase through us and swap out charms and pendants instead of having the repurchase the same pair of huggie style hoops or necklace chains over and over. this came about because I personally was annoyed with every cute set of Earring charms being attached to its pair. I chose to listen to this annnoyance on my part and create a way that could be more affordable and minimize even a small amount of excess waste. One can purchase higher quality pair of earrings and then swap out styles as much as they want, mixing, matching, and stacking to create the expression of their choice. We carry a variety of styles ranging from $5-14 making them more affordable to many who cant afford to pay more than 20 for every piece of jewelry.
Ultimately I want to create a community of warm, caring, like minded people who buy things with intention, want to lean more into their feminine side. Those who are finding themselves after returning to traditionally more female activities now that they have the choice to do them for themselves and not as a societal expectation. Simply because coming home to myself has been making piece with being a girls girl after growing up with only brothers.
It may also be of not to mention that a huge hurdle I have been processing is realizing I have adhd after finally finding medication that managed my depression and anxiety symptoms. It was masked for so long and undiagnosed (still is) through my whole life and thats why many of my thoughts may be scattered, I turned this in late and why I struggle being super consistent in my business. I have learned how to adapt my schedule to accommodate for my executive dysfunction and sensory issues. Which just has mad it so much more important to create an inclusive space while making systems that accommodate for not only my physical and mental health but also my neurodivergency. As hard as it is as a small business owner during an economic crisis, its so much harder to work in “normal” jobs because of the level of needs that need to be accommodated for me to thrive creatively and utilize my strengths. Im only one year in but I am truly so excited to see what Willa Jean Shop as I continue to curate an environment that was created for my differences.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Personally I define one of my strengths as an ability to pivot, otherwise my life could be viewed as a series of failures and unfortunate events. Many of those pivots being due to my inconsistent health and having to drop out of school a numerous number of times which leaves me still without a degree at 28 years old and in some debt from student loans. Mostly in dating is when I feel the most embarrassed by this lack of accomplishment. There is this idea that if you just rest and take care of your health and diet that you can overcome health problems but when your sitting in your neurologists office thousands of dollars later, hundreds of seizures later being told that they dont think there is anything else that can be done there are two options that you can choose: be absolutely shattered and resolved to believe that somehow its your own personal failure that you can’t simply work and go to school like your peers. or you can pivot. You can readjust your priorities and lean into listening to your body, building up your own coping strategies and learning to create a life that accommodates for your needs. Maybe you get more answers and more abilities in the future and you can readjust your priorities and pivot back toward school. Sometimes you aren’t an inspirational story because you “did the thing despite all odds” sometimes you are the inspiration because you kept pivot and following a path that aligns with you and who you want to be and not the societal expectations that you dont fit into. I am proud of what I have created and I dont know what my life looks like in the future but I am confident in the fact that what ever gets thrown my way I will be able to adapt and realign my priorities with my values and be grateful the opportunities that come and release myself from the ones that dont.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Finding local shops to sell my products whether consignment, booth rental, or whatever the agreement, being able to have physical locations where my products can be sold consistently has been a big buoy in building my credibility. Because of my Adhd forgetfulness and procrastination I am not the best at being super consistent with online drops and marketing. I have found having somewhere that can be consistent helps make up for that weakness of mine. I also think that having locations that get my target audiences eyes on my products, getting them to follow my socials and connect with the brand more helps to facilitate more of a curated experience that says more than “hi, I make jewelry do you want to buy it” I initially was able to first start when my best friend let me sell on a single shelf she didn’t use at a booth space and was able to build up my business through those sales. Her willingness to help support me and my ideas is why I am still able to be in business today. even finding someone who does this could help you learn how it works, how to apply and what shops might have your target audience.
Second being that I really leaned into Branding from the very beginning was really good when I first started. I think that it showed that I was all in and ready to sell (even if I had no idea what I was doing or how to tell myself or products). especially when applying to local markets that can be competitive in the jewelry entries. When you can communicate what makes your products unique from the 10 other similar businesses it makes it more likely to stick out and seem cool and interesting.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://willajeanshop.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shopwillajean/
- Other: Has locations, and other links https://linkpop.com/shopwillajean form to submit female ancestor names to be used as product names: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfqFPcYiIXI9QO0k5O9LwgNFZCit3w6yHY1brTWqNWGjTSE3g/viewform
Image Credits
Delaney Winter