We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jessica Austin a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jessica, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s talk about social media – do you manage your own or do you have someone or a company that handles it for you? Why did you make the choice you did?

I manage all of my social media myself! Since opening a brick-and-mortar location, it has become increasingly difficult to stay consistent with keeping up with my social media, but I try my best to post regularly and engage with my followers!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started Mrs. Fancy Plants in June of 2020 after COVID shut down my yoga business. In the beginning, caring for plants was my way of staying connected with nature while creating a welcoming aesthetic for my home. As I started to accumulate more and more of my own plants, I began to feel a much deeper connection to nature and wanted to share what I was learning. Being an entrepreneur at heart, I decided to turn my passion into a business, and Mrs. Fancy Plants was born! I had a custom shed built in my backyard in May of 2021, and opened for business! I offered appointment-based shopping, and open house hours. I had a fantastic summer and fall and then when winter came, it was just too cold to keep the plants out in the shed, so I had to significantly decrease my inventory. So, while my plants went dormant for the colder months, I began to think about how to pivot. The next step for my small business was to find and open a brick-and-mortar location, which opened in February of this year! As a growing business and one-woman show, it has definitely been challenging, and at times, exhausting, but I am so happy to be on this journey and watch my small business grow! I have two kids, and it is so important to me to set a solid example for them by showing them that I am reaching for my goals and taking a leap of faith in starting and running a business!

Mrs. Fancy Plants has a rotating selection of curated houseplants, and offers a variety of hands-on community events so everyone can stay connected! One of the best things about the houseplant community is getting to know other plant lovers!

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

I keep in touch with my customers in a number of ways! I send out periodic newsletters and updates via email and I also keep in touch via social media. I am always available on Instagram or Facebook to help with plant care and answer any questions my customers have! Staying connected with my customers is the most important aspect of my business because, without them, Mrs. Fancy Plants wouldn’t exist! Another way I stay connected with my customers is through workshops that I hold every month. This is a great way for me to meet new customers, fellow small business owners, and plant lovers to create lasting relationships!

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Before I created Mrs. Fancy Plants, I owned a yoga business called Yogammunity. I am a certified yoga instructor for both adults and children, so I was teaching children’s and family yoga until the pandemic hit and shut everything down. It was during the time when I wasn’t teaching and cooped up in my house, that I really started to level up my personal plant collection and start to learn more about plant families, what they need, and how to care for them. It was during this time of learning that I decided to pivot and start another business that could be equally beneficial to the community! Plants have so many natural benefits, and it is so much fun to keep learning about them and share what I learn with my customers and followers!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.mrsfancyplants.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/mrs.fancy.plants
• Facebook: facebook.com/mrsfancyplants

Image Credits
Blue Flame Studio CO. Matlai Photography. Jessica Austin.