We recently connected with Shena Simmons and have shared our conversation below.

Shena, appreciate you joining us today. Do you manage your own social media?

When I first started the company, I managed social media on my own. I quickly learned that in order to do it successfully, I needed to bring someone on the team to take over. I had a very specific vision of how I wanted our platforms ran and knew how powerful social media could be, but I didn’t have the bandwidth to manage it all.

I started by hiring a part time social media manager. She did a wonderful job running our platforms, interacting with customers, and helping to build the brand. She also saved me a TON of time. It was so successful that I eventually brought her on to the team as a full time employee.

Shena, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am the founder of Stewart Simmons, a collegiate apparel brand. We create fashion forward clothing for women and children and are licensed by 34 collegiate institutions. Stewart Simmons can be purchased in over 350 retail locations throughout the country and at our website, www.stewartsimmons.com.

I started the brand 8 years ago with the mission to help women celebrate the collegiate communities they love. I had attended Florida State University as an undergrad and had always felt there was a gap in the market when it came to women’s game day offerings. After school, I went on to work in finance and built a successful career in corporate America. I was good at what I did, but I didn’t love my job or the future that I knew it held for me. When I was on maternity leave with my second child, I had the time I’d needed to slow down and reflect on what I wanted for my career. I came back to the idea that had been planted years before and without experience in retail or fashion, I decided to take a chance and see what I could do to change the women’s game day space.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

When you’re running a small business, it often feels impossible to find the time you need to invest in yourself. One of my favorite resources for an entrepreneur on the go is the podcast, “How I Built This with Guy Raz”. Guy interviews founders (many of whom you probably know) to learn how they built their business. The stories are inspiring, educational, and a testament to the value of resilience. I’ve never finished an episode without learning something new. And on the days when running a business can feel lonely, they give me the motivation I need to push through.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Despite what most people think, you don’t have to have millions in funding to start a business, even a clothing brand. When I started Stewart Simmons, I did so with a very small amount of personal savings. Over the past 8 years, we’ve funded the company through short term business loans and have put every dollar we can back into the business.

While I sometimes wonder what it would be like to have deeper reserves, our humble beginnings have forced us to stay lean and grow responsibly.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.stewartsimmons.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stewart_simmons/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StewartSimmonsAttire/

Image Credits

Allie Hine