Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Shamara Slaton. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Shamara Slaton, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you come up with the idea for your business?

Growing up I always loved shoes! In high school I would wear high heels to school, because I was super girly! I had such a huge shoe collection I just didn’t know what to do with them anymore, so I would give them away. My favorite shoe store to get my high heels used to be a place called Bakers. When they closed their doors for business I was stuck like dang where can I get shoes from now?! By this time my husband was sick of my massive shoe collection so he suggested to me to sell my old shoes instead of giving them away. Then an idea came to me, like what if I open an online women’s shoe store. I can still be around all the shoes that I love but this way I could make a profit off of the shoes. So I did. some research on how to start an online boutique. I found vendors for different women’s shoes and the rest was history. I felt like coming up with a way for women to buy nice shoes at an affordable price would have a big impact on everyday women like myself at the time who couldn’t afford designer things but loved to wear nice things.

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

My name is Shamara Slaton and I am the owner of Violet Shoetique. I am originally from Saint Paul, MN but I now call Atlanta GA home. Violet Shoetique started out as an online women’s shoes and accessory store providing women the options to have nice shoes at an affordable price. My business recently expanded to its first store front location. So customers have to the options to buy online and also shop in person. We also allow a buy online pick up in store option. We just had our Grand Opening and we are super excited to share Violet Shoetique with everyone in person.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I currently sell my products online using our website. We initially created and built our website using Wix but we recently did a switch and created our new website using Shopify as it is found to be more user friendly and better for having an e-commerce store. For business’s that are just starting out and want to build there websites I found both platforms to be user friendly. If you’re actually selling a product then starting on Shopify would be the better option. With the types of products that I sell I think it benefits my business more by utilizing my own website vs selling on Etsy or crate joy. I have considered selling my products on Amazon but that is something I may try to do in the future.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I would have to say going out in different areas of Georgia and being in several pop up shops helped get the word out about my business. Our business was online only in the beginning but we would go to local pop up shops in Georgia and sell our shoes in person to help get out name out there. I think me going out and doing pop up shops helped me grow clientele, meet and connect with difference business owners and it helped others get to know my brand.

Contact Info:

• Website: www,violetshoetique.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/violetshoetique/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/violetshoetique/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM7sbqc5y8xFtmjMtHlSe3Q