We were lucky to catch up with Amber Ennis recently and have shared our conversation below.

Amber , appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I’ve always had a love for creating ever since I was little. My grandparents very much encouraged my creativity and helped by getting me supplies for my many interests. From crocheting to painting to candle making I was always happiest when I was able to create something whether it was a work of art or a gift for someone special. I loved putting my love and energy into something handmade. When I met my best friend Hannah, we always talked about having a small business of our own selling our handmade goods at craft shows and festivals. She even came up with the name Radical Rendezvous. We loved the idea of getting to create and also connect with our community. When COVID came and Hannah lost her job, we figured there was no time like the present to bring our dream to life. That’s how Radical Rendezvous was born.
Now you can find us online, at local shows, and a couple of boutiques in VA. We couldn’t be more grateful for the journey.

Amber , 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 feel as though the first part was answered in my last answer.

We didn’t want to hold ourselves back by picking one niche of art. We wanted to be a one stop shop for creative visions whether that is favors for an event, a resin art piece made with a special bouquet of flowers, or a macrame wall tapestry for your living room. Custom orders are our specialty!
Between custom orders we let our creativity run wild to create pieces that are unique and totally rad. I tend to use items I find in nature from flowers, insects, etc in my resin art whereas Hannah tends to blend together colors to create her resin pieces. Fiber arts like macrame bring me back to my roots of where I first started. I will always have a love for yarn hoarding hehe.
Together we want to be a place that brings creative visions to life for anyone and everyone. We want to create art with your unique inputs that speaks to the depths of your soul. Art that is uniquely you, which we think is pretty rad.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Having a business ties into your personal life and structures so much. You have to keep up with deadlines for taxes, track your income and expenses, create quality content, market yourself, keep up with customers and leads, etc. Building a strong foundation is everything to keeping things going and keeping yourself sane. It’s all about balance! The first year after having our business when I went to do my taxes, I learned the hard way that my record keeping was not as good as it should have been. It took days to gather all of the documentation to complete my return and after much stress and almost some tears, I decided on a system to keep me up to date and organized so that it wouldn’t happen again.
You can’t control everything when it comes to having a business and you won’t always know the answers to the how and why of things. It’s not always clear how you’ll get to the next goal but staying fluid and open is key. Now I feel confident in the foundations and structures I’ve added to both my personal and professional life, but I know not to get too attached because something better still might come along as things change and that’s okay too.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

It was really hard for me to get used to asking for the right price for my art. I had done the calculations of time and supplies used but at first I would never charge what my art was actually worth out of fear that I was asking too much or that the customer wouldn’t want to pay full price. It was especially hard since most of my first customers were friends and family so I always wanted to give them a discount or just give them the art. I realized that in order to truly make what my art is worth, I had to overcome the fear of not being enough to get past it. I wasn’t being a burden by asking for the right price for my art and the right people would be happy to pay that price.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.radicalrendezvous.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/radicalrendezvous
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/RadicalRendezvous
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@radicalrendezvous?_t=8YkZ2YXgGpG&_r=1