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

Haley, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

I grew up loving animals and planting in the garden with my family. From the time I could I walk I was helping my great grandmother in her greenhouse transplanting seeds into pots for her floral business. I loved helping my great grandfather plant and pick vegetables from the garden. This love of being outdoors with animals and plants continued on into my teenage years. Where I took agriculture science classes in high school. I knew from my experiences in agriculture that I wanted to have a career in agriculture. I graduated high school in the top ten percent of my class to pursue a degree in agriculture. I attended Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas. I graduated being a certified Texas Agriculture Science Teacher.

I began my career in the floral industry by becoming a high school agriculture science teacher. I taught high school agriculture for five years in Texas. I enjoyed every minute of teaching young students where their food comes from and how to grow it themselves. After Covid, my opinion of being in the classroom changed. I taught my last year in a high school classroom in 2021. I left the teaching profession due to my heart not being one hundred percent committed to the students.

After leaving the classroom, I felt a void in my heart. I knew that I had to find a way to continue to serve my community in way that would bring me joy. While teaching I would have friends or family ask me to design their florals for different events and weddings. Many times those friends and family would ask “why have you not started your own business?”. I would always answer with I just do not have time due to being a teacher.

For many years I dabbled in landscape and nature photography. Mainly just for my own personal enjoyment. I had experience with taking animal portraits at the livestock shows. The thought never crossed my mind to start my own business of photographing people. Now with all my available time I thought why not take after my great grandmother and start my own floral and photography business. In 2022, I decided to take a leap of faith and start my own business-Striking H Photography & Florals, LLC.

I knew this business would grow with the need of a traveling florist located right here in east Texas. As well as the need for a florist who designed wedding florals in Marshall-my hometown. The two florists we had in town at the time did not service weddings. So I knew that was a void I needed to fill with my own creative designs. The photography side of my business grew quickly due to the community not having many wedding photographers in the Marshall area either.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have a background in agriculture so naturally I would start my own business that is in the agriculture industry. My great grandmother and my grandmother were both influential ladies in starting my own business. One taught me the love of the floral industry. And the other taught me the significance of taking photographs and paying attention to detail. I feel that is why both of my passions flow so well together into one business.

I am a florist and a lifestyle photographer. This means I can design and create any type of floral arrangement that you could imagine. I only really need to see an example of the design you are wanting and can then create a beautiful arrangement similar or even better than the original. I most enjoy whenever a client gives me design freedom. Meaning I can create any type of floral design that I feel would go with their theme for their event. Being a lifestyle photographer also gives me a double edge in the wedding industry. Most of my clients love that I can design their wedding florals and then be their wedding photographer. I also offer photography sessions for graduating seniors, baby and calf minis, engagements, couples and family mini sessions that are themed for fall or Christmas.

My business name is a unique name. My husband and I decided when we first got married, that when we open any businesses we want all the names to start with “Striking H”. What makes this unique is that our cattle are branded with a lightening bolt and a capital H. That is read as “Striking H”. We have two businesses now with that unique name: Striking H Photography & Florals, LLC. and Striking H Cattle & Hay.

I am most proud that I believed in myself and continued working hard to open my own business. There were many times that people mentioned there is no way you will be successful having two skills in one business. Each time someone would say that to me I would just smile because I knew regardless of their opinion I was not going to give up on my business. My community had a void and I knew that I could help fill that space.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I think what has helped build my reputation within my market is my level of knowledge and skill of the floral industry. I have two degrees in agriculture. In college I took numerous courses that gave me the tools to become knowledgeable in the floral industry. I think what also helped was my level of involvement in the community I started my business in. Most of the community knew me previously as the agriculture science teacher. Many of the community members had already seen first hand the floral designs that I created while being a teacher. They knew that I was reliable and could be depended on to get the job done on time and in a professional manner.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

I had a huge support system in putting together the initial capital to start my business. My husband was the number one supporter of my business. We both decided to take money from our savings to put together the initial capital to start the business. We knew that it was took about a complete year to gain the investment back. Due to the fact that starting a business can be quite expensive. The beginning stages involved starting the LLC and buying the camera equipment. Once we got that completed, I created social media pages and starting blasting my business on Instagram and Facebook. Now I have a steady flow of business.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.strikinghphotographyandfloralsllc.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strikinghflorals/ and https://www.instagram.com/strikinghflorals/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Striking-H-Photography/100095038459319/?mibextid=LQQJ4d and https://www.facebook.com/strikinghphotographyandfloralllc/