Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Alicia Cole. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alicia , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?
I actually started 10 years ago selling clothes and handmade soaps at different small events. As the years progressed I focused on selling soaps, skin care, gift sets and candles at bigger festivals. I then starting getting a growing customer base who was looking to shop just with me. (I removed the clothes for a while because setting up outside it was harder to do clothes.)
In 2022 I started thinking about getting a brick and mortar. At the time I was thinking this is a crazy idea because most businesses are still trying to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though this was the case I pushed forward with my idea and continued to looking at commercial real estate on my own to get an idea on pricing based off area. Then one day while I was setup at an outdoor market one of my clients who always shops with me mentioned she was an real estate and that was my blessing. It went pretty fast because the first placed I went to visit with her was the perfect location and I closed the deal that day.
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 come from a family of entrepreneurs, so the drive to explore entrepreneurship is in my DNA. I discovered my gift and love for fashion, skincare and trying new things at a young age. I started creating skincare products because my family and I have struggled with eczema for years. My mom and sister’s eczema left them with lifetime marks on their skin. With this at the top of mind, I wanted to make a soap that will soothe our skin. I started making soap with honey, oatmeal and no essential oils. That was the first soap I ever made. Months later, I started adding essential oils to some of my soap loafs. After making soap for a couple of years and only for personal use, I wanted to share these products with others struggling with sensitive skin. I was sure of one thing, that the soaps I made would not include any perfumes or animal products.
A few months after making my decision to try soap making as a business, I did my first vendor show here in Atlanta. I only had two products in my skincare line then, which included soaps and a small amount of shea butter. But, that was the start of Lillies. The name Lillies came from my late grandmother, whose name was Lillie Mae. I aim to offer my customers excellent products at a reasonable price. After doing shows for a year, I wanted to offer a full spa experience to go beyond just soaps and shea butter. Currently and nine years later, I am proud to say Lillie’s offers over 15 soaps variations, including our honey & oatmeal soap, bath salts, bath bombs, lip conditioner, hand sanitizer, hand soap, shea butter whip, body butter, dead sea salt scrubs, soy wax candles and soy wax melts.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
I have always dreamed Of owning my own boutique. I was also always taught to save. The initial capital was saved from me doing many festival over the years, savings from me working a regular job. Then I was blessed with major capital from my parents and my sister who you see with me cutting the ribbon.
Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?
All of my skin care products and candles are handmade and hand poured. I do not use a manufactured company. I have been making soap and body butters for 10 years now. I do get a ton of help in making the products from my parents mostly and family / friends.
The one big lesson I have learned over the years is you must invest in great equipment to help with time management. This helps keeps your quality up as you grow. Quality is key to me. It might bean expensive investment at first but it worth it down the line.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lillies80.com
- Instagram: @lillies80
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Lillies80/
- Twitter: @lilliesf80