We recently connected with Amanda Heslinga and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Amanda thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
If I didn’t have Crohn’s Disease, Rocks with Sass would not exist. It has been 13 years since my life changed. I wish I could hug frail 21 year old Amanda and tell her… “Listen. You’re about to go into the hardest years of your life. Your body is going to be in a battle against itself. Your heart will break as you witness the life you once knew change so drastically. You will hit rock bottom. And from this place of darkness you will begin to create a life that far succeeds anything you could imagine in this moment. You will find your strength, your voice, and your purpose. These struggles will be your greatest gift in this lifetime. Allow yourself to feel them. And be gentle with yourself through this process… I’m so proud of you.”
Life can be incredibly hard sometimes, but when you choose to be courageous and not give up time and time again, something changes inside of you. You develop a sense of grit and see the world through a new lens of possibilities. Our goal is to offer products that can support you through all phases of life and inspire you to place action behind the reality you wish to see for yourself. We are honored to be the connection between our customers and these healing tools – while at the same time empowering everyone to understand that they themselves are their own healer.
Amanda, 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’m Amanda, a 34 year old fashion designer turned rock shop owner based out of Columbus, OH. I resigned from my fashion design job when my Crohn’s Disease started to take a toll on my physical and mental health. The decision to choose myself over everything else changed the trajectory of my entire life. The universe supported this decision and my life began to fall into place instead of falling apart. With each step forward I knew I was heading in the right direction. What started as a handmade crystal jewelry business out of my apartment has turned into a rock shop offering over 100+ crystal varieties, jewelry, metaphysical tools, books and self care items. My employees and I work out of our storefront in Westerville, OH where we serve the local community and beyond by shipping orders all over the world.
The love of crystals has been around for thousands of years, but Rocks with Sass stands out with its unique visuals and heartfelt connection. We see the beauty in what the Earth has created and take it a step further with curated collections and displays that inspire our customers to embark on their own healing journey.
I am most proud of the work environment I have created for myself and my employees. My previous job called for long hours and a heavy workload filled with urgent priorities. Many times I found myself crying in the bathroom before returning to work. Personal struggles were rarely discussed making it impossible for managers to truly know their employees. I will never forget when I returned to work after a hospital stay and my boss’s manager said to me, “Amanda, we aren’t saving lives here. We are designing graphic tees, its not that important. Go home.” I have held that one short conversation very close to my heart as I hired my first employee 5 years ago. We too were not saving lives, but selling rocks.
At the end of the day my employees are the most important part of the business. They make all of our ideas a reality and serve our customers with the best intentions. Having meaningful conversations with my employees has allowed me to know them on a deeper level. It is impossible to completely separate your work and personal life and at Rocks with Sass that has never been the expectation. Together as a team we work to get the job done, while also supporting each other through the triumphs and struggles we all experience. It is a safe space to be yourself and enjoy the work you do. I believe this type of work environment not only benefits the employees, but also the customers that visit our storefront. Many times people are buying crystals as a tool to connect to the energy of their choosing. A customer may be grieving, struggling with anxiety, or starting on a new life path and if they are willing to open up and share we are ready to listen and give heartfelt recommendations.
Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?
After I resigned from my job I signed up for my first local market to sell my handmade crystal jewelry. I nervously arrived alone with a folding table and all my ‘inventory’ in a shoebox. It was a busy day, people were genuinely impressed with my creations and happily took out their wallet to claim a one of a kind piece of jewelry. The entire day was a blur until I returned back to my apartment. I vividly remember laying on the floor in the middle of my living room counting my sales from the day. I had made a thousand dollars and in that moment there were no limits to my potential. That one market gave me the confidence to pursue what seemed to many as a unattainable dream. It was the confirmation I needed to go all in, and thats exactly what I did!
Have you ever had to pivot?
I owe much of my success to social media, but Instagram ten years ago was not what it is today. Algorithms and video format content was nonexistent. When you posted your followers saw your post in their feed in chronological order. As a business owner this was perfect, I consistently posted three times a day (morning, afternoon, and evening) for years and created a following of over 200K. But nothing ever stays the same with social media and as algorithms and reels were introduced everything changed, fast. Feeling helpless I watched our reach and engagement plummet along with sales and I knew something needed to change. I decided to shift my focus to areas I had complete ownership over and reduce the time spent on content creation by about 75%.
My attention was split into three categories. Most important was a complete website redesign that improved the online shopping experience. We added filter functions allowing customers to sort the crystals by not only color, but shape, zodiac sign and intention. Created a loyalty program that generously rewards our top spenders. And put together an extensive resource library for anyone wanting to learn more about crystal energy and how to use it in their every day lives. The entire website is branded with fun colors, watercolor illustrations and beautiful photography that captures the essence of the products we offer.
With the online portion of the business looking it’s best, it was time to focus on the in-store shopping experience. It was clear that our local customers loved the space already, first time visitors would walk through the doors with huge smiles and wide eyes, but I could see opportunities for upgrades. Our space is small so we focused on fixtures that allowed for more product to be displayed in a fun way. We created a pocket stone pyramid table, bracelet and crystal set wall displays and a crystal bin wall. The space is filled with iridescent shimmers, bright colors, and meticulously organized displays allowing our customers to find the perfect piece with ease.
My last area of focus was our email list. Over our nine years of business I had grown an email list of 10K simply from customers choosing to subscribe when they placed an order. I went from sending 5 emails a year to sending weekly updates about new products, blog posts, website features, and sales. Additionally, email subscribers started receiving an exclusive monthly offer for a free product or discount. We were finally back in front of our customers in a more impactful way.
The biggest shift from these changes has been over a 60% increase in direct website sales. Additionally, our website sessions have increased thanks to our educational content, and storefront sales have now reached the same amount as online sales. Social media is still an important pillar of our marketing strategy, but the most valuable lesson in all of this is to make sure you are putting your energy into areas of the business that you own. It’s easy to get lost in the idea that your social media pages are owned by you, but the reality is each of these social platforms is its own business with goals that may not align with yours. Ask yourself how would your business survive if social media didn’t exist and if the answer scares you, its time to get to work!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rockswithsass.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rockswithsass/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RockswithSass/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/rocks-with-sass-westerville-2