Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Amy Bloomer. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Amy , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with inspirations and heroes. Are there any historical figures you look up to?
Amelia Jenks Bloomer was a revolutionary women’s rights activist, who also happened to popularize the term “bloomers”. Her work has been a great source of inspiration in my own endeavors personally and professionally since the day I married a descendant of her nephew.
In the 19th century, Amelia edited and produced the first women’s newspaper The Lily, promoting events and discussing issues important to women of the time. But she truly became famous when she wore a reformed style of dress that gave women more flexibility, mobility, and freedom than the constricting costumes of the day. She caused such a stir nationwide that the outfit became known as “bloomers.”
“The costume of women should be suited to her wants and necessities. It should conduce at once to her health, comfort and usefulness.” -Amelia Bloomer
I’d add that it’s not just the costume of women that impacts her life, but also her environment. Everyone should live in a space that is intentionally organized, one that suits their wants and needs and also enhances their mental and physical health. Every day, I’m able to move about freely and comfortably as I work in my clients’ space. Without Amelia to pave the way, I wouldn’t have had this daily opportunity to put on my pants one leg at a time.
Amelia was not only one of the first women bold enough to wear pants, but also introduced her friend Elizabeth Cady Stanton to another like-minded activist named Susan B Anthony. Those two women went on to fight and win the right to vote for women. Amelia was later nominated to the Women’s Hall of Fame in recognition of her contributions to women’s social reform and suffrage.
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 started organizing as soon as I could walk, sorting my toy chest by size, color and function. My innate organizational acumen led to success in academics and extracurriculars, all the way up to a Masters in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University and a successful Wall Street career.
I worked for almost fifteen years with executives of a global investment bank, a top hedge fund and several Fortune 500 companies in various roles within corporate human resources. But after all those years, I left the corporate world to accept the most challenging job – a stay at home mom to her two kids, Thomas and Zoë.
Fast forward to 2016, when I took a leap of faith and started my own small business, bringing my passion for helping people flourish through organization to the Baltimore market. Since then, I’ve been in thousands of homes, helping families, professionals and retirees to transform their space, and in turn, their lives.
The inspiration behind starting my own business was that I married a descendant of the revolutionary women’s rights activist, Amelia Bloomer. She created and produced the first women’s newspaper The Lily, in 1849 promoting events and discussing issues important to women of the time. Amelia was even more well known for popularizing a radically new, and comfy, style of dress; and that is where the term “bloomers” comes from. Amelia was a revolutionary for women’s fashion and social reform; I aspire to be a revolutionary for women’s space.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
In the beginning I assumed that I would grow primarily through direct referral, but in practice, that has only generated about half of my client base. I’ve had to be open to many avenues including social media, in-person networking, speaking engagements, print marketing and the list goes on. At the end of the day, you can’t be afraid to put yourself out there. My business has grown through multiple marketing venues and continues to do so today.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
According to the Mayo Clinic, resilience is defined as, “being able to adapt to life’s misfortunes and setbacks.” Starting a professional organizing business is a 100% commission job. You are literally starting with zero clients and building a book of clients from the ground up. Resilience is one of the most essential qualities one must embrace to succeed.
One story of resilience that I’ll share is about my social media efforts. I worked very hard to organically build a following of more than 10,000 followers on my Instagram account. Then one day, out of nowhere, my account was shut down for no reason. I tried to appeal, everyday for six months straight with no response. I eventually just had to let it go and start over again. My lesson learned was that this free social media marketing tool could be taken away at any moment, with no explanation. So I no longer devote the time and energy that I used to in growing the account. The reality is that while it’s been a great way to network and be contacted by journalists, product specialists and other professional organizers, it hasn’t been a primary source of client referrals.
I would also like to offer one of my favorite quotes about resilience from Eleanor Roosevelt:
“Do the things that interest you and do them with all your heart. Don’t be concerned about whether people are watching you or criticizing you. The chances are that they aren’t paying any attention to you. It’s your attention to yourself that is so stultifying. But you have to disregard yourself as completely as possible. If you fail the first time then you’ll just have to try harder the second time. After all, there’s no real reason why you should fail. Just stop thinking about yourself.”
Contact Info:
- Website: www.letyourspacebloom.com
- Instagram: @letyourspacebloom
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/letyourspacebloom/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amybloomer
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/let-your-space-bloom-baltimore?osq=let+your+space+bloom