We were lucky to catch up with Ann Thomas recently and have shared our conversation below.

Ann, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

I want to say that I spent a great deal of time coming up with the name CherryRock Creations, or that my creative juices were really “flowing”, but that would be a lie. I guess the actual story is kind of funny.

Several years ago, like ten years or so,  my husband and I went fishing with some friends. I didn’t do any fishing. (I never do. I just like to go!) We were at a small pond and there was an old boat and some oars. My friend wanted to get in the boat, but I didn’t. She said, “why not? I thought you were country.”

I replied, “I never said I was country!”

“Oh…what are you then?” she laughed.

I opened my mouth but I didn’t have an answer. It’s so silly, but that bothered me. I was born and raised in southern West Virginia so I probably should be country, but I just can’t describe myself that way. I thought about that for a long time.

I love music. Just about any genre is alright with me, but my favorite is rock. Any rock. Rock and roll, soft rock, classic rock, hard rock, metal, etc. One of my all-time favorite bands is Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. I was driving one day, listening to their greatest hits. I listened to “Cherry Bomb” and “I Love Rock and Roll”. I was trying to decide which of those songs I like best because I obviously don’t have enough stuff to keep my mind occupied when I realized I couldn’t choose one. I said (out loud) “I like ’em both…Cherry Rock”. My mouth dropped. I loved that! Cherry Rock. My mind went back to my friend asking “What are you then?” I’m Rock and Roll. I’m Cherry Rock!   I have the spirit of Rock and Roll.  I always have.

To clarify, I most definitely am a hillbilly, but I’m not country.  There is a difference.  Hang around me long enough and you’ll see it.

I didn’t start CherryRock Creations until several years later, but I always knew CherryRock was going to be a thing in my life. I just didn’t know what exactly.

Ann, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was given a recipe book years ago with some bath and body recipes. I wanted to make my own products and sell them but I always had more irons in the fire than I knew what to do with! I’m a wife (29 years this summer), and mother of one son (who is grown now…sniff…sniff…tissue please). My husband, Shane, and I had a graphic business for 17 years which we sadly had to close in 2015. We also opened a non-denominational church in 2008. (That in itself is quite the story. My husband was addicted to cocaine, pot, and alcohol. Then in 2006, God stepped in and set us on a new path.) I love to sing, and play the guitar, and the piano. I got that from my Dad (I was very much a Daddy’s girl), so we opened a recording studio together in 2016. We loved it!

My Dad passed away suddenly in the fall of 2017 from a massive heart attack. It was devastating. Our (the whole family’s) world turned upside down and inside out. I closed the studio because I honestly couldn’t do that without Dad. It was heartbreaking. It was a long time before I could even pick up a guitar again.

Fast forward to 2019. I was working at a preschool and I’d had enough. I decided to go for my dream of being in business for myself making bath and body products. I wanted to do something I loved and could be passionate about. So I quit my job, bought some supplies, and then…Covid hit. I was scared. We all were. I figured that would be the worst time to start a new business so I took a work-from-home job in customer service. I…was…miserable! I made it until 2021 then I was ready to try again. I’d been practicing making wax melts, soap, sugar scrub, body butter, and bath bombs as a hobby. I quit my job in February of 2021 and went full-time into CherryRock Creations.

I know I have a lot of competition in this industry. I have competition locally, too. The thing is, all of my competitors are really, really similar. They make such beautiful products, but you can only do so much country, primitive, and rustic before it all blends together.  Or they lean heavily toward the occult or are just plain vulgar.  To each his own, but that ain’t me.  Yes, the market is saturated. Saturated with the same old same old. I knew CherryRock Creations would be different because I’m different. CherryRock Creations is loud, proud, fun, and in your face. It easily stands out from the crowd. I’ve worked hard on my branding, and I’m proud of what CherryRock Creations is and where it’s going. My wax melts are music notes and cherries. Why? Because it’s FUN!

I make all sorts of things. The aforementioned bath and body products and wax melts, and I’m always trying new things. New creations, new recipes, new ingredients, new scents, etc. I’m even dabbling in Amigurumi Crochet. I’ve fallen in love with crocheting critters, scarves, beanies, and more! I feel that if I like/enjoy something then my customers/audience will too. I’ve also found that I really enjoy making videos for my YouTube channel. Watching other creators on YouTube has been one of the best ways to learn new skills, tips, and tricks. I created my channel to “give back” some of what I received. I want to succeed and I want others to succeed too. If there is any way I can help someone else then I’m definitely going to.

Shane is an incredibly talented artist. He drew some designs for me to put on T-Shirts. They are weird and unconventional…they fit right in! I love selling those T-Shirts because they’re unique and one-of-a-kind, just like CherryRock Creations.

I make my products in small batches. So small that some things are pretty much made to order. I use a variety of superior ingredients like shea butter, mango butter, cherry kernel oil, jojoba oil, etc., all of which are fantastic for the skin. Especially in winter. I make the base for my whipped sugar scrub from scratch so I’ll know exactly what’s in it. I choose fun, strong, quirky scents. My best-selling scents are Butt Naked and Blueberry Cobbler. My personal favorites are Apple Cinnamon Icing and Pomegranate. I try to have something for everyone. My regular scents rotate throughout the year and include Butt Naked, Blueberry Cobbler, Honeysuckle, Birthday Cake, Georgia Peach, Monkey Farts, Cinnamon, Cream Cheese Frosting, Mulberry, and more. I always have cool seasonal scents, too. For example, around Halloween, I have Poison Apple, Spider-n-Spice, Monster Mash, and Creepy Crunch.

While it’s true that CherryRock Creations is a business, it’s more than that to me. I want to make my living from this, but that’s not the only reason I do it. This is my creative outlet. I get to be myself and be my own boss. I can push the limits as far as I want. I can help others. Not just other creators, but my customers. If what I make can bring some joy into someone’s life then I’m thrilled! If a particular fragrance helps someone to forget the day’s stresses then that’s a job well done. I can’t think of anything I’d rather do. This is it for me!

We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.

I currently sell on my Shopify website. I tried Wix but it wasn’t the right fit. Don’t get me wrong, Wix is great. That’s what we use for our church’s website but as far as selling, shipping, etc., I believe Shopify is the way to go. Getting your store up and running is almost effortless. It’s very user-friendly and they offer several nice (free) themes for your store. They do most of the heavy lifting when it comes to your shopping cart, checkout, payments, tracking inventory, etc. I’d recommend Shopify to anyone who is seriously considering selling online. The only complaint I have is trying to customize a particular theme. That can be a little more involved than it needs to be but you can find hundreds of tutorials on YouTube.

I tried selling on Etsy when I first opened but I didn’t have much luck with it. I like the idea of selling on a marketplace that already has tons of traffic but it can be hard to be seen sometimes. You still have to drive traffic to your Etsy shop just like you have to drive traffic to your Shopify store. Unfortunately, no one is going to just “find you”. If someone is truly thinking about selling online then you have to familiarize yourself, at least a little, with SEO, and optimizing your site/listings to get eyeballs on your products.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

I have two different clientele, local/in-person and online. The most effective strategy for growing my local clientele has been setting up a booth at local events. With the type of business I have, there is nothing more effective than talking with people face-to-face. They can see, feel, and smell what I’m selling. We can form a connection. That connection is what you want. That is what makes someone a long-time customer. That’s a big hurdle to overcome when trying to sell online.

I started selling to family and friends. This is a great way to get the word-of-mouth strategy going. On a side note, my greatest customer, supporter, and cheerleader is my Mom. She’s been a true blessing, although I believe she’s developed an addiction to wax melts :-)

As far as my online clientele I get most of my sales from Facebook and YouTube. YouTube surprised me. I make how-to videos to help other creators not to try to get sales, but I have quite a few loyal customers who found me on YouTube first. I have my Shopify store linked to my Facebook Shop and that has resulted in lots of new customers.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://cherryrockcreations.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cherryrockcreations
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mycherryrock
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CherryRockCreations