We recently connected with Arianna Emanuel-Wright and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Arianna thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you happier as a business owner? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job?
Recently, while I was talking to a friend about being a business owner at a restaurant – we were discussing how everyone encourages people to start a business but forgot about how hard it is to maintain one. It is no easy feat, and I’ve had moments where I have wanted to give up. But then, I quickly remember about why I got started in the first place and that my passion for it is stronger than my times of difficulty.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I have two businesses – one is called AK1, a sports brand. It is an innovative and stylish finger sleeve accessory that athletes of all sports can wear during practices and games. The number “1” is stitched on the top of the sleeve and is a representation of overall success and pride that athletes have while performing. I started this because I remember the items that I really cared about having one while playing basketball and wanted to create something that could be potentially be the next Nike someday. I have found success in college athletes wearing the finger sleeve and promoting it on their social media through NIL agreements and want to continue to expand in the long-term. My other business is Authentic, Reliable, Innovative, Career Consulting, LLC. I started this during my second year in graduate school (Master’s in Career Counseling, FSU). It was my goal to enhance the process that underrepresented individuals go through when navigating their career. I have helped hundreds of clients with their resumes, cover letter, graduate school applications, interviewing, job negotiation, and overall confidence relating to career development.
Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?
I want to be transparent – this is something that I am still working on. My goal is to secure a spot in an accelerator program for startups or obtain an angel investor/grant funding. At this point, I have invested my personal funding into both businesses.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I think the key to this is being consistent. For example, in my career consulting business, I hired a social media intern- but before that I was posting daily on my story and finding people to follow my personal page. I also took advantage of using Reels and TikTok videos to push my career-related content. With just starting out, don’t be afraid to not have a big following at first – it is about genuine followers, rather than having a bunch of them that won’t buy your product.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.theak1brand.com, https://aricareer.wixsite.com/website
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ariemanuelwright/, https://www.instagram.com/aricareer/, https://www.instagram.com/theak1brand/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/arianna.wright1/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ariannaew
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ariemanuelwright/videos
- Other: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Z6DLqr3OYq3CGL7GzhrW-nfLeNv7OV8kwtdYw1yGvDs/edit#slide=id.gc6f80d1ff_0_0