We recently connected with Brittany Spencer and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Brittany, thanks for joining us today. How has Covid changed your business model?

In July of 2021, I manifested my childhood dream of opening my own brick and mortar store after all of my outdoor art and music festivals shut down during the pandemic. All of the money I had invested in those upcoming festivals for that year was lost and non-refundable. I was out thousands of dollars and I had to think quickly to figure out a different way to make an income to support my family. Although it felt devastating at times, the pandemic taught me how to pivot again and again to jump through the ever changing rules and regulations we had to follow during that time. During COVID-19, we had to expand into this new brick and mortar location, figure out how to competitively market, and find new ways to sell our products through our online store. I used all my passion and creativity that was on hold and brewing inside me to find new creative ways to succeed.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

A decade ago, I had centralized this business around making and selling canned foods, handmade items, and body butters. I returned to my roots in jewelry making, a passion that I have had since high school. I wanted to carry over the importance of natural elements from my original products into the new direction, namely in the form of crystals. I worked tirelessly, with the help of my family, to make this space my own and a perfect representation of my brand. I have dreamt about this store since I was 13 years old. I was in a life coaching class in school, and some of the things that we talked about I actually feel like I manifested. I lived in Florence, Arizona for quite some time; I feel like that is part of my past where my love for natural elements came into play. My store really incorporates who I am, especially in terms of the tones and the natural aspects. I feel like the earthiness of it all really encompasses me.

Here at The Local Radish we sell ethically sourced holistic goods, with a mission to recycle and reuse to lessen our footprint. We believe in investing in “the little guys” like us, other small business and our amazing miners instead of corporate America. We hear people say, “why are your prices so high?” We encourage them to look at it from a small business point of view! We take pride in investing in our miners lives and make sure that they are paid a livable wage, absolutely no child labor and no slave wages. They are humans with lives and families who are doing a job and that is important to me. Another huge aspect is since Covid-19 happened shipping costs have risen tremendously all over the world! Most crystals we sell are not found in your backyard, they come from all around the world. The bigger the crystal the more that it costs to have it shipped here to us. Plus, some of our crystals are shaped or etched with a Dremel which is all done by hand by our miners! It takes time and skill to do what they do! The truth is most people don’t think about all the costs to run a brick and mortar store. From bills, employees, rent, advertising, shipping costs, refreshing inventory, travel costs, to paying our miners/small business we work with a livable wage to ethically source all of our crystals and materials, the list goes on! We hand select all of our crystals to get the best quality pieces for our customers. A lot of crystals are rare, hard to obtain, and one of a kind pieces!

When it comes to values it’s a huge, important part of the Local Radish that the values of the artists and products that we carry align with our own. We are LGBTQ friendly and pro-womens rights here. It’s very important to us that the makers that we purchase from are also investing into making a change in our society. We only purchase from people like-minded in that way. These deep connections are powerful in maintaining a respectful and supportive culture.
We aim to go above and beyond to make sure that our customers get good quality and ethically sourced materials. Some businesses focus more on sales numbers, but our dedication to our customers has been the hallmark of our success. We take the time necessary to understand our customers needs and wants. We also teach classes to help our customers feel more comfortable with their practices. We also don’t gate-keep information here. We want everyone to learn about crystals, other cultures, practices, and the places where these things come from. We want people to be respectful of indigenous cultures who practiced these things long before any of us.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Since I have been doing this for ten years I have experienced a lot of pros and cons with social media. There was people who made fun of me at first for not having very many followers and talking to “no one.” I was posting daily, talking to my first few followers, and posting high quality photos. My initial goal wasn’t about getting a ton of followers I was more passionate about my brand and building a rapport. Social media can be a bear at times. You are opening yourself up and being vulnerable to people you don’t even know, putting your story and your life out there. In pushing though all the negativity I had initially received at times I now have built an audience of over 5.3k on Facebook and over 11.4k on Instagram. Something I always say to people who are just starting out is just keep going. Use hashtags, engage with your customers, be consistent, post unique content. It’s OK not to do it all. Pick a couple choice platforms and focus on making them great. In the beginning it can be super tough trying to build a social media presence and clientele, but you can’t give up, keep posting and keep persevering.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Simply put, a business is only as good as its reputation. Our consistency in providing quality products, our employees, and our excellent customer service. We are not just chasing a sale. We are investing in our customers, and other small businesses that have a similar mission and values. With both sides of the coin, your business reputation is earned over time. It comes from the opinions people form when they interact with you as well as from the work we put into it here at the shop.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://localradish.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelocalradish
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Thelocalradish