We were lucky to catch up with Deanna Lopez recently and have shared our conversation below.
Deanna, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?
No, I honestly wouldn’t change a thing! I feel like the timing for starting my business was perfect for me. When I got started I was a single mom with a 2 year old son. I was in a direct sales company and wanted to meet new people. So I started hosting a weekly ladies night type event at a local restaurant to help myself, and my small business owning friends, market our businesses while helping local charities. They were a success and I met lots of amazing people who have helped me grow my business for the last 9 years! This was around the time that my mom and I started our non-profit no-kill animal rescue (Mutt Mesh Animal Rescue). So these events led to animal adoption events with craft fairs. Soon I was spending every weekend at a show adopting out dogs and helping vendors to grow their businesses. God’s timing was perfect again, and another opportunity kind of fell in my lap…. mall shows! Now 8 years later I am hosting shows inside 5 local shopping malls every weekend. Which I love! Next I opened a pop up boutique downtown, that I closed just in time to avoid the covid shut down craziness. Which was not planned. I was just searching for a better location. So I was really lucky it happened the way it did. And then a stop for coffee and a chance run in with a friend at her fabulous boutique (If you have not been to Lex & Mae at the Tanger Outlets in Texas City you are missing out!) led to me opening a new pop up boutique (Revolve) in Toucan Alley in Kemah, and hosting a fabulous monthly market there (The Toucan Alley Market Days)! I have a lot going on and it is a lot of work. But I am so lucky to have a fabulous group of super supportive people to help me keep it all going. I feel like the right doors have opened for me at just the right times in every aspect of this business. And I could not be more thankful that I get to do this every day! An added bonus is that I can work my schedule around my son’s homeschool activities and still rescue dogs, reptiles, and even a few chinchillas along the way! I pray every day that new opportunities will keep coming to help us grow. For now I am just enjoying the ride!
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 got into this business almost by accident. It has snowballed and taken over my life…. but I love it! I especially love all of the opportunities it has given me to meet fabulous new people and to help the charities that I support. I think what sets my business apart from others is honesty. There are so many scammers out there lately claiming to be event promoters, who are just taking advantage or people. I hate that! My goal is to actually help my vendors THRIVE! I know several reputable event promoters, and we all refer vendors to each other. Because we all genuinely want our vendors to be successful.. I work hard to make sure that my vendors want to continue working with me. Some have been with me since the beginning.. and some are new to the group. But they are all like my second family. We take care of each other. That is what this business should be about: helping others. When your vendors are successful, then you are successful. It does not work any other way! The main thing I would want vendors to know about me is that I am here to help you. I am not just taking a booth fee and sending you on your way. I will answer your questions and give you tips if needed, and most importantly I will tell you which events I think will actually help you to be profitable… even if they are not mine! Again, because I don’t consider my business a success unless my vendors are also successful.
I also offer a large variety of options and volume of shows. I don’t just host one or two a month. We average about 10 shows per month, sometimes more. And there are plenty of locations to choose from. With Revolve boutique I have pop up and consignment options. So it makes it easy for almost anyone to work with me to grow their business.
The drive to always offer variety for my vendors led to me opening Revolve. We have such a great variety, and that spills over into the Toucan Alley Market Days we host monthly. We always have new vendors with different or unique products. I tell people when they come in “We try to keep it weird in here!” We want people to find something new every time they visit us. Even if they are coming in weekly. We have a great location in Kemah at Toucan Alley in the LIghthouse District, that allows us to cater to locals and tourists alike. I have even gotten my son involved. He has his own booth in my store, Joey’s Random Gift Shop. He is learning how to run a business, and enjoying all of the wonderful business that surround us. (Like his favorite Cool Cow Creamery.) We try to make sure that anyone who comes into our store will find something that they love.
Where do you think you get most of your clients from?
My best source for new clients is vendor referrals. I do my best to keep my vendors happy, so they want to tell their friends. I make it my main goal in every aspect of my business to take care of the people who help me grow my business. Thankfully, they take care of me too.
Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?
I am almost always available to my clients. I have a weird schedule, but I try to be as responsive as possible. I am a text, email, or facebook message away at all times. I am actually trying to work on not being so available all the time. Because a day, or a few hours, off every now and then would be nice. But I like to stay in touch to keep things running smoothly. I foster brand loyalty by treating my clients the way I would want to be treated. I provide the best events and customer service I can. Which has led to a long list of extremely loyal clients.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://vendor-events-by-d-106286.square.site/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vendoreventsbyd/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vendoreventsby.deanna or https://www.facebook.com/vendoreventsbyd
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deanna-lopez-1657a31b8/
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/RevolveBoutique https://www.facebook.com/ToucanAlleyMarketDays https://www.facebook.com/muttmeshanimalrescue www.vendoreventsbyd.com
Image Credits
pic 7 (walking father & son) = credit to Kimberly Ford