We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Eli Neaves. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Eli below.
Eli, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
Before I started Eli’s Dyes I was a rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard and was bored one day in my baracks room and decided to tie-dye some shirts they turned out really cool. So i made more and sold them to my friends and family then slowly more and more peope wanted it. I kept selling in little farmers markets and decided to sell it in the biuggest fesitval all year in Kodiak, AK i was gonna be happy if I made $1,000 and by the end of it I made $10,000 I was beyond stoked and from that point on I had a feeling this is what i was gonna be doing. That was in 2018 and in 2019 I got out of the Coast Guard and have been builing up Eli’s Dyes ever since
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
So i am 28 years old and got into the industry kinda by accident I never thought i’d be a small business owner that sells tie-dye. But I just love the challenge of running a small bsuiness there are such highs and lows and the possibilities are endless on where you can grow. I thought when I was 19 years old that I would be a rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard for 20 plus years, but then I started to make tie-dye shirts and then I loved the uniqueness behind it and how they all turned out so cool. I found something that I could work towards and grow and I loved that. Eli’s Dyes became a reflection of who I was. I figured if I could just work as hard as I could and provide the best tie-dye I can put out into the world that id be able to sell my product everywhere. My favorite part of the business is having some come into our shop and just treat them with kindness and try to make them feel like they’re somebody. Even if they dont buy one of our products as long as they left our shop happier then they came in thats all that matters. That’s why Eli’s Dyes motto is to spread Happiness around the world one Tie-Dye shirt at a time.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding part of being an artist is when you put so much time, money, effort into your art, and people actually want to wear it. I find it so cool and rewarding. Sometimes I have to pinch myself cause it’s crazy that I am able to create this brand and people want it and support it. It’s so rewarding cause only as the owner do you truly know where a small business comes from to just tie-dying on tarps in your barracks room to survivng through the pandemic to now renting a 2,000 sq wharehouse and planning on growing even more. Its cool just to look back and appreciate the journey and be proud of yourself of all that you did from a dream not too long ago.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
A time of resilience for Eli’s Dyes and I’m sure everyone was during the pandemic. I just got out of the military in November 2019 gung ho and ready to start selling all over the country. Then March 2020 came and it all came crashing down. I basically had 20 shows lined up and had to stop that. I had to pivot and decided to make face masks from old tie-dye shirts. I also went down to Florida and started selling straw hats on the beach and basically just got creative in selling my products. Eventually we made it out of the pandemic and I very lucky we did because I know alot of businesses did not.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.elisdyes.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elisdyes/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elisdyes/
