We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Emily Sleights. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Emily below.
Hi Emily , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
I became interested in card magic, close up magic and collecting in 2017. In November in 2018 I joined Instagram under the username “emilysleights52” so I could find other people who share a similar hobby as me. I saw that other people were creating decks of playing cards and it made me realize that I wanted to do the same thing but a little bit different: I wanted my decks of playing cards to have meaning. All of the decks of cards I do have designs where the underlying theme emphasizes strength, positivity, perseverance and happiness. My goal is to make a positive impact in other peoples’ lives. I felt this could work because so many people struggle with confidence, anxiety and mental health issues. I wanted to make sure to help others through my passions!
Emily , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Hello! My name is Emily and I am 26 years old. I live on Long Island, New York and have a pretty unique business: I design and produce decks of playing cards for magicians and card collectors. What sets me apart from other card producers is that my cards all have motivational meanings. The designs emphasize themes of strength, positivity and happiness. They’re made to make people feel less alone and to inspire them to be the best versions of themselves! For example, I did a deck of cards called Breakthrough. The whole design is based on a sunflower growing out of a shattered lightbulb. The quote for the deck was, “Growth comes in times of darkness” and is meant to explain that even though struggles are terrible, we grow from that experience. Something I am most proud of with my business is that people often message me and tell me how much my cards have helped them. I’ve had people tell me my cards have helped them get sober, recover, and help them feel less alone. Just knowing that I have helped people, it really makes all of the difference! Something that I want my followers and potential clients to know is that I am super passionate about what I do! I don’t view it as a “job” I view it as my passion.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
A lot of my projects in the beginning I funded through a crowd funding website called Kickstarter. Kickstarter has helped so many creators produce inventions and products! Kickstarter has everything: From playing cards, games, backpacks, any inventions possible. I was nervous to launch my first Kickstarter campaign but after I did I was so relieved. People pledged toward my projects and through this website I was also able to capture valuable feedback from audiences and clients.
Have you ever had to pivot?
Just within the past year I made playing cards my full time job. Before that, I was a server/bartender in restaurants. The biggest pivot in my life was deciding to leave the restaurant industry and just rely on cards! I put all of my energy and effort into my current projects, future projects and even past projects! Running a business is a full time job: 24/7. I am constantly answering emails and giving feedback, talking to my manufacturers, communicating with designers, working on new ideas, doing research, working on my website, ordering more inventory and overlooking everything that happens under EmilySleights52. Leaving the restaurant industry and solely doing playing cards was the biggest jump that I have made in my life and I couldn’t be happier
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.emilysleights52.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilysleights52/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/emilysleights52
Image Credits
I own images