We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Isabella Geller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Isabella below.
Isabella, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?
I am a high school student who never dreamed of being a small business owner. My mom worked for a company so I saw a small business being run in my own home but running one was never an idea that crossed my mind.
I was gifted a Cricut machine for Christmas of 2020 and pondered for a little while what to do. I would not have considered myself an artist so the idea of creating art and selling it was all very new to me. Theatre is my biggest passion and I intend to go to college to earn a BFA in Musical Theatre and go professional for some time after. I spend most of my time sitting at the piano or with a guitar if not at rehearsal for my next show.
All of a sudden this idea just hit me; Broadway stickers! And here, BwayBoundBoutique was born! I launch the etsy app and make a profile with some listings and off I go! I decided to make it my mission to be able to shine some light on theatre lovers everywhere and provide some joy straight to their doorstep or as our slogan says, Broadway Brought to You! At that time I could not have ever imagined what this small sticker shop is doing for me.
A little over a year later we have 1,700 sales and enough income to let me continue my passions so I don’t have to work a job in edition to high school leaving no time for theatre. I get to go see shows for work! Who gets to do that? I will never be able to say how grateful I am for the success I have attained and that success is all from the people out there supporting small businesses. You never know who is working behind a shop and how your purchase of their $2.75 sticker is changing their lives. Thank you for shopping small!
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
Hello! I am Isabella Geller and I am a current High School student in Northern Indiana! I run my small business BwayBoundBoutique over on Etsy! Musical theatre is my largest passion and hope to pursue it professionally someday. As most high school kids, I have struggled trying to find a way to make some money for myself and save for future purchases like college, gas, the daily things! It’s quite hard to go to school for 7-8 hours a day and then go to a job and have time for anything else. That is why I am so eternally grateful for the success of BwayBoundBoutique that has allowed me to continue doing what I love and reaching others with my art and still get to continue performing. It really is the one of the best things I have ever done and I wouldn’t change it for the world!
We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process./
I completely hand make all of my stickers at home. The only product I did not create was my keychains and post it notes which were designed by me but manufactured by Stickermule and Vistaprint!
I use a Cricut Explore Air 2 in my basement office and spend hours creating product for each order and packaging everything by hand. Currently I am the only person operating my shop so I personally fulfill every single order!
Starting this shop I had no idea at all how to design stickers! I would not have considered myself an artist at all. After hours and hours of YouTube videos and time spent hunched over and iPad drawing away I came up with my first product! Gradually everything became easier, but starting off was very very tricky!
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
Personally I think BwayBoundBoutique has such a high representation in the market because we are a very unique niche brand. We only create product inspired by Broadway and everything encompassing that.
I would argue we also stand out from other businesses on Etsy just because of the customer service I provide for my customers. I always respond within 2-4 hours with any issues and are always willing to resolve an issue even if it wasn’t my fault. The way you make people feel really changes the way they view you and your business. It’s why we have 350+ 5 star reviews on our shop in only a year.
Contact Info:
- Website: Etsy.com/shop/bwayboundboutique
- Instagram: @bwayboundboutique