We were lucky to catch up with Jaden Teixeira-Reyes recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jaden thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with 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.

The year is 2021, I had just had my first baby and although this being the most beautiful and life changing event, it was an absolutely horrendous journey. I had an extremely tough pregnancy and postpartum. After having my daughter via emergency c-section, due to complications, I wound up with 2 infections, extreme loss of blood and an onslaught of other health issues. I almost died. Grateful and blessed to have made it through, the next 9 months after having my baby I was extremely anxiety ridden and depressed. Postpartum was honestly more difficult than childbirth. I wasn’t sure what to do so I turned to what always has made me happy in the past. My art. It was there for me in ways traditional therapy, friends or family couldn’t be. I was able to just allow my mind to run free and create. I was bringing color back into what was such a gray life for me. I had eventually come to this realization that, if my art could pull me out of what I was going through, who says it can’t do the same for others? I began to do research on the benefits of art and color. I then got sucked down the rabbit hole of the different avenues I could take. Throughout the research I was doing, it dawned on me that there wasn’t much representation for the BIPOC community. It just so happened that the art I create reflects the culture and life that I live. Being a black woman who appreciates and has a deep passion for art you begin to look at the creative industry and come to terms that you will never see as much representation of your community. I was determined to change that. I wanted to lift people up. I wanted them to be able to relate to the illustrations they see, whether it’s a greeting card, art print or notepad. I knew that I could achieve this, it was a hell of a journey to get to that conclusion but once I did, there was no turning back. That’s how Brown Suga Stationery was born.

Jaden , 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?

I have been artist for as long as I remember. My grandmother dabbled in painting and drawing, and she was one of the people that really watered my interest in art at a very early age. Buying me sketch books and paints, always encouraging me to grow my talent along with my mom. Our mission at Brown Suga Stationery is to provide stationery and art that represents under represented cultures as well as faith based products. Through greeting cards, art prints, notebook/notepad designs etc. we are able to showcase different languages and skin tones for everyone to love and relate to. Although majority of our products are designed in house, we do seek out other small business that are apart of the BIPOC community or women. I take great pride in supporting other small black & women owned businesses. We also offer custom design services for business stationery, wedding invitations and stationery, as well as commissioned art pieces/paintings. A lot of stationery business don’t offer customizable pieces but I enjoy bringing my clients ideas to life so much and seeing their reactions just brings me a different type of joy, so I know that no matter how big Brown Suga Stationery gets I will always take time for some personalized commissioned pieces.

Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?

I manufacture majority of my products! This is something that I have spent hundreds of hours researching (& crying about). It was an enormous feat to take on but it was important to me to be able to have quality products that uphold the standard I hold for myself, and what better way to do that than to take matters into my own hands, right? Let’s take my art prints for example. I know that I wanted to keep costs low, have a decent paper thickness as well as vibrant color printing. I immediately started researching high quality printers that had multiple printing capabilities to ensure I could use the printer for multiple different products. I learned that it saves to be thorough & efficient. So don’t just stop your research at the first page of Google & a few tiktoks. See what others are doing in your niche, even reach out and see if they are willing to name their manufacturer or products they use. Some don’t like the disclose that information but hey, its worth a shot! As far as going with a vendor, don’t be afraid to ask questions and reiterate in an email what you are looking for. Make sure to ask the right questions, do they offer low MOQs, do they provide free samples, what is their turnaround time, what is their policy when it comes to mistakes on their end etc. Treat every interaction with a possible vendor as an investigation. You want to find out as much information so that you don’t wind up investing your money in a dud product. My suggestion is always make a pros & cons list, whether you are manufacturing your own products or seeking a vendor. You will make mistakes, it’s apart of the process but stay vigilant and learn from those hiccups.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

If someone doesn’t like your product then they aren’t your target audience. I used to get ( & still sometimes do) so discouraged when someone made negative comments about how they don’t like my products or design style. I had to learn that not everyone is going to be your customer, and that it is okay! It is a harsh reality because of course you want everyone to love your business. What you really want is loyal returning customers, that are within your niche’s target audience. Once you find that customer base they are bound to share their interest with friends & family that share their same love for your niche, and so on. This will build a genuine customer base for you. You don’t want just one off purchases, you want authentic interest in your business. So the lesson is, if they don’t like your business, oh well. ON TO THE NEXT! (:

Contact Info:

• Website: www.brwnsuga.co
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brownsugastationery/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@brownsugastationery/featured