We were lucky to catch up with Jasmine Kazera recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jasmine, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

So, interestingly enough my business actually started as a travel blog titled, “Traveling Through Life with a Wine Glass Half Full”. My blog discusses travel advice, tips, and stories all from the positive perspective (glass half full). Eventually my blog started to gain some traction and I thought to myself how great it would be to expand and start offering products on my website. Once I gave it some thought, Wineglasses came to mind (I mean, it was all in the title).

This was how “A Wine Glass Half Full” was born. Eventually the wineglasses took off on their own and the blog and glasses were like two separate businesses.

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.

My name is Jasmine Kazera and I am a writer, creator, and mother who also loves to travel. In addition to working in the corporate world I am an entrepreneur in the sense where I have a few businesses which include, writing children’s books, travel blogging, and the main one being discussed in this article, crafting hand made wineglasses.

When I first started A Wine Glass Half Full, I was not entirely sure of the direction I wanted to take it. I just knew that I had an online platform that began to gain traction and I wanted to offer my community something tangible. My first batch of wineglasses were outsourced and my original logo was printed on them. These did really well but I knew almost immediately that I wanted to offer something more, better, something made with more care.

I always loved to craft and create things so I decided to learn the skill to hand design wineglasses on my own. My next several batches of wineglasses were designs I made after being inspired by places I traveled to, I even gave them all travel related names. I began doing pop up shops and craft fairs in 2020 and people really loved what I was creating but I also always asked for feedback and paid attention to what my audience wanted. Therefore I began to expand and now I create all kinds of designs, from sports, to quotes, to seasonal etc.

I am very proud of what my business has grown in to and also proud that I create everything by hand. Paying attention to special details and making everything with care. I also think it is important to offer custom options like adding your own favorite colors or adding names for a personalized touch, so I am happy to offer these things.

When people purchase a glass from A Wine Glass Half Full, I want them to remember the positive parts of life. Remember to keep their glass half full, and stop to appreciate the small details that make life beautiful just like the glasses I create.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

With any e-commerce business where you sell products I think it is really important to utilize the internet and sell everywhere! For example, your own website, Amazon, Etsy, wholesale platforms like Faire, etc. By doing so, you increase the amount of potential customers your product is getting in front of and by utilizing these other platforms they are already doing half of the marketing work for you because people are constantly on there to shop anyway.

Additionally, a great source for me to find new clients is through in person markets and fairs. Not only do I meet new clients but it also gives me a chance to meet my customers face to face and really connect with them, the feeling is truly unmatched.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

I think once you believe in your business and you are passionate about it, investing in it becomes a bit of a no brainer. It is something that you should take seriously and do strategically, it is quite important. Some people are able to get grants to fund their business or upfront money from having a large audience and doing presales or something like that. As for myself, I did not have any of those things, although I did have a website that started making some money I used that plus my own savings to initially invest in my business and from there I created a business bank account and continued to build and re-invest. That is what I do to this day. I am nowhere near some of the financial goals I set forth but I believe in continuing to invest in myself and use the business to fund the business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.wineglasshf.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awineglasshalffull
• Facebook: Traveling Through Life with a Wine Glass Half Full
• Youtube: A Wine Glass Half Full