We recently connected with Jelena Louie and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jelena thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

For as long as I can remember, I have been involved in one type of art or another, from music over painting and textile design to jewelry design. The idea for Buckaroo Bling came in part from necessity and in part from the need to do something creative in order to prevent myself from going crazy in the midst of the rat race at my “normal” office job.

When continuing with my hobby of creating artistic wearables by painting on silk became impossible due to the lack of proper equipment in the remote area where I had moved, I decided to switch to something more “portable” that required less space and fewer pieces of highly specialized equipment to create. An opportunity was presented to me to apprentice with a local jeweler, and I jumped at the chance, spending two years learning the basics of jewelry design, wire wrapping, silversmithing, and Japanese style pearl knotting. Ten years and two moves later, I found myself in Montana, with a jewelry making hobby that begged to be re-imagined and grown into something bigger than an occasional appearance at local craft shows.

I have always had – and still have – a great admiration for Native American turquoise jewelry, but the budget to purchase those designs was always lacking. In addition, I didn’t like cheap, imported, imitation turquoise jewelry styles you could purchase at most western stores. So, I set out to design and handcraft affordable jewelry in genuine turquoise and leather that I would want to wear myself. I thought that, surely, I wasn’t the only one who preferred quality over cheap imports but didn’t have the means to afford the pricier, domestically produced genuine turquoise designs.

From the start, I decided to work only with domestically sourced materials, partially because that allowed me better control of quality when it came to my supplies and partially because I felt that boho-western designs I was producing needed to be made with materials originating in the American west. This early decision paid off handsomely during the pandemic, when other designers were facing major supply chain issues. Because I sourced everything domestically and could go directly to the mine to source my turquoise, I never had to suffer shipping delays, customs backlogs, and all other inconveniences faced by those who relied on imported materials. In addition, I was able to meet the strict guidelines of the State of Montana Made In Montana program and obtain that coveted certification.

What makes me most excited about what I do is the ability to make women’s dreams come true on a budget. Even though Buckaroo Bling is a very small and new business, I have already provided custom designs for Miss Rodeo Montana 2019 and Miss Teen Rodeo Montana 2020/21. Working with rodeo queens, western influencers, and the farming and ranching women of the American West, giving them a chance to stand out in a crowd and still remain true to their roots, is what makes this hobby turned business fun and exciting.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I was born and raised in a small European country where most people didn’t take art and artists very seriously. So, instead of majoring in art, I chose to obtain a more “practical” degree in foreign languages. Upon moving to the US during the time of great upheaval in my native country, I went back to school to obtain a degree in Textile Design.

Some of what I learned there has definitely influenced my jewelry design style, specifically in the way that I combine metals with softer, organic materials such as leather, and implement certain techniques that have their origins in textile design. Also, my jewelry is all about color and texture – two things that are extremely important in and carried over from my textile design background as well. Buckaroo Bling offers designs in bold colors that make even the simplest outfit pop and add a bit of rock-‘n’-roll sass to my customers’ country western flair.

I started Buckaroo Bling in the fall of 2018 with the specific purpose to provide stylish, affordable, yet luxurious designs for western and boho jewelry lovers. Whether it’s a teenage girl’s first pair of genuine turquoise earrings, a flashy yet lightweight custom style for a rodeo queen, or a fun piece of jewelry for all those women in between, every piece I design and craft by hand has to meet these values:
1. Slow Fashion – in the world of instant everything, my designs are meticulously made by hand in order to bring to mind those times when life was slower paced, simpler, more more fulfilling.
2. Affordable Quality – American mined turquoise and domestically sourced leather and metals at prices most women can afford; certified Made In Montana by the State of Montana so my customers can be confident that they are supporting a real small business from one of their favorite places in the US.
3. Charity – a portion of revenue from every sale at Buckaroo Bling goes to support horse rescue efforts through several non-profit rescue organizations both locally and across the US.

One thing that is becoming increasingly rare in today’s society is personal touch. So, even though I use some contemporary tools to help me run Buckaroo Bling more efficiently, my customers still know that – should they have a question, need style advice, or have a problem with their order – I’m only a phone call or an email away. It’s important to me to get to know my customers on a level deeper than purely transactional.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Actually, my life has been full of moments where pivoting was the only option. From having to leave my native country for a place I had never visited or even dreamed of before, over leaving the 9-5 corporate job to devote more time to family and start my own business, to having to re-invent the way I do business when COVID pandemic shut down all in-person events that provided the bulk of my revenue. The road hasn’t been easy, but one thing that was extremely helpful through it all was not trying to focus on the big picture while in the midst of pivoting but instead focus just on the next few steps, and then the few steps after that, and a few more steps after that.

This approach to pivoting was extremely helpful in the early 2020. Just barely over a year into my Buckaroo Bling business adventure, I was gaining most of the exposure for my business by participating in local in-person retail events and Montana’s annual wholesale Made In Montana trade show. I had a website, but – due to bootstrapped financing – I didn’t have the budget to hire a web designer, so my e-commerce store was put on the proverbial back burner.

Then, all in-person events shut down. At first, it seemed like we would be back to normal in a few months, but even a year later, nothing was back to normal yet. Instead of despairing at the loss of revenue, I used that time to study up on best practices for e-commerce websites and slowly peck at implementing them on my own website. I also filed for a federal trademark (and obtained it), forged some useful connections with several people associated with western lifestyle publications, and took several online courses pertaining to e-commerce. Even though I can’t boast of doubling my revenue that year (I didn’t even equal the previous year’s revenue), I still managed to keep my business afloat without help from any small business loans or government assistance. Most importantly, I used this time to – one step at a time – head into a completely new direction in my business that, now that life has mostly normalized, makes more sense for both my family and my business.

In 2022, majority of my revenue came from online sales. In-person show sales comprised only about 15% of my 2022 revenue, while that percentage at the end of 2019 was a whopping 85%. This has enabled me to find customers in 36 out of the 50 states as well as in 3 Canadian provinces. Even though, at the time, pivoting seemed like the last thing I wanted to do, being forced to pivot strengthened both my business and me personally.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

Funding my business is still a sore spot in this business journey. From the start, I have completely bootstrapped my business using personal savings, credit cards, and income from a part-time job to finance my business needs. As a matter of fact, I’m still working that same part-time job, effectively spending upwards of 70 hours per week at work spread out between the part-time job and my business just so I could have funds to invest in marketing. At the end of December 2020, I also managed to get a small, $2000 grant from the State of Montana Arts Council, but applications for larger grants didn’t gain any traction simply because my business is still a startup and is in an industry where grant opportunities are few and far between. Being a startup also means that my business cannot yet qualify for business loans.

Thankfully, there is an upside to starting a jewelry business, namely that the initial investment in equipment and supplies can be significantly lower than in many other industries. The space needed to set up a jeweler’s bench is not large. I still work out of my home, which eliminates the costs associated with renting a separate studio space. I utilize techniques that require usage of mostly hand tools, which eliminates the need for costly equipment. Being in the western fashion jewelry niche also means that the cost of my supplies – sterling silver and a limited number of gemstones – is lower than the cost of supplies fine jewelers face for gold, diamonds, etc.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.buckaroobling.com
• Instagram: @buckaroobling
• Other: Wholesale on Faire https://buckaroobling.faire.com

Image Credits
Wandering J Photography Victorian Key Photography Lovelight Photography