We were lucky to catch up with Jessica Amburn recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Jessica thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Finding those key vendors can often be make or break for a brand. Can you talk to us about how you found your key vendors?

In the rock and gemstone community it is very important that we are sourcing our products from a supplier that is implementing ethical practices. By that I mean, sourcing from mines where ethical practices and standards are implemented and enforced. It is also important to know that stones we are sourcing and offering to our customers are authentic, natural and of the best quality available! I would be lying if I said that the process of finding reliable suppliers was easy! It takes A LOT of research, trial and error as well as vetting of suppliers. Hours upon hours are spent to go through this process and then narrow down to the ones you can trust to provide you the best products. In the Crystal community there isn’t a person that knows EVERY stone in nature and its properties. It would be impossible as there as there are thousands in the world and many that haven’t been discovered yet! It is a constant learning process and that is one of the things I love about what I do! For instance, I recently discovered Rhyolite, which is also referred to Rainforest Jasper! Before my supplier had shown me this stone, I was unaware of its existence!

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.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been fascinated with rocks, and I have always had an entrepreneur spirit. My childhood, best friend Kamelah (A.K.A. Muffin!) and I would sell rocks door to door to our neighbors, and thankfully a few of our neighbors took pity on us and bought a few! For the past 20 years, I have been in the insurance industry as an adjuster, but have always had businesses where I can tap into my creative side! It seems almost completely natural that I have opened up my little metaphysical crystal shop as I have been into all things involving Crystals for most of my life! I started out only offering Crystals, but have expanded recently to offering wire wrapped jewelry, as well as handmade decor and art. I love being able to tap into my creativity and share with others what I find beautiful!

I have always been an empath and highly intuitive person which has allowed me to better help my customers. I love being able to have a customer come to me with what problems they are currently experiencing and being able to intuitively find a stone they can work with or wear that will assist them in their journey! A popular product that I offer are mystery boxes! A mystery box I intuitively curate based on what the client is currently going through in their life and up to a value that the customer chooses. ($30-$$$$$)

There are many crystal shops, and every city, and I knew that when I opened my shop that I wanted to differentiate myself from the others. I pride myself, and taking care of my customers, and delivering more than I expect to receive. All of my online orders come with freebies in their package as well as Crystal information cards for each stone in their order which explains its properties and uses. I also do my best to carry unique items from what I have seen in either crystal shops. Prior to seeing other local shops doing so & one of the first products I offered when I opened was crystal figurines that appeal to the Sci-fi/Gaming/Creative loving community! Pokémon, Sailor Moon, and Star Wars figures as well as other characters have proven to be one of my bestsellers. I am also starting to branch out into the mineral and raw stone realm and will be offering unique raw specimens to my customers in the near future!

Many of my customers have asked me to start offering live sales. Although my anxiety sometimes gets the best of me. I am currently working on setting up a schedule to start offering live sales as a way for my customers can view products and also purchase!

In order to encompass all that I offer I have decided to rebrand and rename my business. I have come up with a new name which I have yet to reveal to my customers ~~ but what better way to reveal this new name than in an article! The new name of my company is going to be The Eclectic Boho Cottage Co. I am hosting a logo contest on Instagram where I have asked artists to create a logo design for me to use with my new business name! Whomever wins, will be receiving a $200 curated box of crystals! Be sure to keep an eye out on my social media for the announcement!

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

The best source for gaining new clients has definitely been local markets and festivals. When I first opened my business, I realized that gaining an online presence is quite difficult. I would need to first gain the trust of my local community, then that would turn to word of mouth referrals for more customers! I am far from having millions of followers, but I have gained a pretty decent following on my social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. I attribute this to consistency in posting quality content and the help of my loyal followers that interact with my posts!

We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.

I have multiple avenues of selling. I started out, selling directly to buyers via direct message on Instagram and Facebook. Then a few months after opening, I opened an Etsy store online in hopes of gaining more customers and exposure. However, the fees that Etsy charges are predatory in my opinion and are so high that it inhibits the ability of my being able to offer my products at reasonable and it competitive prices. I have launched my website where I can list my own items for sale at prices much lower than I had to list on Etsy. I have just over 100 items listed on my website so far but it is an ongoing process of adding new listings each day. I try to list 3-5 new listings a day as I have thousands of products, but I am only a one woman show and only have 2 hands! I always tell my customers that if they are searching for a particular stone or item and they don’t see it listed on my website, to let me know, and I can check my inventory as not all of my items are listed on my website yet!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.WildcatCrydtalSupply.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/wildcatcrystalsupply
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/wildcatcrystalsupply