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

Jessica, appreciate you joining us 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?

I knew I wanted not only a unique name for my company; but something kind of chic and kind of girly that would stand out. I wanted something to represent me. In 2019 is when I decided I wanted to be a business owner. I was working for BancorpSouth Call Center as a customer service specialist, debit card specialist, and also their dispute department. Between calls I would take my mind off work and discuss names through text message with my colleague and good friend Marquis. I had several different names in mind such as Jess Glitz and Glam, Jess Glam and Glitz, Jess Make It Sparkle, and so many more. It was a hard decision; but I knew Jess Make It Sparkle was more suitable for what I was bringing to the table. Not only did it have that ring to it like Nike, “Just do it”; but I could include my name and also majority of the material I use which is glitter and other sparkly items. I remember texting Marquis and telling him that ‘Jess “Just” Make It Sparkle’ was the one and he loved the thought of it along with the ring that it had. I kept crafting and crafting to have products on hand for my website that I created. I reached out to my cousin Ivory and asked her could she create my logo. I knew I wanted a mixture of pink with glitter and she did just that. I launch my website in 2020 and started participating in pop up shops to introduce Jess Make It Sparkle.

Jessica, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Jessica and I am from a small town in MS called Oxford. I have an angel baby and a 1 year old toddler name Alyssa. She’s my sassy rainbow baby who keeps me busy! I’ve always been a fan of arts & crafts. I remember when I was a senior in Girl’s Scouts; we would lead the younger girls and I would always sign up to be the arts and crafts instructor. Through out the years I would make flower arrangements and buy door mirrors to decorate them to match my room. I would also buy little clear vases to fix them up by adding glitter and string lights in them to appear as a desk side lamp. I got into resin art through Snapchat. While other people are watching people’s stories and posting; I’m tuning into the channels below. I started off just making coasters and my first set of coasters were a failure; they never cured. I refused to give up because 1. The product was cheaper back then; but still expensive and 2. I’m not a quitter. I was honestly just doing it for fun because crafting was something I loved to do; but then I thought I would make this hobby a business. I kept buying different molds and just kept making coasters for a while. I’ve ruined quite a few; but everything is trial and error. I decided to try something different so I tried shot glasses and boy those were a hit! I wanted to be diverse and specialize in offering decor for homes, cars, offices, and on the go. I then added ashtrays that could be used as a small jewelry holder; then I expanded to bookmarks, trays, business card holders, and more. When I miscarried in 2021; it set me back. The setback also made me personable. I decided to celebrate loss infant awareness by adding it to my collection and also doing giveaways along with discounts during that time. I also became aware of other awarenesses and recognized them the same as well. Although on my website I do not offer custom items; yet. I do still take orders for those who reach out that like something; but prefer other colors. I simply invoice them and when I am done I send them pictures of their items to make sure they like them before I ship them. I want to make sure my customers are getting the sparkle they desire which sets my business apart. Even though my business numbers are not always great, I am thankful for the drive I have to keep going due to my shoppers and supporters that make it happen. I have people who reach out to me all the time to make specialized items for them or to even just ask about my business. Without them there wouldn’t be a Jess Make It Sparkle and I am forever thankful!

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

In 2021 I participated in the biggest market I have ever participated in and which was in another town about an hour away closer to a major city. To be apart of the market you had to be picked by a committee during the application process. They allowed us to come setup the day before the event which was amazing because setting up the day of can be nerve wrecking. The day of the event I was able to walk around and connect with other small business owners and even exchange contact info to collaborate for marketing purposes. I was so amazed by the support I was getting and sales I was making and it was just the 1st day. On the 2nd day the person who hosted the event came up to me and told me that she was looking into hiring a guy for promotional videos and asked what did I think about letting him do one for me. I was so delighted because out of all people she chose me for him to sample and I would be able to use the advertisement free of charge. The trick to it was I had to come up with what I wanted within a hour for him to make it. Just so happen I was just discussing my next ad the night before so I went to my car recorded my voice saying the phrase until I got it to my liking, sent it to him, and he did the rest. For us to only have an hour and had to work with what we had it turned out great!

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jessmakeitsparkle.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessmakeitsparkle/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/jessmakeitsparkle
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@jessmakeitsparkle

Image Credits
Jessica Willingham- CEO of Jess Make It Sparkle