Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kayla Rose. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Kayla thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

At the start of the pandemic, I met my husband online and I shared with him some of my hobbies and interests, noting that I used to paint but said that I didn’t think I would good at it. He latched onto that and encouraged me to pick up the brush again. He encouraged me to look into art history and do some research into artists like Jackson Pollock. I stopped painting for awhile because whatever I was trying to paint never looked the way I intended so I gave up. But with my now husband’s encouragement, I began to grow in other areas creatively and I discovered that I actually am good at creating abstract art. Painting became a good outlet for me during the pandemic. After awhile I had so much artwork that I had no idea what to do with it. He told me that he believed I could start a business. I didn’t think that my artwork was good enough to sell as it is regardless of the fact that I was able to sell a few pieces.

His relentless encouragement moved me to look into ways I could turn my artwork into something other than just images on t-shirts and tote bags. That was when I stumbled upon a site where I could upload images and use them to create products like tumblers and shoes! Something sparked within me and I loved seeing how my artwork looked on shoes. My desire has always been to encourage people to step out in faith and share my story of how God called me to do that. So when I saw my art on shoes, I saw it as a perfect opportunity to intertwine that into a business.

Many complain about AI taking over and trying to pose as art. AI can generate something that looks like artwork in seconds but there is nothing creative about it. AI just steals ideas from others and generates images based on that. Velvet Rose Studios strives to stand up for artists. We create things that are original and authentic and in the world that we live in today, I think that is what people are looking for – something that is genuine. I don’t see anyone doing what I am doing – creating art costs a lot of money and time. But what I am doing is bringing life into my work. I also limit how many products I will sell of each design so that people can be sure that they have something genuine and unique. God created us to be creative and to create! I hope that when people buy my products that they will be reminded that they are unique, special, one of a kind and that as I have taken huge steps of faith to do this that they will also be encouraged to do the same.

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

When I started this business I had no idea where I would start so I joined a few Facebook groups online. I joined several business networking meetings and each time we were each asked to share our business name, contact info, talk about who we serve and so on. Every week I shared that I had only a vision. I was scared but I kept showing up because I knew God was putting me in a place where I needed to learn and grow and trust Him in the process.

I create artwork by hand and digitize the designs to create my products – mainly shoes because to me shoes symbolize stepping out in faith.

Every design tells a story and I want to encourage people to step out in faith, to live authentically and be bold. I have looked online and I have not seen anyone do what I do. The truth is, creating artwork by hand costs a lot of time and money. If anyone does any kind of art, you’d know how expensive materials can be.

Why the name Velvet Rose Studios? Since my husband was the reason why I even started this business and has been a constant support I wanted the business name to reflect him. He loves music and collects many records, one of his favourite record labels is called Velvet Blue. We decided on the name Rose because it’s my grandma’s name and also my middle name. Both my husband and I decided that Studios was a good fit since I do art but it leaves the business open to growth.

The products that we currently provide are canvas shoes for both men and women, backpacks, tumblers, fanny packs, crossbody bags and branded dad hats. We do offer customization at an additional cost and are planning to offer more services such as branding for other businesses. I recently created an original design using another business’s brand colors to create a pair of shoes.

We will continue to expand our services as we grow and see where God takes us. Right now we are working on releasing a blog where others have contributed sharing stories of what it means to step out in faith.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

I use a print on demand company and I will be continually looking into more manufacturers. I tested out a few different companies for shoes and not all were great. As a Christian, I want to offer the highest standard of products I can and that required me to think about my pricing strategy. I offer free shipping on all my products and I include that into the total price while trying to keep the prices fair. It took some time and not all of the sample products that I tested out turned out great and I’ve had to make adjustments.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I read a few books on business and here are a few that I highly recommend:

“Making God #1 in your business”- by Mauri Rene

“Leadership NOT by the Book” by David Green with Bill High

“Open for Business” by Gary Keesee

I also read through the book of Nehemiah. He was a man who God called to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. I can’t recall every video that I watched but I took notes during zoom meetings, Youtube videos, reading the Bible and reading books.

Showing up even when you don’t have everything figured out is the best thing to do. Just show up. I learned so much from others and even business coaches who helped direct me towards my next steps. I have not “arrived” and I’m still figuring things out. There were many times when I wanted to give up. It’s not always going to be easy but if I want to encourage people to step out in faith then I should be leading by example. I am stepping out in faith unsure of what the future holds, but I know that God is with me and will continue to be with me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.velvetrosestudios.com
• Instagram: velvetrose.studios
• Facebook: Velvet Rose Studios
• Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/kayla-rose-414789303
• Other: Pinterest: Pinterest.com/velvetrosestudios

  Linktree: https://linktr.ee/velvetrosestudios