We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kendra Brooks a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Kendra, thanks for joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

In our family we ALWAYS had a blanket on the couch… My husbands business partner is from India and he brought us back a few vintage quilts! They are all one of a kind and completely unique and special. We loved them so much that we wanted more…To make it worth our while to come thru customs and for shipping we decided to get several…
We had a party at the house and the quilts were a huge hit with my friends and family. Then their friends started wanting some and before you know it we were selecting more and I was starting a business!

Coming up with the name of my company was a fun part…
My daughters name is Peyton and we would call her Princess SaPeyKa. (suh-pay-kuh)
One day she was sitting on a stack of quilts and she was saying how cool and fun it was that there was a perfect one for each person. How since each person is unique and different they would also wrap up in something unique and one of a kind just like them.
Watching her sitting there it was like she was Princess and the Pea and she could feel that one for her in the stack. So I decided to name the company SaPeyKa.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I come from a fashion background. I used to work for an apparel showroom in Dallas. I have always enjoyed sales and connecting with other people. I love to hear their stories and I just loved providing them clothing that made them feel good.
Once my daughter was born I decided to be a stay at home mom and spend time watching her grow up.
Now that she is going into the 5th grade I am able to spend more time building my brand.
It was an easy transition to selling quilts because I was now home and items for my home became a bit more of a focus than apparel had when I was going and doing…
I was still able to make people feel good and elevate their home, just in a more cozy way.
These blankets are an amazing textile and what I love the most is how my clients have truly expanded the business. They are using them not only wrapped up on the couch, but out at picnics, soccer games, as a table cloth at their dinner parties, they are even using it to upholster furniture, headboards, benches etc.
I am not circling back on my fashion days and came up with a pattern for some quilted jackets. The jackets have been a huge hit as well as the bags!

Its just so fun to see all the ways people use them!

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

Instagram has been a great way to connect with my clients. I am able to show them new product, new ideas, and let them know when I have new inventory. I love doing Pop-Up shows and meeting wonderful people. I have met so many that have turned into friends. Thru my business I am able to travel and go to where the customer lives or is vacationing and connect with them. We are then able to stay in touch when I revisit or when they come to a show.
It really is my most favorite part
As for loyalty I am always going to be here to respond and make sure they love and cherish whatever they purchase.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

I would definitely say my side hustle has completely turned into my main career. I think that is so common. The more effort and energy I put into my company the more it grows. That is just like anything. So the more time I have, and the more ideas I have, the more people and connections I make, that lead to meeting others….this has just propelled more momentum and more demand.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sapeyka.com
• Instagram: @sa_pey_ka
• Facebook: SaPeyKa