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

Kimberly, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

My brands have been on my mind for such a long time. Since I can remember, I’ve always wanted to make jewelry. I used to make an incredible amount of jewelry sets for my grandmother and my mother. It really was an everyday thing as well as mixing herbs and creating. Although I wish I would have started sooner, because time does pass us by pretty quickly, you can always go back to your roots. I began creating at the age of three. It was truly my passion. I went back to my core.

I worked at the museum before Covid where I curated a Chinese art exhibit for over 8 months. Everything closed down when Covid hit. I was forced to stay home and so I began creating again. I wouldn’t change anything from this experience. I feel like our difficulties make us who we are. This gave me a creative push. Between attending college and work, I’ve always been a non-stop type of person. I didn’t really have the time to stop and gather my collective thoughts to start creating. In a sense, I was humbled to begin doing what I truly loved again. When I was younger, I would create every day. My soul needed to create.

I started Washkagems with only $10. It’s literally crazy when I think about it, but when I want it, I will find a way. Everything is in divine timing. Our perspective of time is irrelevant – it’s a construction of a series of moments that lead up to what we call the ‘right time’ or ‘tune’. We are all in tune with our greatest version – our best tune. Our soul creates a melody. We just have to find the tune.

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.

I was born and raised into and by an Ecuadorian family. My culture made me who I am today. I grew up in a place of healing and growth with Pachamama. Realizing everything is alive helped me see life for what it is. I began working with Pachamama at a very young age. I grow and source everything myself. Everything is ethically sourced. All of the jewelry is cleansed and blessed in the amazon rainforest. My ancestors guided me through the rainforest, teaching and healing me. The ancient indigenous healing wisdom of the light of the amazon. Creating with my soul.

I teach others how to heal with Pachamama. We can all heal ourselves, allowing our intuition to guide us. I cleanse and align their chakras as well. I am guided to help others through sacred ancient herbs and high-energy jewelry. I am proud to be able to share my creations and gifts with others. I’ve been in the cannabis industry for six years. I created Flowergawdess as a way to mark movement in the cannabis industry – that in which women can do the same as men. We can make an impact.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

I started my companies when Covid began. It gave me the push to finally just do it. I created and started posting. People started messaging me and it took off from there. I’ve always known I want to create, but I kept prolonging it. Washkagems began with $10 which I used to buy some string. This pushed me to really give it my all with what little capital I had. It soon became a full-time business/career. Flowergawdess – the goddess of flowers became a persona I created in the cannabis industry. During this time, I began working with more plants. Cannabis truly saved my life. I wanted to share that with others as well as other herbs. Empowering women in cannabis and breaking the stigma.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

I’ve had my business in mind for a while. The timing was just… divine…and I just started with all I had. It would probably seem near impossible to some, but I gave it my all and was able to create and begin. Due to losing my job during Covid, I began with the little money I had, which doesn’t go very far. The capital needed is at-least $1k. I did everything at a fast pace. Once I started creating, I couldn’t stop. I feel extremely grateful and blessed to have been able to fund my business.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @flowergawdess @washkagems @kallpahealing @nukamunayki