We recently connected with Mamie Pack and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Mamie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Often the greatest growth and the biggest wins come right after a defeat. Other times the failure serves as a lesson that’s helpful later in your journey. We’d appreciate if you could open up about a time you’ve failed

I knew starting my business that failure would be a part of the journey. It’s a part of life. But what I didn’t plan for was the discomfort, time, and cost that comes along with the lesson you learn from failure when it impacts your business. To be transparent, sometimes it’s even the silent ways shame can creep in when things just don’t work out the way you planned. Whether it is a product that just doesn’t resonate with your community or a missed opportunity because you didn’t have your systems in place, no matter what the reason, failure in any space can be discouraging (in the moment).

Early in my business, I invested heavily in the launch of a new product. I was so excited. It was a big step for our business. I finally had our new product and was ready to move forward. The excitement was short-lived. Sadly, I realized the final product had several errors that were missed in the editing process. Mistakes that impacted the quality of the product. It was my costly mistake.

After a good, ugly cry, I knew that I had one choice: learn, adapt, ask for help, and move forward. I used that failure to improve my process and systems for future products.

I don’t shy away from talking about my failures because they have also become a part of my wins. For every failure was a decision to get back up. A decision to become better. A decision to do the brave thing and continue going after my dreams.

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?

Hi, I am Mamie L. Pack. I am a military wife, momma, educator, and owner of Mamie L. Pack Media. I created Mamie L. Pack Media in 2018 to disrupt the narrative telling women we must do more and be more in order in order to have worth or a meaningful life. Using my professional knowledge and personal experience, I create stationery with purpose to help women live a lifestyle of wholeness. My stylish stationery is designed for women of all ages and stages of life. We create stationery with purpose designed to help women prioritize the mental, emotional, physical, intellectual, and spiritual well-being.

Our products range from guide journals, notebooks, sticky notes, greeting cards, notepads and more. We offer our exclusive Black Excellence Planner that includes highlights of HBCUs, Black history facts, space for gratitude, habit tracker, focus on self-care and more. Our products are meant to fit your lifestyle.

I received my BA in English Communication, a MEd in Divergent Learning, and PhD in Education focused on mentoring. I have over 20 years experience leading, teaching, and mentoring.

Mamie L. Pack Media social impact includes supporting teachers and military spouses. From providing products to volunteer work, pouring into the community is vital to my mission.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I knew from the beginning I would sell on my site, so I started with the end in mind. It was important for me to have a site that belonged to me and not another platform. I initially started with writing on my site until I was ready to dip my feet into running a business. I learned how much it would cost and created a budget for what I needed to build a site. It took time for me to learn what I wanted and what was the best option for what I needed.

Selling on my site allows me to determine the look, feel, and experience I want my customers to have. Controlling my site also means taking the time to learn and adjust to technology in a different way. There were a lot of long hours learning widgets, pop-ups, email automations and so much more. Having your own comes with a cost. You just have to determine which cost you are willing to pay..

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

When I first started our business I was attending all of the vendor events that I could. I was working full-time during the week as an educator, and spending almost every weekend at vendor events. Just because we were attending the events, it doesn’t mean they were a good fit for our business or for our time. Being a wife, momma educator, and entrepreneur, I knew I needed to pivot.

Instead of trying to be at everything, I slowed down to determine what events were the “right fit” for our business. I zoned in on connecting with our audience and identifying which products worked for the different demographics.

This pivot helped me to manage my time more effectively and to connect with our customer base.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mamiepack.com/shop
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/mlp_media
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/mamielpack
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mamie-l-pack-media
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/mamielpack
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mlp_media