We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Maria Haegele. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Maria below.

Maria, appreciate you joining us today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

I think success looks different for everyone. To me, success in my business comes from having loyal and repeat customers who trust me enough to keep coming back. Like any business, I have slow months that keep me on edge. I have to constantly pivot and bring newness to keep my customers excited and wanting more. Success isn’t actually how much money I bring in. It starts with consistent social media post and engaging with customers online. When I find my business has hit a rut, it’s time to go back to the drawing board, pulling up stats from big profit months, and pivoting to bring the excitement back to my customer base.

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?

As a mother of 4 daughters and a very busy lifestyle, being home and being able to attend their soccer games, equestrian shows, and other events is my number one priority. Do I miss things, of course! But my girls know that when I miss something important to them, it’s not that I am choosing my work over them. They know that I am working hard to provide them with the things that they want/need, and saving to afford family vacations for incredible life long memories with them. I’m also teaching them that sometimes work does “get in the way” of life/work/balance, and that’s ok! I want them to know that a good work ethic is so important, no matter if you work for yourself or someone else.

I started working in direct sales as a second job when my kids were toddlers. As a way to bring in more income in hopes to build up some savings for my growing family. It took years to hone in on my craft and really learn the ins and outs of sales. Once I was fully prepared, I started my clothing boutique from home (online only at first) and 6 years later, I am still learning, growing the business, and LOVING what I do!

Something that I knew I needed to do was create something different. There are so many online boutiques and I wanted to ensure my customer base that mine was special. I decided to convert the front of my home into a store. So we got to work, emptied the dining room, installed a massive shelving unit, and turned the room that was never used into a “profit room”. Once weekly, my local shoppers get to pop in and shop the store in the comfort of my home. I help them with finding their style while finding the correct fit, which is SO important. My customers love feeling like part of my family when they come to visit and Open Shops are always my favorite day of the week!

Another thing that sets my boutique apart from all the others is our yearly fashion show. Every year in November, I do a big fashion show at a local wedding venue that includes dinner, open bar, a fall fashion show, and shopping. It’s everyone’s favorite event and it’s always a huge success!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

LIVE SALES! Going live on Facebook and through my app/website each week is my bread and butter. If I ever have a slow week in sales, I know I need to get in front of the camera and reach my customers. If customers aren’t coming to you, you have to go to them! And lives are a fantastic way to reach them. Each week I go live with new arrivals and sometimes, when money is tight or business is slow, I don’t have the funds to purchase new arrivals. This is when I pivot. I will go live no matter what. I either throw a sale together (customers love a sale) with aged inventory or I will do a live showing items I have already shown live but I will show how to style the items in different ways. Those are always super fun for the live viewers because it gets them thinking outside the box on how to wear things they may already have in a different way. And they always end up needing something new to add to what they already have.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

I like to keep engaging with my customers through my private VIP Facebook group. It’s a little community of women that I have built over the years and for the most part, my customers are very active in that group. I post multiple times each day in the group and it’s not always sales post. Sometimes I share a recipe, a new show I think they would enjoy, or I’ll ask a question to get responses. Within that private group I do a lot of giveaways, and I show gratitude to my most engaging customers by giving free shopping credits to those that are most active each month.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.runawaywardrobe.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runawaywardrobeshop/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1256452594963407
• Other: Linktree – https://linktr.ee/Runawaywardrobe