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

Hi Marsha, thanks for joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

My husband was in the military, and we were stationed in Texas. He was actually doing a tour in Korea, and I was home with 2 young boys. One morning I was brushing my teeth, and I heard the name Heavenly Beads. I had no idea what it meant, I always loved fashion, but I never had any interest in making jewelry. As a matter of fact, my degree is in Political Science, and I was thinking of going to law school, so making and designing jewelry, was not on my list. To my surprise, God had other plans, and I’m so glad He did. After hearing the business name, I started doing research on jewelry design, and decided to give it a try I learned a lot through trial and error over the course of a year, and found that I actually love designing, and being creative. Soon after that, I started my business Heavenly Beads & More, and it has truly been an experience like none other!

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 have been married to my wonderful husband for over 2 decades, and we have 3 amazing young men. I enjoy traveling, trying new adventures, shopping at arts and craft markets, and relaxing with a hot cup of coffee (or tea)! I have a B.S. in Political Science, and I love spending quality time with God, my family, and friends! I’m a self-taught artisan, that enjoys dabbling in a variety of mediums, and learning new techniques, but I get the most joy from designing jewelry, accessories, and home décor’. Creating something amazing, that originated as a thought, is very exhilarating, and keeps me on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what will be next!

From a young age I had a passion for fashion, and I knew then, that I never wanted to look like anyone else, but I never thought about jewelry design. I believe this was the beginning of the seed being planted for my business, and I didn’t even realize it. Everything I’ve learned about jewelry design, has truly been inspired by God!

The heart of Heavenly Beads & More is to create, “Timeless Treasures, That Leave A Lasting Impression”. We believe your accessories, and home décor are treasures, that should make a statement, which expresses your cherished uniqueness. Therefore, we offer one-of-a-kind soulful art for the body & home, that draws you in, and invokes emotions. Capturing the timeless elegance of the modern vintage era, the divine beauty of nature, the creative free flow of art, and out of the box architectural design, each treasure displays an intriguing combination of natural, and manmade materials.

With love and care, each treasure is meticulously handcrafted, and designed in the USA with signature techniques. Whether accessory, or home décor, each design starts off as a simple thought, that evolves into a timeless artistic treasure that is sure to be cherished for years to come. As a company, our proudest moment was when I was contracted to design a gift for the renowned American novelist, Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker, this was truly an honor. It gives me great joy knowing that I’m working in my purpose, and that each design made, whether jewelry or home décor, will be a blessing to their owner. I’m so honored that I get to be a blessing to others, 10% of all profits, and 20% of all our events, will be donated to a charity of our choosing! Our prayer is that you join us on this exciting journey, & discover a treasure for yourself, or someone dear to you.

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

I actually sell on both my own website, and several other platforms, and here are several pros and cons to both. One difference is that on your own website, you may have a monthly fee, and then a small credit card fee per transaction, but on a platform, you could have a monthly fee, a fee per item you post, a credit card fee, and an additional fee per transaction, and this can really add up. Another difference is that on a platform they already have a major audience, so you can pay to advertise to their audience, which is very helpful, but on your own website, you have to build your own audience to draw in customers, which can really add up as well. Lastly on platforms, your website is pretty easy to set up, because they have a preset look, so you have very little creative design, but it will save you time, on your own website you can set it up just the way you want it, but this can be very time consuming. So, it really depends on your needs, and what will work best for your business. For us we decided to give both a try, and have found that although it has been helpful getting new customers from other platforms, having your own site, you have direct access to your customers, and you’re able to build your own audience, which is very important to us.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

For us, I believe the most effective strategy for growing our clientele, has been providing a great product, coupled with excellent customer service. This in turn leads to happy clients, who not only return, but spread the word about you, and bring in more clients. This cycle will continue to repeat itself, and between word of mouth, and the testimonials from your happy clients, your clientele will grow!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.heavenlybeadsandmore.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heavenlybeadsnmore/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.cm/heavenlybeadsnmore
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marshalrowe/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeavenlyBeads
• Other: Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/heavenlybeadsnmore

Image Credits
Marsha Rowe