We recently connected with Queen Fayzel and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Queen Fayzel, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

I design Queen Fayzel products to help people make and maintain connections with each other and be present for important moments in people’s lives. Before I started Queen Fayzel, I worked in public health. My work focused on social and community context, which has to do with relationships between people, and how connected – or not – people feel to each other and to their communities. I know I want to feel connected to people, and I know I feel better when I am connected to people. But, it can be hard to know how to build those connections, or how to share with people what I’m feeling. I eventually figured out that sending cards to people is a way for me to share how I feel and give someone a tangible representation of those feelings. When I am creating for Queen Fayzel, I am thinking about providing a way for people to show up for the people they love, appreciate, admire, and care about, and to stay connected to friends and family who don’t live near them or they don’t get to see very often. We do better when we feel connected and part of a community, and I want my business to help people create those connections.

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’m Faye, a solo-preneur, which is just a fancy way of saying that I wear all the hats and do all the things for Queen Fayzel!

I started Queen Fayzel as a way to help people authentically express themselves, so they can share how they feel with the people in their lives and build relationships that are important to them.

For me, making cards is one of the main ways I process emotions – especially the icky and uncomfortable ones. Whatever is going on in my life slowly churns in the background of my mind while I lose myself in the colors and textures of what I’m creating.

I create all of my designs, either in a sketchbook or on my iPad. Then, in my home office in Seattle, I turn them into cards and other products. Most of my cards have a textured element to them, while some are printed designs. The textured element just means I’m adding some type of paper, cut in a specific shape, onto the cardstock itself, so you can feel parts of the design. I add all the textured elements by hand, choose the color-coordinated envelope, and package the final product. I also have seasonal pop-up cards, gift tags, and bottle tags. And, if you’re looking for a custom card design, I can do that, too.

I’m proud of leading with my values as I run this business. In Queen Fayzel, and in my life, I prioritize collective good, vocalize my values, contribute resources, spend like I mean it, and infuse joy. What does all that mean? For me:

I recognize that our individual actions have a collective impact. In my business operations, customer service, and participation in the broader business community and my personal community, I engage in mutual aid. I encourage collaboration and collective action, so my actions benefit all of us, not just some.

I will unapologetically speak up about what matters. I recognize that different forms of discrimination – racism, ableism, classism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia – intersect to create harm. Queen Fayzel is an anti-racist business. I stand for undoing racism and white supremacy, for reproductive justice, for equitable access to healthcare – including mental healthcare, for LGBTQIA+ equality, and for environmental justice.

I donate 3% of my profits to organizations making the change I want to see, sharing time and skills, and donate products. These resources go to organizations protecting access to reproductive healthcare, supporting racial justice, advocating for LGBTQIA+ rights, and stopping the climate crisis.

I am intentional about where and how I spend my business dollars, doing what I can to make sure I’m spending with businesses whose values align with mine. This means I will do my best to support Black-, Indigenous-, and POC-led businesses, local businesses, small businesses, women-owned businesses, and environmentally responsible businesses.

Lastly, I believe that humor, laughter, and levity are antidotes to other aspects of life, and help us keep going. In caring for my customers, interacting with my community, and building my business, I will add moments of lightness and playfulness.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

We’re always taught that “failure is not an option,” or “failure is not okay,” but that just creates an incredible amount of pressure to only do something if it will work. That is so unrealistic! Both in life, but *especially* in business… Failure is okay. It’s often one of the best ways to learn and gain experience. Does it feel good? No, of course not. But doing something imperfectly and learning from it is so much better than not doing anything at all.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.

I sell on my own site, rather than using a platform like Etsy or Amazon. I decided to this for a few reasons: 1. To have control over my customer information,
2. To not pay additional fees and deal with trying to figure out exposure & promotion on each platform, and
3. My industry is already really saturated on Etsy and Amazon. I wanted to drive people to my site, instead of stopping at a third-party platform.

I’ve been happy with this decision, though I think it does mean that my organic growth has been a bit slower. But, when I get a new customer, I don’t have to try to bring them over from somewhere else.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://queenfayzel.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/queenfayzel/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/queenfayzel

Image Credits
Hallie Kathryn Photography