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

Rachel, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you have any advice regarding quality control and maintaining quality as your brand grows?

As a small business owner you have desired outcomes for your business. The entire purchase transaction up into receipt of the items is an experience for me. I want to create a package experience to where the customer is a returning customer and feels a need for the product and entire experience again. This can become challenging as you grow. With a growing business it is impossible to manage all things yourself. You have to rely and trust others will understand and manifest your same desired outcome. Consistent training will assist in this success.

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 was born and raised in Georgia, the sweetest southern girl you could know. I have been married to the man of my dreams for 11years. He is a retired infantry veteran. We have two intelligent children together and two dogs; a yorkie and a great dane. I have served in the US Army as an active duty Soldier for nearly 20 years. I am scheduled to retire this Fall. Beneath the surface, I have always had a passion for people and a deep love for the fashion industry. As a young girl, I had many journals of designs I made and one day would create. During the COVID restriction period, I was home a lot. I used the extra off time to finish my degree in Business Management from Colorado State University Global Campus and started my small business shortly after. I was still active duty and had obligations so I started this venture online. I tested the waters with the lingerie industry first. Logically speaking, it was the most inexpensive. My goal was to not need a loan. With one year of success in retail lingerie, I ventured further into women’s clothing. La Cue Fashion LLC offers trendy and fashionable pieces at an affordable price and comfort level fit. I believe wanting to create a combination experience and sale makes me different. Making a sale is important, but the customer experience is very necessary. Some retailers forget about that part. I am most proud of my growth and perseverance through start up challenges. I want potential clients to know that we can look good and feel good with La Cue Fashion clothing and lingerie collections.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

Funding my business has been one of my challenges. In the beginning stages, I thought I could manage on extra income that I had from my career job. I didn’t want to get a loan. As time passed I learned about business credit. While I had an EIN, tax and other requirements in place, I never considered using those foundations to first establish business credit. It is actually not that difficult, but takes time. At least it is taking me time as I try to balance a full time career, my other responsibilities and my passion to succeed in this industry.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

A lesson I had to unlearn and still unlearning today is trying to appease a large target audience. This may not always be the case, but trying to appease such a large audience with small business settings can cause setbacks. I have to learn to focus on my small community audience and expand as I grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lacuefashion.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/la_cue_fashion/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lacuefashion
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-mandzak-63123a259/

Image Credits
I am modeling the pieces.