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

Rhonda , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One thing we always find fascinating is how differently entrepreneurs think about revenue growth and cost reductions – both can be powerful ways to improve profitability. What do you spend more of your time and energy on?

I spend more time trying to cut costs. We are a small shop, and I have a dedicated audience that I rely on for repeat purchases. Raising prices is not a way to nourish that relationship.

I also want to keep prices below what other similar shops offer because I know what it’s like to be the kid who doesn’t get the cool new thing due to price. I’d like for everyone to feel confident and comfortable purchasing from us.

I do think the two are related because as prices tend to increase those businesses that learn how to maintain their quality and keep prices the same will get more customers, and loyal customers, which in turn brings about more revenue.

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’ve been in this industry as a side business since 2012 with multiple different types of Etsy shops or websites that all dealt with crafting. We started RandM Creations Inc in 2019 with several smaller brands underneath it.

Now we have Lust + Lore, a bookish and fandom shop along with Neon Daisy, a western + cowgirl boutique, and L and L Small Biz Solutions, which has digital designs and ebooks to help small business owners. In addition, we have Libotee Apparel, a funny tee store for military and veterans.

Have you ever had to pivot?

In this business I had to pivot, Lust + Lore started as Clothesline Apparel Co and we did a lot of political apparel. After a tiktok went viral, I decided that the whole political arena was not one I wanted to be in for my mental health which required rebranding and pivoting as well as losing all of the momentum from that viral video.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

The best source of new clients for me has been tiktok. I think because it’s a video platform that shows or can show personality it can help to build a community just a little better than static photos elsewhere. I think it’s important to build a community and not just be selling to people all of the time.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.shoplustandlore.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/shoplustandlore
• Other: Www.tiktok.com/@shoplustandlore