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

Shamila, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

I think hard work and being consistent is what makes a small business successful also collaborating with other small businesses. I have been in the biz since 2018 and I have always loved partnering with like minded creatives.

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?

Hi! My name is Shamila and I am the co-owner of our family run business Queen City Crete. QCC is a handmade concrete homewares and planter small business started in Charlotte NC (hence the name). We are a husband and wife team who hand pours all of our goods which makes each piece one of a kind and unique. I started this business in 2018 as a candle business, I wanted a more sustainable option for vessels, sometime that people would want to re-use, and for got the idea of using concrete because we were building a concrete fire pit outside. The first molds I made were out of recyclables, and then our crazy fun concrete journey began.

I strongly believe in community over competition but I think what makes us stand out from others in our field is raw affordability of our goods and the unique pieces we come out with.

We are most proud that we make quality goods that everyone can afford. Our goal is to get QCC items in every home and love that our goods make people smile.

You can find everything on queencitycrete.com where we offer free shipping, locally in Charlotte NC at Winnies Boutique, Twigs and Figs, and CLT Find. We also partner with several shops across the US.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Starting in 2018, I was focusing on pop ups and I also worked a full time job. In 2020 I need to make the decision to go full time with it or give the business up because with three kids and another job I was burnt out. In January 2020 I decided to make it my full time, but then shortly after the world shut down due to covid. We just moved into a local collective shop and that shut down as well.

My husband and I decided to offer free non-contact front porch drop off’s with every order and put aside two days a week to do it. We drove for about 4-6 hours a day (felt like amazon drivers haha) all around Charlotte and surrounding areas. I think this is what made our business expand as fast as it did. The plant craze went wild during covid and they wanted pretty planters to put them in.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

My advice for social media is just have fun with it. Post the content you want, not he content they’re telling you to post. Because at the end of the day it’s YOUR business and you want followers and potential customers to buy from you to appreciate your authentic self.

Also stay consistent and show behind the scenes situations, people love to see the mess as much as the professional pics because it reminds them that we are small businesses and people just like them.

Contact Info:

• Website: queencitycrete.com
• Instagram: @queencitycrete
• Facebook: @queencitycrete
• Youtube: @queencitycrete
• Other: TikTok @queencitycrete

Image Credits
Derwin Marshall aka Fadeawayz Production LLC