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

Alright, Shelby thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

I never really loved fashion until I got into college. When I started college I declared my major as accounting with a minor in marketing. My love for business started there as well. I became a fashion blogger in college, which was a time where that was not a big thing. No one really knew what it was back then. I loved putting the pieces together and loved to talk high fashion, but it wasn’t really fueling the fire at the time for me. I think it also didn’t help that I was young and didn’t quite have my style down yet. When I got out of college, I worked at a local boutique to see if maybe putting the business side and my eye for fashion together would be what I wanted to do. Turns out, it was… I saw that my style – this classic, non-trendy, effortless style – wasn’t really out there, especially in Memphis. I wanted to start bringing that to people that followed me and to the city. I started online in November of 2017. I grew organically to where it couldn’t fit in my home anymore. Fast forward to November 2020, and I landed a spot for a temporary pop-up for 6 months at Saddle Creek. This experience began my brick and mortar love. I signed the leases for my permanent spot in December/January in the heart of East Memphis. I really wanted to provide a peaceful oasis that showed the brand of Shelby Jewel. We are client-focused and want it to be a true styling experience from the moment you walk in.

Shelby, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

The love and gift of fashion came from Above. It slowly seeped into my life and I was able to start creating and find an outlet. I realized though that not everyone may have that intuition. I wanted to bring forth a place where when you are looking for a capsule wardrobe, starting a new job, getting married, elevating your style or whatever it may be, you have a place to go where you feel welcomed. The classic, neutral style wasn’t anywhere in the city nor really in the country unless it was extremely expensive. We bring those affordable, great quality pieces forward. We offer a couple different services too. You can book a styling appointment with one of our trusted stylists. It involves complimentary Prosecco, a whole hour (or more if you choose) with just your stylist’s attention on you, a pre-selected rack of pieces we believe you’d love based off of a quiz you take, and we put together outfits based off what you needed. It’s a great time and a fantastic gift or time to come with a friend. We also offer The Jewel Box. It’s a subscription mystery box based off feedback the client gives me. a hand choose five pieces to send them that are brand new and never seen. They send back what they don’t want! You can have a party as well for your bachelorette, birthday, or a girl’s night. We try to truly create an experience that allow the fun and confidence to grow. I love the niche in the market we have gapped. I think I am most proud of staying true to myself and what I believed in.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Social media is a beast! It can be ruthless when it comes to the algorithm and such. We have learned to focus on first-party data such as emails and SMS. But social media is still huge and needs to be a priority. First and foremost, I had people following me for my blog, so I did have a little bit of that roll over. It creates that credibility and trustworthiness. For us though, we have to learn what works best for our customers. We explore and see what type of reels, static posts, audio, styling, poses, and models have caught our customers and followers’ eye. We look at engagement and if. certain thing isn’t working, we see what has been. We also recently learned just how important paid ads are. That is our next step for social media. Social media is all about exploring and figure out your niche is and why people come to your page. Once you figure it out, run with it!

Has your business ever had a near-death moment? Would you mind sharing the story?

Let me start this off with that retail, especially owning a business is HARD. I just celebrated my first year with the brick and mortar and there are a LOT of lessons I have learned. Financial lessons have been one of the top ones. I ended up getting a financial coach, which I highly recommend, to help you understand where you need cash flow to be. There were times that I didn’t know where I would get my employees’ payroll, rent, etc. Praise that the Lord somehow always provided. But sometimes we had to dip into our personal or have an investment come in from someone. You have to know you’re putting yourself out there when you open a business. I would start having different accounts open for your taxes, rent, OPEX, inventory, etc. This has saved me to see where my cash flow needs to go. Also, prioritizing where it needs to go first was huge for me. I had to make really hard decisions to be able to keep this going. I’m slowly getting out of some first year mistakes but I have a great support system that is keeping me accountable. I remember that if it starts to feel overwhelming, I try to go do something in the business that I love to do – like styling a photoshoot. It reminds me why I am doing it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.shelbyjewel.com
• Instagram: @shopshelbyjewel
• Facebook: @shopshelbyjewel
• Youtube: @shopshelbyjewel
• Other: Pinterest: @shopshelbyjewel

Image Credits
Lauren Flowers Photography Selavie Photography