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

Sonya, appreciate you joining us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

I used to regret not starting my business earlier on in life. My thought was, had I done so, I would be much further along than I am at the present.

When I was younger, I changed jobs a lot as I would easily get bored. Nothing I did seemed to fulfill me. I knew that I enjoyed writing, but I didn’t see it as being a stream of income. Back then I would only write if I was asked to do a skit or play at church. This was mainly because the bulk of my time was spent trying to find a career path that fulfilled me. Years later, I remember reading the left brain/right brain theory and a light bulb went off. I realized that I wasn’t being fulfilled because I wasn’t doing much right brain activity which included my creative, artsy side. When you’re a creative, but don’t have the freedom to create, you feel stifled because you’re not using your outlet. Therefore, it was a huge challenge for me to work a 9 to 5 job where I wasn’t allowed to let my creativity flow.

Discovering the reason behind my unfulfillment was major. It helped me to understand who I was as a person. It also helped me to fully appreciate my God given talent of writing. Suddenly, I had purpose, and that purpose was to empower and inspire people through my writing, be it poetry, plays or film.

After coming to terms with my purpose, it was time to execute my plan which was to continue writing stage-plays but have them performed in front of a larger audience. Sure, it sounded good, but starting was hard for me. After all I was comfortable writing for an audience who knew and loved me. I took comfort in knowing that if I made a mistake, people would still clap for me. The fear of starting gripped me for several years. It wasn’t until I started feeling uncomfortable in the place that I normally found comfort, that I knew I had to do something different. My season in that place was up, and it was time to move on. Moving on freed up a lot of time that I then used to focus 100% on legitimizing my business. I was still afraid, but I kept building despite my fear. In hindsight, had I not been made to feel uncomfortable in the prior place, I would have never found the time, courage, or strength to start The W Theater Ensemble, Inc.

9 years later, I now realize that everything happened exactly when it was supposed to. I wouldn’t change a thing. I needed to grow stronger mentally and emotionally to handle the pressures that comes with being a business owner. I’m grateful for the journey.

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 background and context?

For those who may not know me, my name is Sonya Welch. I am the Owner and Artistic Director of The W Theatre Ensemble, Inc. which is a Theatre Company consisting of an ensemble of actors who performs plays written by me. I started the company back in 2013 and 9 years later we have grown by leaps and bounds. We have successfully produced over 50 stage-plays in the Florida tri county areas of Broward, Dade, and Palm Peach and Atlanta, Georgia where the company currently resides.

The W Theater has recently expanded with the start of The W Entertainment Group which was created for film projects. Since its inception, we have successfully produced two short films, “38 Hot” and “Call Me Zaddy” both written by me. “Call Me Zaddy” has been chosen to be featured in The Atlanta Black Theatre Festival as well as The Twin Cities Black Film Festival in Minneapolis, Minnesota this year. Filming for, “Call Me Zaddy, The 2nd Edition” will begin in September 2022.

The W Entertainment group also has some full featured films that are in the works. Those include “Church Women” and “The 1 Thing I Wish She Knew” which were both adapted from my stage plays bearing the same names. We are super excited about our transition to film but remain equally excited about our upcoming theatre projects as well.

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

In the entertainment industry, building an audience can be tricky, especially when you don’t have thousands of dollars to spend on advertisement. For that reason, I am grateful for social media. When used correctly, it can be a great tool to reach a larger audience.

My advice to those trying to grow their audience on social media is to release the notion that your friends and family alone are enough to help you expand. In most cases your family and friends though they love you, never signed up to assist in your business expansion. Truthfully speaking, some of them are not interested in what you are doing or selling. And that doesn’t make them bad people. It’s just that everyone has different interests. For you to grow, you must find your audience, meaning, find people who are interested in what you are selling. The way you do this on social media is to set up ads on Facebook and Instagram. They are inexpensive and they are designed to help you target your audience. Now don’t expect an influx of new patrons just because you run an ad. It takes time. There is some trial and error involved in successfully building the right ad, but eventually, your audience will begin to grow. The key is consistency. Don’t give up. Stay the course until you get the results you want.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Patronizing other businesses has taught me both what and what not to do where my business is concerned. I learned very early on that having a good business reputation is extremely important for growth and longevity. I try my best to use integrity in all my business dealings and to treat people the way I wish to be treated. I know some things are out of my control and that I can never satisfy every patron 100%, but I have committed myself to at least trying.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @thewtheater
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWTheaterEnsembleInc
• Youtube: The W Entertainment Group

Image Credits
Dihanah Joseph, Photographer