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

Hi Stephany, thanks for joining us today. What do you think matters most in terms of achieving success?

We’ve all been gifted with something. It’s important for you to find out what your thing is and just go for it. Starting is half the battle and never quitting is the key! My success came from working hard, mastering my craft and being personable with my clients!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

My company was birthed while I was living in NY, as a songwriter. My first, music manager, worked for Rocafella records and put me on, every industry party, guest list. At the time I was a struggling college student just trying to sell records but I was around millionaires. They all wore name brand clothing, big chains and had mansions. I couldn’t afford any of it at the time, but I wanted to look like money, so I started making my own outfits. They would soon, ask me where I got my clothes, accessories, cell phone cases, etc and they couldn’t believe it was all me making it! That’s when I started customizing items for celebrities. I got my first big check from Sony Records, for doing shirts for a Jagged Edge video shoot. I’ve customized things for Chris Brown, Latoya Luckett and so many more to follow. The reason my business has had longevity, is because I understand, as time changes, your business ideas need to change. I went from customizing cell phone cases, to clothing to bedazzling wine flutes, bottles and ice buckets, which lead me into the wedding industry. We have evolved and don’t plan on stopping anytime soon, I started as the Bling Queen, then finally got my company name “Ice Castle Boutique” from a friend of mine at the time and now we are launching our sister company “Ice Queen” it’s more of a lifestyle movement, less about me, the “Bling Queen”. Any woman can be an Ice Queen! We will launch our Ice Queen collection at the Bronner Brothers Hair Show, this August in Miami. I’m most proud of the fact that I never quit. I am constantly thinking of new things to add to my business, that are more “need based” such as our new travel size jewelry boxes. Everyone needs a jewelry travel box for their accessories. Running a successful company, is really all about researching and testing out your next big idea. I’m consistent and my customer service is amazing. I’ve had an Etsy shop and Shopify store, for a little over 2 years but I’ve been doing this for over 20 years. I host a lot of brunch/vendor events and I have great relationships with my clients. You’ll get a few bumps in the road but it’s all about your attitude and how you handle adversity. Your goal, as a business owner, is to have your customer smiling in the end.

How did you build your audience on social media?

My initial platform, for my business, was FB. That experience taught me that your friends and family will not be your first clients (in my Supa voice.) I started an Instagram, in hopes that it would connect me to tons of strangers and I did. The first thing I did was hash tagged everything I posted. I then went back to some of my industry resources and they linked me with a few young celebrities, to promote for me. This was all before artists or influencers even asked for money, so all my promos were free, because of the great relationships I created. These few celebrities that modeled for me, had huge followings and their followers followed me. That’s how I grew my social media. There’s no real secret in order to build your social media but be relatable and people buy into people so be personable. However, first things first, you must also, have a product that they like! Then you’ll be successful!!

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding thing for me is, I don’t have any overhead. I make most my items in my home. I really have saved tons of money not renting out a location. COVID taught me so much about not rushing into getting a store front. Clients can not come to my house, I ship everything and I kind of set my own schedule. Since most my items are custom, I don’t really have to purchase tons of inventory because I order my supplies as needed. It’s really been a great way to save.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/IceCastleBoutique?ref=profile_header
• Instagram: www.Instagram.com/Icequeencreations
• Facebook: Stephany Roberts
• Other: Tik Tok @icecastelboutique