We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tiffany Catron a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Tiffany, appreciate you joining 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.

Actually, there is a bit of a story here. Where to begin? Well, even though it happened almost a decade ago, I remember it like it was just yesterday. The sting of betrayal, the tears streaming down my face, and the feeling of abandonment when he walked out the door. Never to return.

My heart was broken. My hopes were shattered. From my standpoint, my life felt over.

But what I know now that I didn’t know then, was when life feels over, it’s really just beginning.

In my moment of desperation, I cried out to God for help. And to my surprise, He answered.

From that moment on my life was forever changed. Even though I lost a husband that day, God filled a different void I didn’t even know I had.

During that season I began to realize God’s ability to create beauty from ashes and to work all things for good (Romans 8:28).

That there is beauty in every season of life. Like the Bible says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens…for God has made everything beautiful in its time.”

I thought to myself, “What if I could create a card line that was beautifully designed, but spoke to the heart of the human experience – the good and the bad – the moments of celebration, but also the moments of disappointment and grief?”

What if that could be a thing?

And that is how Lavender Vines was born. Beauty from ashes. A source of hope birthed from a place of hopelessness.

One card at a time, that vision has become a reality.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Actually, despite having such an emotionally compelling reason to start this business, I hesitated for…4 years. Even though I deeply wanted to launch out and start, I had so many fears that prevented me from actually taking any steps forward. I had no background in business, graphic design, or the greeting card industry and I couldn’t help but feel like an imposter. What would my friends think? What if it turns out I’m a bad graphic designer? After all, I don’t even know Photoshop…and what if I invested all my savings into this and it failed? My head consisted of a laundry list of reasons to not do it, and just a few reasons to do it:

I really, really, really wanted to
I think I could make a pretty cool product that is different than what’s currently available
Most importantly – and the one I could not ignore – the gut feeling was that this is what God was calling me to do

So, what did I do? As stated, I delayed the whole process for four years until I couldn’t take it anymore, I had to give it a shot. I started by teaching myself Photoshop. Then Illustrator. Then InDesign. Then I took a stab at creating a card. Then I created a few more. And surprisingly, I didn’t hate them. Actually, I liked them a lot.

Then I got into more exciting things (at least for me) and started adding embellishments to my designs such as glitter, rhinestones, pearls, and ribbon, until I was creating something I was absolutely in LOVE with. And hopefully, my customers would love, too.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I wish I could say everything has been smooth and perfect, but honestly, it’s been far from it. Deciding to step into entrepreneurship is like strapping yourself into a rollercoaster that goes upside down. It’s fun and exhilarating, but terrifying and intimidating all at the same time. One moment you’re laughing and smiling enjoying the ride, the next you’ve had enough and just want it to be over.

For example, COVID definitely hurt my business a lot. I wanted to give up, and even shut down my shop for years, not sure if I’d ever reopen. I felt I had worked so hard to form relationships with retailers and create beautiful products people would love, just for shops to close down and my cards to collect dust.

It felt like for every 1 step forward I took three steps back. But I have learned that perseverance, and trusting in God, is the pathway to success.

Every obstacle is exactly that, an obstacle. It can be overcome. I typically don’t like cliche’s, but this one is just so true…at the end of the day I am thankful for every struggle I have faced, because they have made me stronger.

I can honestly say that because of the trials and setbacks, they have made me more resilient as a person, and as a business owner. Don’t get me wrong, I still have my moments when things aren’t going well. But they’re exactly that…moments. I allow myself to feel the pain or frustration of what I’m going through because I am only human after all, and then it’s time to come up with a game plan, and get back in the game.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

I feel a solid email marketing and social media strategy is key. And what’s also key is CONSISTENCY. Which I sometimes fall short of. :/ What I try to do through both channels is provide my brand story and mission as much as possible. I want my customers to know what my brand stands for and how we are different. I also try to provide useful information that’s not just product related. For example, I will share with retailers who are selling my cards tips and tricks for a more beautiful way of displaying the inventory to optimize sales.

Discover more about Lavender Vines:
– Website: https://lavendervines.com
– Blog: xotiffanynicole.com
– Instagram: https://instagram.com/lavendervines
– Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lavendervinesco

Contact Info:

• Website: https://lavendervines.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lavendervines/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lavendervinesco
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/103331464/admin/dashboard/

Image Credits

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