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

Hi Whitney, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

From the age of 10 every summer selling lemonade at my lemonade stand, I always knew I was destined to become a successful entrepreneur. I love creating, making things, and selling them. In 2019 I came up with an idea to create catchy phrases for t-shirts.

I started doing some research on the t-shirt industry and I instantly gained a passion for all the creativity the t-shirt industry has to offer. I was excited. I thought to myself what can I call my t-shirt business? Instantly, I thought Catch This Tea-Shirt. “Spill the tea, according to the definition published in Urban Dictionary, means “gossip or personal information belonging to someone else; the scoop; the news.” The term, in its purest form, is used for gossip and to indicate that yours is the juiciest of news”! I thought this is brilliant… Instead of T-Shirts, I will create Tea-Shirts!

When I created Catch This Tea Shirt I had a vision of my customers loudly expressing themselves without saying a word. Catch This Tea Shirt is meant to be worn by anyone who isn’t afraid to voice their inner alter ego.

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

Being an entrepreneur is not an easy walk in the park. You will lose and gain, but the objective is to learn from your mistakes and stay consistent. In Jan of 2020, I officially launched Catch This Tea Shirt and I endured many battles.

One battle I overcame that year was the weekend of the busiest shopping season of the year. “Black Friday 4th Quarter”! I stayed consistent and prayed for 100 orders that quarter.

Well, on Black Friday Weekend, Catch This Tea Shirt received over 100 orders that weekend alone. Astonished, Amazed, Shocked, Happy, Overwhelmed and Blessed are a few of the emotions I felt at that moment.

Watching my phone continue to ring in sales that weekend, was a feeling I really can’t explain. I felt like I was dreaming. To actually see my hard work come to fruition was an amazing feeling. But there’s always a test in your blessing and that’s when you decide if your purpose is to become a successful entrepreneur.

In the midst of filling over 100 orders with a total of 350 shirts, my DTG machine broke. I was using a DTG printer to create the t-shirts! At that very moment, I was tested. Do I give up and refund my customers their money or do I create a solution?

I instantly went on google and searched for an in-house screen printing t-shirt business in my area. Needless to say, it took a week to finally find a company that had not only provided great products but a good price point because I wanted to remain profitable. I sent out emails to each customer updating them on the delayed status of their order. Customer service is my number one priority. I was able to produce and package each order. My customers were understanding and they loved their shirts! Most of them are still my customers today!

The lesson I learned was, that regardless of what battles you endure as an entrepreneur, pray to God and ask him to reorder your steps, remain consistent, find a solution, stay in communication with your customers, and NEVER give up!

As they say, “Rome wasn’t built in a day, but it was eventually successfully built. If you don’t quit in your tough seasons, you will eventually see the fruits of your harvest. Take that moment to learn from the lesson because it will build the foundation of your fruitful harvest!

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I discussed this in detail in the previous question. :)

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Today I have 38k followers on Instagram and I started with only 1 follower! Once, you find out who your targeted audience is connect with pages that have the same interest in what you are selling. Network by sending emails and requesting the page owner’s interest in collaborating with your brand. Invest and attend marketing events. Youtube is a key factor in doing research on how to gain followers who would be interested in your brand. Also, creating an ambassador affiliate program is a great marketing technique.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.catchthisteashirts.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/catchthisteashirts
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/catchthisteashirt
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ThisTeaShirt
• Other: Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@catchthisteashirt?_t=8UVf6Vf8yaI&_r=1