We were lucky to catch up with Will Rich recently and have shared our conversation below.

Will , appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

In the spring of 2024, I began a conversation with a friend and associate of mine, Ava, about creating an online brand using one-of- a-kind silk saree fabric to make classically inspired women’s “loungerie”. The idea was to create an exclusive on-line brand to empower and exalt through the magic of the designs and fabric. At this time I had just moved back to the Joshua Tree area of the Mojave Desert and my partner, Ava, was still living in Hawaii, where we met.

I was reeling from a custody battle and a divorce and, in my split, had some apparel inventory remaining from the previous marriage and business. So, it was a blend of taking what the resources I already had, and also creating new designs that were fresh and inspiring to both Ava and I. The truth, we had to draw on skills that we hadn’t used in 20-some years and coordinate to bring fashion to the world; Ava’s background was in graphic design and mine was a mixture of entrepreneurship and formerly working in entertainment.

In essence, the thrust for this brand came from some form of divine inspiration and all of the elements of the universe coming to our aid to create something we were not totally sure we could pull off.

So, we planned our launch photoshoot, had designs made, called in friends to help us model and shoot the clothes, rented an Airbnb and made lemonade out of lemons. Ava was slated to stay in the desert for the weekend and then return to Hawaii. We managed to pull off the shoot despite having no fittings and being unsure the clothing would even fit the models.

When all was said and done, Ava’s initial trip extended for three months. Again, through some form of providence, we were offered a brick and mortar store at a very reasonable rent and so we opened it while also launching online. The store is called Joy Scout and it is centrally located in Yucca Valley, CA.

It was the hottest summer on record in the desert and we labored to open Joy Scout in the midst of a sluggish economy, nomadic living (we were in a small Airbnb rental) Ava having another full-time job, and me attempting to regain contact with my 4-year old child during a grueling custody battle.

At each step, we felt the presence of divine energy. No matter what the obstacle, it always worked in our favor and we continued to plow ahead.

Cut to this past Memorial Day Weekend and we are finally launching our brand, Pioneer Blooms, online. We had another very successful photo shoot one year to the day and will officially release the designs sometime in summer 2025.

Joy Scout houses not only our exclusive line, but also other brands we love, textiles from around the world, crystals, healing tools and other one of a kind gifts. We are also elated to be able to provide the local community with healing and bodywork in the back of the space.

We are rounding out our first year in the physical space and are so very excited, humble and grateful to finally see our unique and classically inspired silk designs come to life both online and in-store.

Ava still toggles back and forth between Hawaii and the desert, my now 5-year old child is in my full custody and thriving, and the brand is poised to bring beauty and light to the world. We are blessed.

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

Joy Scout brings vintage fabrics back to life, reimagined as intimate, playful, and beautifully made pieces. With an ode to classic structure, we are always seeking to create one of a kind pieces that can exalt whomever is wearing our outfits. For our intimate “loungerie” pieces, we exclusively source crepe silk. Crepe has an effortless class and distinction, as its velvety contours drape the body with comfort and ease. We have yet to find anyone who is taking this material and creating intimates for women that provide truly unique patterns without being ostentatious. The clothes we create are meant to be worn both inside and outside the home; in an intimate setting, but also as luxurious evening wear. We strive to design capsule-like pieces that can be mixed and matched so as to provide truly striking statements for the customer. We go through a vigorous process of selecting each and every saree with out makers in India and spend weeks and months tweaking each design so that it might fit a wide range of body types and personalities. We believe you can feel powerful, sensual, and deeply self-respecting – all at once. Our designs are made to meet you there, with fashion being a truly divine expression, and we welcome that dynamic in each and every new piece we create.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

One of the things that we always focus on with our business, is treating people with dignity and respect. Offering a safe place for people to come to be seen, heard and given love. A lot of businesses make the bottom line their main objective. And we understand this reality, as no business can operate without profitability. But our store and brand come from the heart. There have been countless people who have come back to tell us a story of how a blanket they purchased or an item of clothing brought such joy to the receiver or to themselves. We also try to look at things from a bird’s eye view. Almost as if we’re reviewing our actions from the perspective of being an elder, looking back on how we behaved and what our actions revealed. As such, we always want to treat human beings as fellows on a journey of life. So that we can say that our store, our brand came from love and we lifted our fellow man up by being genuine, generous, kind and loving. Because of this distinction, we find that our customers always return to support us, as they feel our genuine love for them, even if they are only an acquaintance. To that end, we also let very few people leave our store empty handed. Whether it is a few small sprigs of sage or a tiny crystal, we believe in giving to those that cross the threshold. These gestures of kindness go a long way. We joke that the only place we know of that gives something away for free is when a bank gives you a lollipop, and that’s because you’re giving them your money. So we have always believed that this type of generosity of spirit comes back tenfold and allows us to provide joy and kindness to people each and every day. Ultimately it makes us feel good and our customers notice it and reciprocate it with their support.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

When we opened our store, we had poured every dollar we had into getting it off the ground. It was 118 degrees every day and we didn’t have air conditioning in the space as of yet. We often doubted if we had made the right decision to take the plunge. We had to embrace the decisions we made and move forward in trust. To that end, we decided if we were going to have a store, and against all odds, succeed, then we must have a billboard. Go big or go home. Despite our financial constraints, we were determined to find a prominently placed location with an effective presence. After months of talking to the rep at Lamar Advertising, a billboard opened up right in the center of town. Even though we were unsure how to afford it, we felt it was universe reflecting back what we were wanting; a highly visible advertisement for our new brand. And so, we went for it and have been finding a way each month to afford the ability to have a huge billboard in town. We are just about to change the artwork to reflect our new designs. We also made a post card that reinforces the image on the billboard. That campaign has been incredibly effective in creating brand awareness. We’ve heard from multitudes of customers “I saw your billboard”, “I thought you were a big brand”, “it took me a while to get in here, but I kept seeing your beautiful billboard”… The reinforcement of the post card that we hand out at markets and such has created a strong sentiment for the brand. We were also seeking to capture many of the tourists who leave the Joshua Tree National Park and we consistently have them coming to the store, having seen the huge advertisement. We know that being in the first year of our business, it will take time to create customer trust and awareness. The billboard has been a huge boost and we’re happy to have taken the plunge

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.joysout.love
• Instagram: @joyscoutlove