Preppy Podcast
The Preppy Podcast features interviews every Tuesday with the brands, businesses and influencers who are keeping the modern preppy lifestyle alive.
Preppy Podcast
Allie+Bess
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Allie+Bess is beaded jewelry made for living in color! Located in Dallas, Texas and founded by best friends and business partners Allie Wardlaw and Bess Callarman. Shop at https://shopalliebess.com/
You're listening to the Preppy Podcast, and I'm your host, Patricia May Olsen. I'll be interviewing the brands, businesses, and influencers who are keeping the modern preppy lifestyle alive. Each Tuesday, I'll bring you a new episode, but if you're craving more preppy, then shop the merch and listen to past episodes at thepreppy podcast.com and be sure to follow at the preppy podcast and me, Patricia underscore May underscore Olsen on Instagram. The two best friends and founders behind the accessory brand Anatal and Bess. You have seen me wear their jewelry all the time. I'm actually wearing a bracelet right now. And they were part of our Camp Preppy Dallas with a charm bar that was a huge hit from Campers. I was so thrilled to have them on the podcast, learn all about how they created this business, what it's like working with your best friend, their tips for marketing. They do such a great job with marketing. So some tips around that and social media and putting yourself out there on camera and so much more. I know you guys are really going to enjoy this fun episode with these two founders. But before we get into the episode, a few little reminders. First being Club Preppy, our monthly membership. We have had so many new members join and we are just having the best time. And if you're looking for a fall activity to do when it gets cold out and you're stuck at home, then Club Preppy is what you want to look into. We do at least one virtual event per month taught by experts. Think things like preppy crafts, preppy hobbies. Um we've done styling workshops, tips for interior design, um, all sorts of things taught by experts in their field, as well as members get a fun little gift in the mail from me each month. This month, uh, members get a wonderful mug with some of our preppy, uh club preppy uh icons wrapped around it. And just I have so much fun planned for Club Preppy um in the future in the fall. So definitely go to thepreppypodcast.com and join us over there. And then lastly, we have two camp preppies left for 2026, which is wild. This year is flying by. Uh so you can get those tickets for Kenny Bunkport in October and then Barnsley Resort, which is going to be all holiday themed. That is at the end of November. Both those tickets are at thepreppypodcast.com. One question I always get for Club Preppy and Camp Preppy is if you have to be a business owner, if you have to be an influencer, like who are these for? And they are just for anyone. You can be a business owner, you can be an influencer, but you don't have to be. There are just wonderful women. I would say the only thing is you have to love a preppy lifestyle, want to meet new friends and learn new skills, and just have a good time. So find out all that information at thepreppypodcast.com. Let's get into this week's episode. Okay, so why don't you let everyone know who you are, where you live, and what you do? I'm Allie Wardlaw.
SPEAKER_01And I'm Bess Callerman, and we are co-founders of Allie Bess.
SPEAKER_02It's a fashion jewelry brand located in Dallas, Texas, but we're mainly e-commerce, so we're online.
SPEAKER_00Fabulous. And my campers know um the brand because Camp Preppy Dallas, we had you guys pop up and do a charm bar. And I know my followers have seen me post about your brand as well. Um, and I'm so excited to chat with you ladies and share your story with everyone listening today. We're excited to be here. Okay, so let's start at the beginning. Tell me about you guys both as kids. Were you someone that was like had this entrepreneurial spirit at a young age and had a little lemonade stand? Or were you someone that like loved doing arts and crafts and were making bracelets when you were little? Like, what was your childhood like?
SPEAKER_02I don't think anybody's ever actually asked this question. It's such a good question. Um, I was really um, I've always really been into like crafts, um, just like always really hands-on with everything. I and yes, I was very entrepreneurial, always had we actually had vegetable stands growing up. Um, my dad always put me in like charge of those things. So has all have always been interested. Okay, I love that.
SPEAKER_01What about you? So I come from an entrepreneurial family. Um my father was an entrepreneur, lots of relatives were entrepreneurs. I was never interested in business. My father wanted me to major in business, I had no interest. Um, I think I was like the lost cause in his eyes.
SPEAKER_02And um yeah, like I really didn't have any interest until But I will say I was gonna say, I will say both of us have probably always had the entrepreneurial spirit, but we both went the opposite direction because we wanted a steady career, and so we both had a career in healthcare for I had 10 years. Were you 10 years?
SPEAKER_01I was 10 years, but I I also have had another career. I was an event planner. I just, you know, had lots of careers and did not really know where I would get.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, tried doing lots of things until um yeah, my last career was to be a stay-at-home mom, and I failed at that and started out as a Which is funny because we that to answer your question, have we always like, yes, we used to just get together when after we had kids just to hang out and make bracelets and like hang out together, and that's what we would do when we hung out, and then it turned into it.
SPEAKER_01Which sounds so weird.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_00No, I love it. Well, it's funny. I always do ask that because I find when we look back, we see like there was like a little murmur of creativity or entrepreneurship or whatever it is. And so it sounds like you guys maybe you know pushed it off for a little bit, but you had that creativity spark in the back of your brain, and it just took a little bit for it to come out.
SPEAKER_01Yes, I think we both always had it. It just, yeah, it was not like the forefront, if you will.
SPEAKER_00So then tell me a little bit about then what each of you studied in school and sort of that first career journeys. And you you mentioned a little bit of them, but like what was what did you study? Did it have to do with what you studied then your first career, um, kind of leading up to meeting and starting the brand together?
SPEAKER_02Okay, so I uh have a master's in occupational therapy. I worked for 10 years as an occupational therapist. I specialized in geriatrics. That is actually how I met this. Oh my god.
SPEAKER_01So I come, I had no idea what I wanted to do when I went to college. Uh I was a um history major with a minor in photography and leadership. Not useful skills at all. But um here we are. I graduated because then my inner parents were like, you have to have a job. And so I was an event planner and did that for a few years and realized that I like to go to the party, not plan the party. Yes. So um I realized I needed to have a job that didn't require me to work nights and weekends. So um then I went.
SPEAKER_02So then you decided to be an entrepreneur.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I know. Uh 24. So then I went and got my master's in speech pathology, specialized in geriatrics. We met at a nursing home.
SPEAKER_00We our desks were right next to each other. We I love that. I feel like a nursing home is like so opposite of your fun jewelry that you do now.
SPEAKER_01So you know what's funny is yes, it is, but I will say, I would think I would say both of us would say this. The skills that we learned there.
SPEAKER_02Turn us how to be an entrepreneur.
SPEAKER_01It like taught us how to be an entrepreneur and I, there are still skills that we use every day from that experience.
SPEAKER_00Interesting. So, what are some of those skills that you would say you learn there?
SPEAKER_02You have to be incredibly inventive, creative, and um, there's no budget. So, in a nursing home, so you're constantly having to like think of new ways to make something.
SPEAKER_01Um and it's all, I mean, it just sounds crazy, but like in therapy, you are creating a goal, right? And you have to see like how you achieve that goal. Well, in business, you're doing the same thing, it's just different. Um, I think there's that. I think the other thing is people always ask us, are we actually friends? You know, like no one could ever be friends with the person they're in business with. Because we started in business together, we both saw each other's like work ethic. That I think that's something that we never question from each other. And so that has been such like a huge foundation of like Ali Best's, but like our business.
SPEAKER_02We've got yeah, we went into it knowing how each other already worked because we worked together for so long before.
SPEAKER_00I love that. Those are such good points and make total sense because, like at first, I was like, those two things seem so different, but it makes total sense now that you explained those skills. Um, so you're both working there, and then at what point, like, did you have this aha moment of A, either wanting to work together and then came what that product was or what that business is, or did it first come, you know, knowing the product and business and then being like, let's do this together? Like, how did that form?
SPEAKER_01I sorry, I laugh when you asked this question because we've been asked this multiple times and we did not have a super well thought-out business plan. We didn't have a business plan. There was not an aha moment. It was we Ali mentioned that we used, I at this point when we started, I had stopped working. I had stopped, we had stopped working. She was working part-time. I had just had my daughter, my second child, and so I was just gonna stay at home. And so Allie would drop her kids off at school and just come over and have coffee, but she doesn't like coffee and we both can't sit still. So we would like we fell in love with this bee.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and so we were like, we can figure out how to like make this ourselves, save some money, and then like make the designs we wanted. So that is honestly kind of how it started. Um, and we had never intended to start an actual business, but I think we're both pretty strong.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, we were not, we were not intended to start a business, but Ali thought we needed an Instagram.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Okay. So it started with this beef that you guys both loved, and it sounds like kind of wanting a creative outlet or something to do then, in between, you know, being a mom, having kids, and all of that. Um, and then came the Instagram, which then sounds like it turned into maybe a business because people started following and wanting more.
SPEAKER_02Um, well, somebody found us as a suggested friend. And instead of getting egg on our face, we were like, you know what, we're just gonna do it.
SPEAKER_01So we literally started the business the next day. Yeah, well thought out, real well thought out.
SPEAKER_02There was no plan, there was no thought out process. It was honestly, it's crazy.
SPEAKER_01But I also think sometimes it's interesting talking to other entrepreneurs, and we have a different story because in the sense that we didn't have a lot of startup costs, so we didn't have to like go through you know, stages and stages of business planning. But I think sometimes the scariest thought is like putting yourself out there and seeing what happens, and people they can't get past that stage. And I think we were kind of forced to do it and we did it in reverse. Well, right. And so I think my point is is I don't I don't know if we'd ever would have done it.
SPEAKER_02I mean, I think we got our LLC after we had already started. We did started taking disorders. We were like, oh, I guess we should like do something with this and like what is what is sales tax?
SPEAKER_01And like, I mean, we had to figure all of that out. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Now, I am totally that same type of person, and my listeners know this because I always say it's like say yes and figure it out later. You know, you get that first sale, like, sure, I can do that, I can make that work, like, and then you figure it out, like you're building the plane uh as you're flying, right?
SPEAKER_02Yes. And I think I would it's hard to give advice this way, but like we said yes to everything back then. We just said yes because we were like, we have to grow, and you just say yes and you figure it out along the way. So it was like every custom order you could think of.
SPEAKER_01We did.
SPEAKER_02We're like, yes, sure we can do that.
SPEAKER_01Oh, you want to pop up tomorrow? Sure, we can do that. We'll be there.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah. No, you have to say yes to all those opportunities, especially at the beginning. Um, you never know where they will lead. So you start the Instagram, you're making uh jewelry, and then at what point down the line do you decide, like, okay, let's let's take this to the next level, let's create a website, let's, you know, maybe add more SKUs, let's like, what was that growth spot? Um, and how did you how did you go about it?
SPEAKER_01So we were kind of in an interesting position. I think Ali and myself, we never wanted to do e-commerce. Our whole thought was we wanted to do retail. And so uh so we started our business in August of 2019. And I'm just gonna give dates because it kind of helps understand the timeline. Um, so February of 2020, we were presented with this huge pop-up at a a large retailer, and it went like spectacularly. I mean, way better than anyone could have ever expected it to go. Um, and they said they wanted to buy our line. We thought we had made it, like we literally thought we um had hung the moon. Um, that was like the fed end of February of 2020. Fast forward three weeks, COVID hit. Um, you know, retailers weren't taking chances on small brands. I mean, they were trying to figure out how they were gonna operate. So we had to completely pivot. I mean, it was a very pivotal moment in our business.
SPEAKER_02We should also know we took all of the budget we had, which was hardly anything, but it was huge to us at the time, and we spent it on a photo shoot, like everything we needed to sell the line to them. So like we had like zero dollars left after we sold to them.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Um, and so we completely pivoted our business and went straight to e-commerce. And um, I think at that point we we did not, we were not forward-facing of our brand. We liked to do hand picks, you would see like body shops.
SPEAKER_02I mean, I feel like it was it was still our right, but this was never us like actually trying to promote ourselves, if you will.
SPEAKER_01And I think when COVID happened and we really tried to become an Insta, well, we tried to grow on Instagram, we really had to um become forward-facing, uh, which was a big I think hurdle that we had to get over.
SPEAKER_02But I think it played to our advantage because during COVID, you know how many people were just on their phone all day, every day. So I think it really um was an advantage to us.
SPEAKER_00Definitely, you know, it's so funny. I have so many people on this podcast who started their brand like right before COVID or started it during COVID, or their business completely changed because of COVID. Um, so it's it's funny looking back and seeing how many people, you know, it it made and it broke a lot of businesses. And it sounds like you guys were able to be nimble and flexible and make it work. And it's funny you mentioned like selling on Instagram and putting yourself out there because when I think of your brand, you guys are so good at that and have been from the beginning. It's like going live on Instagram, like creating videos, talking with the customer, um, really being the face of the brand, as you said.
SPEAKER_01And I mean that did not come natural to us, but I think we, and not something that we were, I will speak for myself, but I think I can speak for both of us, aspired to be. Um, but it was interesting. I we listened, I think it was a blog we we read. Um Do Say Give. Yeah, by Ali Corden of Do Say Give. And she was, and it was around the same time, and she mentioned something that people want to know who they're buying from. They want the personal connection. And so it's like, well, if which I do too, like, and if we want that, then we have to give that. And so I think that really was the kind of um inspiration, if you motivation um by really kind of changing how we market.
SPEAKER_00Definitely. And so you guys have built quite a following on social media. Um, like I said, you're great at selling online, you're great at just not even selling, but creating community and creating content that people want to watch, like that's informational and it's entertaining. Do you have any tips then for any listener who might have a brand? And I think a lot of people are scared to go like on video or in front of the camera. Like any tips around that?
SPEAKER_01I think being I this is like the hardest one, and I always it is being consistent.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01And being consistent, whether you have three viewers or you have 300 viewers, or even you know, 300,000 viewers. Um, it's really hard to want to get on camera and talk to three people, and it's we've done it. And we've done it um lots of times, and I think that but that's how you build your brand. Um I think that I think also just trying new things. Um and like thinking about it.
SPEAKER_02I have to you have to be comfortable being uncomfortable. It is really uncomfortable, but I think if you can just get past that little hurdle of like it being uncomfortable, then I mean, what's the worst that could happen, honestly? Somebody sees you do something silly or you may you say something wrong. I mean, we've done it all, and it's never been that big of an issue.
SPEAKER_01It just is what it is, yeah.
SPEAKER_00I mean, and with social media, everything turns over so fast. So even if you said something cringy or whatever, then like and people are gonna forget about it the next day.
SPEAKER_01And half the people might not even see it because it's not in their algorithm. So, like totally.
SPEAKER_00So everything started then with this one bead that you both loved, but since then you've grown so much. Like nowadays, I think of you for your beautiful charms too. Like, can you talk a little bit about the expansion and growth of the brand in terms of assortment and all of that?
SPEAKER_02This next week we'll celebrate seven years. So it may seem like I mean, I still feel like we're babies, but I think that we have we're definitely an accessories line now, but it's just it's been slow growth. Like it took us, I don't know, maybe a year or two to figure out necklaces, and then we slowly added charms. Charms.
SPEAKER_01I mean, I I think as you can tell from our story, we didn't have a plan. So we did not come from a manufacturing background, we did not come from a business background. So we were all learning how to do all this on the fly. I think one thing that, yes, as Ali said, it's been very slow, but I think also we have we're not afraid to make mistakes. And like we've made a lot of manufacturing mistakes. And how long does manufacturing take? Just all that whole process. We've learned very much like on the fly.
SPEAKER_02So I also think if someone's wanting to start a business knowing that it's okay to go slow, we don't have investors, we don't have extra money, we don't have budget, and um it has taken us a really long time to get where we are and to grow things and to try things. Um and I think that's okay.
SPEAKER_01And I yes, I want to add one point because that we haven't mentioned it. I mean, we we started, I I did say we started kind of our business with just we started it, but I mean we started with 50 bucks. So, like that is all that we have ever invested in the company is $50. Wow. So, and I say that because I want people to know like you don't have to have like these investors or some huge idea. Like you can start, it can be an organ, and I feel like that is something we are both really proud of, is it has been really organic growth.
SPEAKER_00Yes, yeah. I think that's a great, you know, a point to to say to listeners because yeah, you don't have to have investors, you don't have to have a million dollars to start a brand. I think you have to be creative and learn how to stretch a dollar, but um, you can do it from anything, really, right? Yes, you really can.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, we are proof of that. I mean, we didn't have a huge Instagram fault. I mean, we really started from zero.
SPEAKER_00So what is your favorite part about having this business? Um, and then what's like the hardest part, the part that like comes least naturally to you?
SPEAKER_01I think my favorite part is that um like I get to experience really crazy things that I would never have imagined with like my best friend. And it's like so cool to be able to share it with someone else because outside of us, like I can talk to my husband about it or talk to you know another friend, but they don't really get it.
SPEAKER_02It's like nobody can.
SPEAKER_01Um but I feel like it's really incredible to be able to do that with someone I care so much about. So that was like by far the best that, and I will also say the biggest some yeah, the biggest surprise is just the community that we have created. And I don't think I ever could have imagined that. Yeah. Um, I mean, it's a small business and they're hard days. It's hard and it's it's nonstop, and um, I mean, it might look Very glamorous from the outside, but there's you know, we get to go to photo shoots and stuff like that. But I'm also I was up at 2 a.m. last night speaking to our manufacturer.
SPEAKER_02So um I I think the the best part is just exactly what Bess said, and also just the community, but the hardest part is for sure just there's there's never really an off button. And I think the bigger we grow, the more problems there are because it's like our team grows, and I think Bess and I both care so deeply about that that it's just like the weight of that sometimes can feel like a lot. Like, oh, I pay people's mortgages, and you know, like it's a it's a lot, it's a lot because I have three kids and a husband and all these things. So yeah.
SPEAKER_00So speaking of that, you know, employees and growing a team, do you have any advice or tips around that? Whether it be like who you think should be a first hire or how to build a good team that, you know, has the same mission and in the brand's best interest. Like what has that process been like for you and any tips?
SPEAKER_02Um I think you have to trust your gut, first of all. And I read this the other day, and I actually think it's so accurate that the two things the brand should never compromise on are their product and their customer service. And I think because you can do like you can do, and I think truly we got to where we are because our customer service has been excellent since since the very beginning. We respond to everything, we talk to everyone in DM like DMs. Um, I think if someone can't do that on their own, talking to the customer, responding to like emails about product issues or you know, that sort of thing.
SPEAKER_01Trying to make it right.
SPEAKER_02Yes. You can't retain customers if you're not catering to them.
SPEAKER_01And I mean if you're in any business, getting a customer's is very expensive. I mean, they're extremely expensive. So keep your customers.
SPEAKER_00Yep. Great tips there. Okay, in terms of marketing, you know, we talked about that you're great on showing up in front of the camera. Um, I also think you guys just do a great job of like building excitement for each upcoming launches and collections. Like any advice or tips on marketing or like photo shoots, you also do really well. Um, what would you share there?
SPEAKER_01I think interesting. I I think photo shoots are it's I want to I want to speak about that because I think that's an interesting, especially as like a startup business. I think people can get really caught up in what a photo shoot could should look like and what the cost of that is. And I don't necessarily think there is a good ROI on that. And I think small starting smaller and really trying to create images that I mean you can create great quality images with a phone. Um, I mean, we did all of our own photography for with an iPhone for years.
SPEAKER_02Yeah, and I will say for us, just this is good to know, like, yes, our photo shoots are great and they help us build, they help the marketing team build build hype, but what really converts for us is just organic pictures of yourself.
SPEAKER_01I was gonna and to add on to that, I also think photo shoots are great. Kind of the point that I wanted to make is they're great, but they're not attainable. Most of what you're seeing, like with a model, it's not attainable for an everyday person. And people want to see people that like they can be like.
SPEAKER_00Yes.
SPEAKER_01And so sometimes I think having a more authentic image does more than having the perfect image.
SPEAKER_02Especially if you have no budget, I think the focus can just be on something else.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. And then another leg to that obviously is influencer marketing, which I know you know, you guys have worked with influencers from the beginning. Um, any tips around that? I think a lot of people obviously these days know about influencer marketing and um that it's a great way to reach customers, but I think people don't, I don't know if they're they're scared to reach out to influencers if they're just getting started or um what that's like. But I know you guys work with influencers, you've done collaborations for collections with influencers. Um, so you're quite well versed.
SPEAKER_02Um, I think influencers are great. I think influencer marketing has gotten us to grow in where we are. Um, I think you have to be okay hearing no. Yeah. I think you just have to be okay hearing no because you're gonna hear no a lot and influencers are gonna say no a lot.
SPEAKER_01So I think it's kind of like cold calling.
SPEAKER_02It is like you're gonna send 30 packages out or you're gonna send 30 DMs out, and maybe two will respond to you or want something from you. So I think a lot of people get caught up in like hearing no and just let it go with that, but you have to just that's just part of it.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Um but I also think too with that, the other thing that I think we've I feel like we've done every kind of scenario with uh with influencers is that when you build organically, like and if a person like influencers are always wanting new products to talk about, they always need something to sell. And so my point in saying that is that if you're able to get your product in front of some influencers, like and they organic, like I feel like that does better than trying to pay them, yeah. Yeah, um, or like I just I think as a as a small business, when you have a limited budget, it's very disheartening if you spend your whole marketing budget on one person, yes, and then they they don't convert for you. And I think what we have found a lot more successful is when we when an influencer loves us organically. Organically, and we try to build that relationship. I think what we have learned is trying to build relationships with influencers gets us a whole lot farther than trying to I agree a thousand percent.
SPEAKER_00And I think sometimes people they want to work with like uh the largest like influencer, their favorite follow. But that A always doesn't convert. Like I think it's okay working with small micro influencers. And honestly, sometimes that's even better. And there's many times where I have worked with a micro influencer and then she turns out to be a huge one, like a year or two from now. But it's because we believed in her and we worked with her back then that she's taking us along for the ride then later, right?
SPEAKER_02I think there's so much more trust in micro influencers or just even not even micro influencers.
SPEAKER_01Um just But I mean, we've had some some influencers, and I don't mean like, but like that don't have a big following and they sell just as more or just as much as people that have huge followings.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, exactly. Um, now I'm curious, you know, we've talked about how the collection and the brand has grown over the years. So what is your best seller these days? And then what's each of your personal favorite pieces on the website right now?
SPEAKER_01Ooh. I mean, I think one of our bestsellers, I don't know, I have to pull a report to know exactly what our best seller is. Um, we launched these four, it's I'm like wearing all of them, these Ford Bangles. Oh, and they they're enamel and they come in 20 colors. Yeah, 20 different colors, and they have been super duper popular. Um, and they're really fun and very different. They're very different than anything else on the market right now. So I would say that is probably our best seller. Um, my favorite personal piece I'm actually wearing as well. Um, it's really pretty. You can't even see it. It's this, oh gosh, there it goes. It's this enamel charm, but it is inspired by a ring of my grandmother's. So um, so it launches next week.
SPEAKER_00And what's that called? Does that have a name for it?
SPEAKER_01It's the Elizabeth Bell necklace set. Okay. Yeah.
SPEAKER_02I would say my personal favorite is the Tatum earrings. They're just some drop studs. Um and then I that's what I wear the most is the earrings. I never take earrings out. I think earrings are often overlooked, but I'm like, they're the one thing I never take off.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I think it's funny. Like some people are either like, I'm a bracelet girl, like I always have a couple bracelets on, but then there's some earring girls. Like I was talking with a friend last night and she's like, I just always wear like these three same earrings. I just never take them off. They're like classic. Um, so you're definitely like an earring bracelet or a necklace girl, right?
SPEAKER_02I'm definitely a bracelet girl, but they come off at nighttime.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, yeah. It's like there are too many bracelets tonight. Um, it sounds like you ladies are like well read and like to keep up um in terms of business, which is something I like to do. Like I love listening to other podcasts, I love reading newsletters, I love reading blogs or reading business books. What's a resource you can share with listeners of something they should check out in terms of business or, you know, trend reports or anything like that that's been helpful for you?
SPEAKER_02Um, I personally just love to read people's substacks. I love other entrepreneurs. I love just anyone with content strategies. I was reading one this morning. Um, just anything that I feel like is relatable to us as a business because sometimes I think reading um certain things, it's like, well, we're not a big, you know, we're not a big corporate business. So it's a lot harder for me to relate. So I really, I really like the scrappy people who write on Substack.
SPEAKER_00Are there any particularly that you can like let people know that you like?
SPEAKER_02Well, I would have I always just search them because that my algorithm sends me emails with new Substacks based off of what I've read before. So I mean I read all sorts of them. Okay. That sounds good. What about you?
SPEAKER_01Um, I'm not a reader. I hate reading. So um I but I what I find to be the most uh beneficial like business resource is just like kind of is is like marketing research for me would be listening to my friends. So you also yeah, like, yeah, like what are my friends buying or what are they interested in? And um, because that's our target market. So just kind of like, I mean, not in like a creepy or like marketing way, but like what is the conversation? What are people concerned about? Um, or what are they looking for, etc.? Because I feel like that is kind of a very good basis for like how the market is doing, if you will.
SPEAKER_02But I also think to that, uh here in Dallas, Bess and I have really tried to um make friends with other small businesses. And I would say we have like a handful of a nice community, yeah, a nice community of small business owners. And I feel like we're always either emailing or texting, or like what is working, what is not working, what are you doing right now? Like who do you use for like I feel like finding a community of people who kind of run in the same circle as you is really a really helpful resource. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Definitely. It's good to have like a sounding board, someone that you could run things past, or yeah, if you're in a pinch and you need an SEO person or whatever, that you have someone that can direct you to them.
SPEAKER_01Or just like even, yes, 100%. Or even if, like, hey, this is where we are like, could you help me brainstorm? It's just nice to have a sounding board.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, totally. So, since this is the preppy podcast, I always ask everyone, what does preppy mean to you? So, how would you guys describe preppy? Oh.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, go for it. Um, I would say prep. What predict what does preppy mean to me? Preppy means I think like clean, classic. Classic. Um clean, classic, but also fun.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_01To me though.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I would say classic.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Perfect. Okay, any sneak peeks, anything you're working on. This will come out um likely in September. So anything you want to tease or give a little sneak peek for, like for fall or even holiday as far out.
SPEAKER_02Oh, you guys like I was like, what do we got over here? I'll let you pick something off the track.
SPEAKER_01I love her, she's real cute. This really pretty pink.
SPEAKER_00Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_01She's like a really she's holiday.
SPEAKER_00She has like a little shimmer, and you know, I'm a pink girl, obviously.
SPEAKER_01Very fun. Um we also have this really cool charm that I know.
SPEAKER_00Wow, beautiful.
SPEAKER_01Um we have a lot coming. We have a lot coming.
SPEAKER_00So lots of like, it looks like gemstones, crystals, like a little sparkle for holiday.
SPEAKER_01Holidays are for sure sparkle. So um, I mean, you're gonna have some sparkle with holiday.
SPEAKER_00Totally. Okay, my final question is where can people find you guys? Let them know where to shop, where to follow along, um, and support you guys.
SPEAKER_02Our Instagram handle is at shop alleybust, and then our website is alleybust.com. Perfect. Well, thank you, ladies, so much.
SPEAKER_00Thank you. Thank you for having us. Thank you so much for listening to the Preppy Podcast. I hope this put a little prep in your step for the day. Please subscribe, rate, and review on wherever you listen to your podcast. And follow along with at the preppy podcast on social media.