From Passion to Petals: Sunny Jackson's Floral Design Journey 🌸🌻 | Black Bridge Mindset Podcast #5

Join hosts Mike, CJ, and Ken on the Black Bridge Mindset Podcast as they celebrate culture, entrepreneurship, and business! In this episode, they welcome Sunny Jackson, the dynamic owner and creative director of Chicago-based The Sunniest Designs. Sunny shares her inspiring journey, from humble beginnings without equipment to running one of the most celebrated floral design companies. Tune in to hear about her challenges, unique business approaches, and how she's transforming the floral industry. Perfect for aspiring entrepreneurs and flower enthusiasts! 🌼 

Guest's Socials:

Website: http://www.thesunniestdesigns.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesunniestdesigns/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesunniestdesigns

Thank you for listening! 

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 Contact us:

•  Email: blackbridgemindset@gmail.com 

 Hosts:

• Mike 
• CJ
• Ken

Transcript

CJ 0:00

Hello and welcome to the Black Bridge Mindset Podcast where culture, entrepreneurship, and business intersect to fuel inspiration. This podcast celebrates the power of diverse voices shaping the future of business. So whether you're building a business, breaking barriers, we're just looking for some serious inspiration here in the right place. The Black Bridge mindset where culture and entrepreneurship collide.

Mike (2) 0:26

happy, what is it? Tuesday? we've literally recorded, how many? One, two,

CJ 0:33

number five.

Mike 0:34

four, Yeah, this is number five. We recorded like five episodes within a week and a half, which is like crazy.

CJ 0:44

Oh, wow.

Mike (2) 0:45

Thinking that we started this not knowing what the hell we were doing. We had absolutely nothing. We didn't have cameras. We didn't have microphones. We didn't have anything and here we are. Recording our fifth episode of the Black Bridge Mindset. So welcome, everybody. If you're just tuning in. My name is Mike Lovett and I am here with two of my best friends, CJ and Ken. We are all in three different cities. city is the best, by the way. am in Chicago, Illinois, and CJ is in Columbus, Ohio, and Ken Peak is in Atlanta, Georgia. How are you guys doing?

CJ 1:20

Doing good?

Ken 1:20

I'm good. And first of all, I don't appreciate you two using my full government name. I understand

CJ 1:25

Who's looking for you,

Ken 1:27

syllable words, but still, that's not the point.

Mike 1:30

just the way I'm used to your name,

CJ 1:32

right?

Ken 1:33

does, everybody does, that's all

CJ 1:34

What would you prefer to be called? Your nickname?

Mike 1:36

Ken.

Ken 1:38

What?

CJ 1:39

Would you prefer we call you by your nickname? I

Ken 1:41

listen,

CJ 1:42

mean, you have several.

Ken 1:43

you wanna get into this conversation, we certainly can.

CJ 1:46

This is not the time or the place, trust me.

Ken 1:49

Okay, so that's, that's what I thought. Okay.

Mike 1:53

Y'all are crazy. I know we just spoke a couple days ago, but, Our W2s are crazy.

CJ 1:58

Mm

Mike 1:59

It's 65 here, Or 69, or a little bit

CJ 2:02

And this,

Mike 2:03

that. It's almost 70 degrees in Chicago. So I'm excited.

CJ 2:06

that's what it is here.

Ken 2:07

to be, it to be the best city, it's like 75 degrees here, it's a beautiful day, you might wanna rethink that.

CJ 2:16

Yeah, and where are you? You left work and now you back at work, so you won't get to enjoy any of that 75 degrees, so you can go on and eat that.

Ken 2:24

but I will, once I get out of here, that's, that's the goal is to be done here, change my clothes, head outside, hit the

CJ 2:31

And look, I can't tell the 75. You sitting there in a gold LeMay thermal.

Ken 2:35

Correct. Listen, listen, I got to give the people what they need. Okay. That's exactly what this

CJ 2:40

That ain't what they need.

Ken 2:41

Oh,

Mike 2:43

We'll take a poll on YouTube. Because people can't see you on Apple or Spotify.

CJ 2:47

You know, flesh tone

Mike 2:49

y'all

CJ 2:49

top you got

Mike 2:50

need?

Ken 2:51

listen.

CJ 2:54

looking naked.

Ken 2:54

Things are good. You know, actually, chatting with my, with my sister today at lunchtime and, I was saying talking about, you know, we're doing a family vacation in Montego Bay and I was like, you know, I was like, now's the time to start thinking about like what's going on, like, you know, for the summer. And I'm really looking forward to, you know, us all spending some time together. I know we're going to go see, Beyonce

Mike 3:16

Okay.

Ken 3:37

yeah, and then actually my, My college roommate is on his second marriage and, is getting married in Lake Tahoe. I think around the time that we actually get back from Greece. So, I'll probably be extending my vacation and heading out

CJ 3:52

where is Lake Tahoe

Ken 3:55

California. It's a few hours from Vegas, so it's right on the, kind of right on the border of California and Nevada.

CJ 4:03

in the summer?

Ken 4:05

It would be, yeah, I guess late summer, early

CJ 4:08

Look, don't fall for what these people say about dry heat. Hot as hot. I'm just saying.

Mike 4:15

suits. Just sweating, makeup, nothing.

CJ 4:19

and look, you know you sweat eating hot sauce. So what you gonna do out in 110 degree weather?

Ken 4:23

it. Let's do it. Let's do it. But listen, this is why I work hard, because I can be in air conditioning. You hear me? ain't got to be out in the elements like that.

CJ 4:32

Okay,

Ken 4:33

so

CJ 4:35

beach somewhere in the desert somewhere exactly

Ken 4:41

there is no beach in Lake Tahoe.

CJ 4:43

I meant desert

Ken 4:44

Lake Tahoe. I understand that you were, you went to the Paducah Public School, but you know, there is something

CJ 4:53

Remember what I said about time and place

Mike 4:57

Yeah, you didn't have to call him out in public like that.

CJ 5:01

I'm proud of where I'm from. Forget y'all.

Ken 5:04

All right, let's get started.

CJ 5:06

Yes, we let's let's do that. Besides, I'm pretty much over the moon about today's show anyway. Who would have thought this time last year number one that I'd be. Co hosting a podcast with two of the craziest people on the face of the earth. But I'd also be interviewing someone that I've known since they were pretty much baby. It, it, you, you, you, you could pinch me a thousand times and I, I could never have written this, this person that we will be. Interviewing this evening, I've had the pleasure of knowing forever, pretty much her whole life. She's always had this larger than life personality. She's an absolute sweetheart. Today we are nestled at the intersection of culture and entrepreneurship, With one of the best people I know outside of you two. She is the owner and creative director of Chicago based floral design company, The Sunniest Designs.

Mike 6:05

of

CJ 6:06

specializes in events and personal deliveries for weddings, special events, and floral design classes. The Sonny's Designs has been featured in Modern Luxury Weddings, Chicago Magazine, Chicago Style Weddings, and Munalichi Bride. Ladies and gentlemen, I bring to the table tonight, Miss Sonny Jackson. Hello, hello.

Ken 6:29

to the show.

CJ 6:30

Hello and welcome.

Sunny Jackson 6:30

you guys for having me, I'm so excited to be here. My Uncle Chris, I cannot believe it's been, going on 29 years, right?

CJ 6:39

You look powered, are you?

Sunny Jackson 6:42

I'll be 29

Mike 6:43

everyone.

CJ 6:43

There you go.

Sunny Jackson 6:45

Mm hmm,

CJ 6:46

Who the thunk it?

Sunny Jackson 6:48

I know. It's so good to be here, though. I love the space that you guys have created. I love, like, you guys mission and what you're trying to do. It's an honor to be here. Thank you guys for having me.

CJ 6:59

Thank you for joining us.

Mike 7:00

Your, your name definitely matches you because you, from the moment you hit the camera, you were smiling and I'm like,

Ken 7:06

Okay.

CJ 7:29

seen it from your,

Ken 7:30

Okay. Okay.

Sunny Jackson 7:46

with, like, a STEM

Ken 7:47

Okay. Okay.

Mike 8:01

we're okay? that's the

CJ 8:05

on the same team?

Ken 8:06

Okay.

Mike 8:12

of it. Okay. let's making the first part

Sunny Jackson 8:21

to have like an eye

Mike 8:22

Okay. So we're going to have a conversation about the top 10 sectors that we care about, and then I'm going to have a conversation about the top 10 sectors that we care about. So I'm going to take a few minutes to introduce our next panelist, and she's going to be our guest speaker on the next panel, and she's going to be our panelist for the first time, so let's get her on. So she's going to talk about the expertise of all of our panelists, and then we'll have her take a few minutes to address some of the questions that we have for her. I'm go through the next section. I'm going to go through the next section. Okay. Okay.

CJ 9:04

of your influences?

Mike 9:07

Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. everybody.

CJ 9:15

entrepreneurship and and also, that kind of guided you into this floral world, if you will.

Mike 9:22

Yeah, no, collaborations.

Sunny Jackson 9:28

I guess I've never

Mike 9:29

That the child has a copy of the document Yeah. Yeah. Nice. And how did you come up with the name of your, your company? I've

Ken 9:47

Hello.

Mike 9:56

Well, I didn't know if there was like, you know, sometimes you create, you, your name is sunny and you do designs, but

Ken 10:03

Okay.

Mike 10:10

of just your name because, so my last name is love it. And I went to Ohio university. And when I created an email back in the day, it's, Oh, you love it. didn't think anything about it. So when people are like, how did you come up with that? It wasn't because my name is love it. And I mean, it's because my name was love it. And I went to OU, but I didn't think of like, Oh, you love it. Like, and people have to tell me, and I was like, Oh my God, there's more, there's more to it than what. what

CJ 10:35

How did you not hear that

Mike 10:36

know it was

CJ 10:37

out loud?

Mike 10:38

do you say

CJ 10:38

How did you not catch that? If you said it out loud,

Sunny Jackson 10:41

Right.

Mike 10:42

because I said it in my mind CJ I didn't say it out loud. I was just like, Ohio University. Love it So, let me just

Ken 10:50

test. you Okay.

Mike 10:56

She was like, what's your email address? I said, oh you love it at I think it was like Bobcat. net or something crazy back then she's like, Oh, that's such a cool name. And I was like, what? She's like, Oh, you love it. And I was like, Oh, that is a cool name. All by mistake. But anyway, back to you.

Sunny Jackson 11:16

I know

Mike 11:17

So you.

Sunny Jackson 11:17

is cooler when, like, you hear it, like, you think something is so simple, but, like, other people will take it, be like, oh, like, that was the coolest thing ever. That's so awesome though.

Mike 11:28

Yeah. So I. So my mind straight to like, you know, flowers need sunlight. I don't know.

Ken 11:37

Yeah. Right. Have a great

Mike 11:50

I love it. So, I'm still in some of your questions, CJ. Sorry. But,

CJ 11:56

well,

Mike 12:08

Going into business in general?

Sunny Jackson 12:11

Honestly, the biggest challenge is probably myself,

Ken 12:15

okay. Okay. All right. Okay. So, this is really a,

Sunny Jackson 12:49

no one can tell me

Ken 12:50

And so

Mike 12:50

you have to watch this. That's a lot of content for you to watch. Who is the person? It's a really good question. I'll tell you a little bit about myself. I'm a full time coach. I teach at the School of Mental Health. I teach at the School of Mental Health. I teach with the deaf community. I teach at the University of Michigan. And I teach at the University of Michigan. I teach at the University of Michigan. I'm in the Department of Learning, and, I teach at the College of Arts and Sciences. Nice.

Sunny Jackson 13:29

but I mean don't we all have that little voice in actuality like yeah, I'm I'm a pretty easygoing girl I'm cool to talk to but like everyone has that little voice of like What if this or what if this goes wrong or what if I accidentally say the wrong thing? like you kind of have to just Push yourself

Ken 13:48

Okay. Okay. Okay.

Sunny Jackson 14:02

spin it You can play the what if game but play it positively.

Mike 14:07

Exactly. Okay.

Ken 14:17

of the things that you did to take those challenges head on, right, and get to that positive space that you were just talking about?

Sunny Jackson 14:27

Oh how to get there like we were just talking about it Fake it baby. it. You have to do it scared sometimes You're not gonna Automatically come out the gate perfect. I mean, if you do, okay, like, go out there, do it, like, love that. But, you have to, I don't know, sometimes you have to show up. you know that saying, like, if you can't give 100%, give 80. If you can't give 80, give 60. You have to start showing up, and then showing up becomes easier. And then talking to new people becomes easier. So you take those baby steps. doing the things that are a little bit uncomfortable so you can get yourself familiar with them and that fear will kind of go away.

CJ 15:10

That's true.

Ken 15:12

It's amazing.

CJ 15:30

things going out of the gate. What, was from a financial standpoint, can you let our listeners know what you did to, get established? Like, did you put up all the money yourself? Did you take out a loan? Did you know, you know, how did you finance your business?

Sunny Jackson 15:50

100 percent

Ken 15:52

Okay.

Mike 16:07

that can describe a person's, who they are, and the way they feel about their self. I think it's a word that can describe a person's thought of other people. And I think it's a word that can describe a person's connotations and desires for life.

Sunny Jackson 16:24

we all kind of had that, like,

Ken 16:26

everyone.

Sunny Jackson 16:41

like,

Ken 16:42

Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Yeah. Okay.

Mike 17:12

Yeah. Okay. Yeah.

Sunny Jackson 17:45

And that

Ken 17:45

I'm sorry, but the other

CJ 17:55

Silence. Silence. Silence.

Mike 18:25

that you, you use the word pivot and you talk through how you got creative in order to make the business work. Because sometimes, you know, there's barriers and a lot of new entrepreneurs, something will happen like COVID. And I'm like, you know, this is a sign and to give up, even though I love this thing. So, when, when you had to pivot and be creative, was it an easy process for you or was it something you had to take a pause and like, how am I going to figure this out? Mm hmm.

Sunny Jackson 19:12

So when you, you feel the

Ken 19:16

Okay. Okay.

Sunny Jackson 19:24

in

Ken 19:25

Okay.

Sunny Jackson 19:25

ways Like you'll see a commercial someone has flowers. You'll see someone walking down the street Someone has flowers like there's a lot of things that remind you This is what you're supposed to be doing. once you realize okay, I this is my lane What can I do to make this lane work for me the pivot kind of comes easily but until you kind of have that actualization, it's it's hard growing is hard and It can be painful,

CJ 19:54

How

Mike 20:04

Did you put like pieces of paper in a hat and throw it in there? Did you have a big whiteboard and you start like drawing up stuff? Did you look in magazines and start cutting out papers and putting one of, what was your like creative process to be like, let's do flower grams. Like how did you end up to that?

Sunny Jackson 20:21

Yeah, well, I mean, I'm a big lover girl, I'm an empath, so seeing the I miss my friends, the I wish that I could go have dinner with, you know, my aunts and my uncles, like, seeing that and trying to find a way to bridge that gap between people who miss each other and want to connect, in a creative way, in a way that can stay around for a long time. do love snail mail, but flowers just kinda, they ground you, they're so, they're beautiful. And I could go on all day about how pretty flowers are, like, don't get me on a tangent. But, trying, basically seeing where there's a gap, seeing a problem that could be solved, or a way to make something better, is how most pivots begin for me. Like solving for X, we love calculus.

Mike 21:14

Perfect. I mean, I sort of knew the answer, but I'm happy that you answered it that way. You saw a problem and you provided a solution. Awesome.

Ken 21:23

So can you talk about the talk about the beginning and kind of when you got started? What was? Your approach to getting business, Cause I think that's one of the things that a lot of folks who are listening, want to better understand, like, what was your approach to, to getting new business, to getting your name out there.

CJ 21:47

did you market yourself?

Sunny Jackson 21:49

Yeah, I love marketing. So I guess in the beginning, it was a big social media game. Big on Instagram, Facebook, and I think around that time, like, Tick Tock was kind of like just getting its footing. I didn't really mess around with it too much. But Instagram, I would say is probably

Mike 22:06

Okay. I think it was Such a long,

Sunny Jackson 22:29

at it as. I'm looking for organic leads. I want to connect with people who align with the vision of my business or my product, and don't be afraid to, you know, put yourself out there.

CJ 22:43

You've,

Ken 22:44

Here we go. Hello,

CJ 22:53

floors everywhere. And with that market, I'm sure being as large as it is

Mike 23:00

should Glad

CJ 23:02

of social media.

Mike 23:03

my

CJ 23:04

Clearly you you're driving customers to yourself that way, but I'm curious for people that are out there listening. And those that, you know, have the desire to get into something that's kind of saturated. What sets the sunniest designs apart from other florists in Chicago?

Sunny Jackson 23:22

I mean, yes, there are a lot of great

Ken 23:24

Silence.

Sunny Jackson 23:47

a learning, opening experience.

Mike 23:51

Yes. One way. Okay. Great. Why is it going to do something? I don't do a lot of stuff. I don't know.

Sunny Jackson 24:19

our cat was doing something weird, and, you know, you put your cat on the screen, and you said hi, like, it's one of those, like, I want to be your friend, I want this experience to be,

Mike 24:29

Thanks for having me.

Sunny Jackson 24:34

to be, like, The experience for you. And so that's what I pride myself on and I think that's what makes us a little bit different from the competition out there

CJ 24:45

I like that. You said that it sounds like you, you try to make it even more personal than what the occasion actually is.

Ken 24:54

Okay. very much.

CJ 25:20

you are engaged to be married and I know that.

Ken 25:24

Bye, guys.

CJ 25:25

Yeah, I didn't tell you guys that, but yeah. Your mom just threw that on me 1 day out of nowhere, but knowing that, you know, now you are actually kind of on the other side of the camera. How has that affected your thought process and your approach to your designs?

Sunny Jackson 25:45

Oh man, it's kind of rewired my brain a little bit.

Mike 25:49

I'm going to be speaking about the art of language. And, and the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the,

Sunny Jackson 26:10

why got into this

Mike 26:12

So I'm gonna give you a little bit of time to do that. And I'm gonna share with you some of the questions. And, I'm gonna show you some of these pictures. So, let me show you the pictures. One of the questions is, What's the difference between a B T R E N E D Which one is this one? Is it the B T R E N E D. Which one is the B T R E N E D.

Sunny Jackson 26:38

if that was a route that I wanted to take, but I mean, I'm a

Mike 26:45

your own flowers.

Sunny Jackson 26:47

Okay, but, but listen, but

Mike 26:49

I didn't want to, I didn't want to skip past that. I'm sorry. I had to interrupt you. You're the

CJ 26:53

You

Sunny Jackson 27:01

is like, So I'm

CJ 27:03

open the corn worms.

Sunny Jackson 27:05

know, I know, and everyone's like poking me with like spears right now. It's not as busy as y'all are going to think it is.

Mike 27:17

Okay.

Ken 27:18

Okay.

Mike 27:18

All right.

Ken 27:19

Okay.

Mike 27:20

alone. You're the expert. You know what you're

CJ 27:22

Right.

Mike 27:23

But I, I just like my skin crawled for a second. I said, Ooh, Ooh, going to be busy and Oh, Oh.

Sunny Jackson 27:31

okay. Off script, we're going to be doing like live plants, so it's going to be a lot of like soil based stuff. It won't be anything that I have to like design a lot of. So really focusing on my bouquet and Bryson's boutonniere. I'm designing something very, very special for him. I don't, to say I don't like a traditional boutonniere, for a groom, like we go all out for a bride. You know what I'm saying? For a groom, the same energy

CJ 28:03

up.

Sunny Jackson 28:04

to be kept. Okay? The same energy. So you want like a huge lapel sash, like less. Do it. You want to feel kingly on your wedding day? Yeah.

Mike 28:15

Mhm.

Sunny Jackson 28:16

to me.

CJ 28:18

All right, I need all the photos.

Ken 28:22

but are you, are you just designing and overseeing the execution or are you designing and executing?

Sunny Jackson 28:32

I am designing and executing up until day of the wedding. Day of the wedding, someone else will

CJ 28:38

Wow.

Ken 28:39

Okay.

Sunny Jackson 28:40

know, I'll be getting hair and makeup and like

Ken 28:42

Yeah.

Sunny Jackson 28:43

So I know that was like the major, like, so when are you going to get ready? I know, I know that was the concern, but I've planned for that. We got a team. They'll, they'll take care of it. I, I got faith. It'll work.

Mike 28:59

Okay. All right. Listen, I got all the faith in you. I've I've seen the pictures on instagram and on facebook and everything and everything always looks spot on. So I Yeah, I'm sure your day will your day will be amazing.

Sunny Jackson 29:16

Yeah,

Mike 29:16

I have a question I want to ask you, but I don't, I don't want to ask this question following up this conversation. So I'm going to let can ask a question and then I'm going to ask my question and you'll understand why when I ask my question.

Sunny Jackson 29:29

okay.

CJ 29:30

Oh, boy.

Ken 29:31

Okay. So, I want to, I want to dig in a little bit more the business and what I want to, I guess. better understand what is your process with your clients? Like, what do you, I know

CJ 29:47

Okay. My been asked

Ken 30:05

is kind of based on your personality, I think this is probably more of what, you know, what will, shine at your event.

Sunny Jackson 30:15

Yeah. Mean, we get that all the time and I feel like the world of flowers is kind of not necessarily unknown, but not a lot of people know a lot about it. Like, yeah, we know our roses, our lilies, our carnations, right? But when it comes to, like, things like I mean, the first time I told my mom about installations, she's like, what is that? So, it'll,

CJ 30:38

that question. So like,

Sunny Jackson 30:42

it's when you make a structure out of flowers or any type of, so like, I'll put flowers on the ceiling. So like what?

CJ 30:53

like a funeral? Yeah, I said it a funeral.

Sunny Jackson 30:57

Think,

Ken 30:57

You know what?

Sunny Jackson 30:58

yeah, think bigger though. Think

Mike 31:02

What about like, like an arch at the altar

CJ 31:06

Okay, that too. You

Sunny Jackson 31:08

a format installation. Mm hmm. That too. Think bigger.

Ken 31:13

going to fight you, I swear.

Mike 31:17

that there's that Paducah again?

Ken 31:19

Right?

CJ 31:21

I said what I said. You're. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.

Sunny Jackson 31:46

stuff comes in.

Mike 31:48

Yeah. Mhm. Mhm.

Ken 32:08

you are dealing with clients and you know, I guess, helping them to express what it is that they want while also being as creative as you possibly can.

Sunny Jackson 32:19

Yeah, so I like to treat every event kind of like its own unique branding story. So like every couple is different, even down to like the corporate clients. Every corporation has a different vision or goal for their event. So I first, I'm a listening ear. I'm like, you tell me everything that you think that you want and then we can go from there. So I let them kind of get it all out. And then

Mike 32:46

In the And I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm

Sunny Jackson 32:56

of ladies choose lilies to represent like, grandmothers, like matriarchal figures. But

Mike 33:02

And it is the document that is used to recognize, to be able to collect, a transcript and, make it available to the public. And also being able to find a proof of copyright and make it public in the year that it was filed before the election. And it's also being used to open up access to early access to what's happening.

Sunny Jackson 33:19

wedding, what would it be? So I know what needs to be perfect, right? so I know what I Feel comfortable? Do you want them to be like, This is the main character moment, like how, what kind of feelings do you want to invoke? And then from there we'll get into colors, textures, I kind of work backwards. I go big picture and then kind of minimize it down. A

Ken 33:42

Okay. Okay.

Mike 33:45

well, now I'll ask my question since it's more appropriate after that question. So, Sonny, not every day, You're gonna have a cloud in there every once in a while. It's gonna storm. You like what I did there? What is one mistake you made that taught you a valuable lesson?

Sunny Jackson 34:04

mistake that taught also undervalues you. So

CJ 34:19

Yeah. Yeah.

Sunny Jackson 34:37

just because you want to get the work done, you know? So at a point, and COVID thing had to do with that

Mike 34:46

Provided by Transcription Outsourcing, LLC. The board of trustees in the Let's go back and Do you have any thoughts we would like to support a motion to approve the motion on the board of trustees application, so proud of the board of trustees that The motion is approved.

Sunny Jackson 35:17

it to the second location. So there are a lot of things that you don't necessarily consider. So I would, yeah, the biggest mistake is definitely not knowing my value. And please, please do market research going into an industry. Please, please, please, please be familiar with your industry, look things up, see what other companies are doing, your potential competitors, you know,

Mike 35:44

Mm-hmm

Sunny Jackson 35:45

offering, see what their price points are, so that you know how to market yourself and so that you are also know,

Mike 35:54

Self worth, you know of what you're bringing to the market But you didn't let that stop you you just like There and do it and that's what you did So and that's how you got here six years later killing it

Sunny Jackson 36:06

You just got to keep

Ken 36:07

go to the next

Mike 36:21

Love it.

CJ 36:21

So, Sonny, you mentioned, that you work with wholesalers and I'm curious with the, the large quantities of flowers that you deal with on a regular basis. Talk about forming some of those relationships with those wholesalers and what. What, things you've done to, to get through, you know, I know the economy is probably affecting you like it is everybody else. You know, how did you set up those relationships in the beginning so that you're successful in the back end?

Mike 36:50

All right in the important relationships

Sunny Jackson 36:53

yeah. Honestly, like my reps, I love my rep. I love, love, love them. When I first started, trying to, like, get into those wholesale markets, I don't know, like the flower markets, right? It was, they kind of give you a, like when you first get in, they give you like a, Oh, here's a like random salesperson. Right. And there's a bunch of them. You can see them. You can interact with them whenever you go. So. When I first went, I just kind of like, introduced myself, started asking questions, where are things, like, let it be known that this is your first time there, they're going to be so happy to help you, and I'm, I know that's not just true for the flower markets, but anywhere, whatever your industry is, like, hey, this is my first time at this market. I would love to know what the

Ken 37:43

Silence.

Sunny Jackson 37:53

of that, I would say, like, make sure you form those relationships first because they will tend to help you out in areas where you didn't even know that you needed help.

Mike 38:03

Okay. And I made a statement about three weeks ago, about the other day, where I said that, I'm not going to be on the massive news I'm going to be on the mass media for a week, to try and get you to get a news. I did that and we still have to figure out how to get there. I'm going to get that news right back to you. But I think that's maybe the best way

Sunny Jackson 38:22

my guy, he always gets it done for me, he's, he's the best.

CJ 38:26

It's that relationship you built,

Mike 38:28

able to go into the business of the Realtor with full freedom and full responsibility. And now moving forward now we're going to be able to engage with the Realtors to see what's possible with them and what steps are they taking to bring I'm excited for the Realtor. It's going to be a very similar process to the business of investing. You know, the business of investing, the business of investing, the business of investing funds, and the business of investing with people

Sunny Jackson 38:52

that, but there's a right way to say it. Yeah, just get to know your folks, because they low key want to get to know you too. Like, everyone wants a friend. Make a friend.

Mike 39:02

Nice.

Ken 39:04

Ever been a time when, the wholesaler didn't have what you needed and you kind of had to scramble or pivot? Can you kind of just talk, the audience through that particular scenario and kind of what you did, you know, in order to not alienate the relationship, right? And, you know, kind of how things turned out. I

Sunny Jackson 39:25

I told you how often things don't work out with, like, flower farms and wholesalers, you, you wouldn't believe it. Almost, like, I would say percent of the time, something, something is going to go wrong with your order. 50 percent of the time. Murphy's law, count on it. Okay? So that is why we always order a

Mike 39:47

Silence.

Sunny Jackson 39:51

But going back to the wholesalers Things go wrong Right white roses. They're not on here. He'll be like, Oh, we're out of the playa Blanca is probably one of my favorite white roses. But, are our options for substitutions. So, always be open to a sub. Job done at the end of the day, and sometimes you can't put all your eggs in one basket, so that's

CJ 40:15

Silence. Silence.

Sunny Jackson 40:35

our contracts as well we're very transparent about the fact that a flowers are a perishable product We are working with a very very tight window to do these things and Flowers are a natural product from Mother Earth herself. You can't control the hue of a color. You can't control the size of a head of a flower. You know, like, nature gives

Mike 41:00

So, you know, so. So, I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going to show you some, some of the stuff that you can do. So, this is the, the DTS interpretation of the,

Sunny Jackson 41:22

they are. Brides are surprised their bouquets can end up being like 10 pounds. You're holding that all day, you know? So, yeah.

CJ 41:32

10 pounds. Good Lord.

Sunny Jackson 41:33

original question. I'm going off on so many tangents right now,

Ken 41:35

Oh,

CJ 41:36

No, you're fine.

Mike 41:55

so you, you probably have it a little bit more figured out, but Yeah. How is your, how is your work life balance with your business?

Sunny Jackson 42:02

Now it is amazing. You have to kind of set those boundaries with yourself. When I first started, 24 hours a day. If I was awake and my eyes were open, I was on Instagram. I was marketing myself. I was, you know, reaching out to people that I could partner with. I was on my computer team typing very fast the time, every waking moment of every day. if you do that, it leads to burnout. So, so fast, faster than people want to admit. Like, if you go like that consistently, you won't last a year. You

Mike 42:36

Mm-hmm All very much for joining us today, and we'll see you next time. Bye bye.

Sunny Jackson 42:55

But if you don't take your time to rest, your body will pick it for you and it will be very, very inconvenient when it does. So.

CJ 43:03

Right.

Sunny Jackson 43:04

Find, find your life's palette cleansers, is what I like to call them.

Mike 43:09

Nice,

CJ 43:09

like that.

Mike 43:10

you like the game, but when you say game, what do you mean by game?

Sunny Jackson 43:14

Oh,

Mike 43:15

What game do you?

Sunny Jackson 43:16

PlayStation Switch, we've got like, I'm looking at like seven different like gaming consoles right now, like PlayStation

Mike 43:22

you play Call of Duty at all?

CJ 43:23

Oh.

Sunny Jackson 43:24

a Call of Duty girl, I'm not, but,

CJ 43:28

was going to say, don't say yes.

Sunny Jackson 43:31

I'm not, but I could, I could learn real fast. And I could be, I could learn enough to be a problem. So,

Mike 43:42

bring it on problem. Bring it on. I'm

Sunny Jackson 43:44

I'm like, give me like a week to get my skills up and I'll hit you up. Don't worry.

Mike 43:49

ready. I'm always ready.

Ken 43:51

Silence. Silence. Silence.

Mike 44:13

I will make sure that you tell me what you're doing in the chat and I'll be happy to help you. Was it an audio issue? Yep. Can you hear me? Yes. No, I didn't hear anything. Oh, okay. Okay. So if you like I can, I can see you. Okay. So So, I would like to introduce to your audience, one of the one of the first digital art She's been with us since I was nine years old. She's been around a decade.

Sunny Jackson 44:34

me not have to as hard, you know,

Ken 44:39

Okay. Okay. Yeah.

Mike 45:14

ask you,

Ken 45:14

Bye bye.

CJ 45:15

what is the flower butter?

Sunny Jackson 45:17

I'm like, I get so used to using the jargon. Sorry. says I have to get better about that. So a flower bar, I basically bring, let's say like 10 to 12 different types of flowers and greenery. We arrange them all like by type, so they're all in like their own little buckets, cute little buckets. And I kind of walk people through the process of Picking flowers that go good together, getting them with building their own bouquet, and they walk away with something to take home, give to their loved ones, keep for themselves.

CJ 45:51

Nice.

Sunny Jackson 45:52

able to reach a lot of people in a short amount of time that way. So I'm able to like, maximize it, but still kind of do the same thing where I reach a lot of people.

CJ 46:01

That's smart.

Mike 46:03

Nice

Ken 46:03

that's great. That is, that's ingenious.

Mike 46:07

flower bar.

Sunny Jackson 46:08

yeah, I'm like, how can we do the same thing, but like, it takes two hours instead of 20?

CJ 46:14

There you go.

Sunny Jackson 46:15

Yeah.

Mike 46:15

I feel what you're doing. You haven't people built their own bouquets and take them home. Yeah.

Sunny Jackson 46:21

walk you through it. I'll still show you how to make it look really nice. I've got wrapping paper, I've got ribbons, I've got note card stations with like sharpies and stickers and like glitter pens, like you can go all out, but I don't have to do it. Yeah.

Mike 46:38

right? There's so many businesses that do it. If you think about it, like the candle lab, you go make your own candle. Paint and sip, whatever you go and you paint your own picture. So why not in floral, in the floral world? I

Sunny Jackson 47:01

company.

Ken 47:01

Okay. We're gonna be back this afternoon at 10. We'll see

Sunny Jackson 47:21

a smile to so many people, but get them thinking about, Okay. An art of some sort, breaking them out

Ken 47:28

you at 10. Silence. Silence.

CJ 47:40

one question. One last question from myself that I want to ask and this is it can be a throwaway, but I'm just curious if you could create an arrangement for a famous person, who would it be and why?

Sunny Jackson 47:56

For one, only one?

CJ 47:58

Well, I mean, more than one if it's necessary.

Mike 48:01

Nope. Nope. This is going to be tough. You get, you get one.

Sunny Jackson 48:05

okay, alright, alright. Kiki Palmer.

CJ 48:11

Okay. Why?

Sunny Jackson 48:12

Palmer. She's such a girl's girl. She's such a, she's such a light to people. She,

CJ 48:22

Yes, I

Sunny Jackson 48:23

that energy and I feel like she deserves to be celebrated way, way. Way more than she is. She is just, we love Kiki. In this

CJ 48:35

agree. We may have to

Sunny Jackson 48:39

I'm like, Kiki, if you listening, girl, and you in Chicago, Hit me up. I got you.

CJ 48:45

find out a way to. They have to find out a way to, to, post this and tagger it.

Ken 48:51

Yeah, we'll just, that's it. We'll just post it and tag her in there and let her know what you just said. Of

CJ 48:57

Well, listen, then I'm putting it out in the universe then. When the time comes, honey, I'm going to have you create an arrangement for queen Latifah, my girl,

Sunny Jackson 49:06

please!

CJ 49:07

saying,

Sunny Jackson 49:07

The queen!

Mike 49:10

Yeah, he look.

CJ 49:11

be queen. For some reason

Ken 49:14

a funeral and now he said, when the time comes, you're cut off.

Sunny Jackson 49:19

That's

CJ 49:19

for some reason,

Sunny Jackson 49:20

be pretty,

Mike 49:20

Yeah,

Sunny Jackson 49:23

of life.

Ken 49:24

Yeah, but II don't think Latifah, I don't think that's what she's, that's not what she's expecting.

Sunny Jackson 49:28

That's

CJ 49:29

It

Sunny Jackson 49:29

We're all about pivot. We can do multiple styles.

CJ 49:33

in his mind just pivoted to a place that it should not have

Mike 49:38

so stupid. Well, we are coming close to time. So and we don't want to, you know, keep you on too long. So we're going to get to one of my favorite parts of the show where I get to do this.

CJ 49:53

I'm gonna find one this weekend.

Mike 49:54

soundboard you call it. We're going to do a lightning round.

Ken 49:58

Okay.

Sunny Jackson 50:21

Okay, I'm ready. I'm ready. Here we go.

CJ 50:25

Use that stem mind.

Mike 50:26

I feel like you got this. I feel like you got this.

Ken 50:29

100 percent she's got this.

Mike 50:31

All right. So what I'm going to do is I'll start the timer after Ken asked his first question and then we'll go from there.

Ken 50:38

All right, Sonny, are you ready?

Sunny Jackson 50:40

I'm like

Ken 50:40

Yeah.

Sunny Jackson 50:41

Let's do it.

Ken 50:42

All right. Let's go. For vacation, beach or mountains?

Sunny Jackson 50:46

Ooh, mountains.

Ken 50:47

Okay. food?

Sunny Jackson 50:50

I love to eat, pasta. Any kind of pasta with, like, a creamy sauce.

Ken 50:56

Very good. Guilty pleasure?

Sunny Jackson 50:59

It changes, right now I'm really into

Mike 51:02

Hello. Hello. Hello.

CJ 51:30

expect that.

Ken 51:32

And lastly, what is your favorite flower?

Sunny Jackson 51:37

And time. How could you How could

Mike 51:43

You got, you got this. Go ahead.

Sunny Jackson 51:44

that?

Mike 51:46

Answer it. Answer it.

Sunny Jackson 51:49

hmm. A Zia,

CJ 51:54

Okay. So we're going to, we're all going to have to look that up and

Mike 51:59

now. Azenia.

Sunny Jackson 52:01

Zia.

Ken 52:02

We know what is it.

CJ 52:04

that was going to be my next question.

Ken 52:05

they are, as a matter of fact, you would wear one in your hair. Cookie. They're nice, big, bright,

Mike 52:11

Oh, those are cute. I like those.

CJ 52:13

My last name is not Ripperton. Q tip is not sampling my music.

Mike 52:20

That's funny.

Sunny Jackson 52:21

silly.

Mike 52:22

huh. Well, this, this has been great. I've learned a lot about the floral industry that, never would have thought about, especially the behind the scene things.

Ken 52:29

Yeah.

Mike 52:30

You gave some nuggets in there for people who are looking to be business owners and entrepreneurs and little, some things to think about in the beginning. Especially with self confidence and stepping out there and being their true self and, taking imperfect action. So yeah, so I really appreciate you. And before we go, of course, you're gonna have to let all the people know, can they find you?

Sunny Jackson 52:53

Yes, please find me. You can follow us on social media at the sunniest designs. Subscribe to us on our website at the sunniest designs dot com. We'll be having some info on some educational classes coming out soon. Keep an eye out for Mother's Day. And yeah, follow us like us. Tell a friend.

CJ 53:12

I have a quick question. Do you ship out of state? Do you ship outside of Chicago?

Ken 53:18

the rejection of

Mike 53:20

Nice.

CJ 53:21

I hope my mom's

Mike 53:21

you, I'm sorry, you just said something. You said that,

Ken 53:24

commission The

Mike 53:27

like virtual, virtual classes or?

CJ 53:30

in person.

Sunny Jackson 53:30

of

Ken 53:31

Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.

Sunny Jackson 53:37

and daughter, or like mom and kid type of, arrangement making class. So I'll

Mike 53:42

Oh, so it's, it's, it's at the shop

Sunny Jackson 53:46

Mm hmm.

Mike 53:47

or is it virtual?

Sunny Jackson 53:48

it'll

Mike 53:48

So it's at the shop.

Sunny Jackson 53:49

Yeah, it'll be at a venue. Mm hmm.

Mike 53:51

Okay. Got it. Cause I was going to say if it's virtual, we're going to provide the link and let everybody know how they could join.

CJ 53:56

right.

Mike 53:57

But here in Chicago,

CJ 53:59

Well, send us the information. Once you have it all set, you

Sunny Jackson 54:03

Yeah, I'll send it to you guys,

CJ 54:05

can put it on our page.

Sunny Jackson 54:06

up. Chicago is the best city.

Ken 54:08

Okay.

CJ 54:15

So I have no dog in this fight.

Ken 54:17

listen, I'm going to leave it alone because I don't disagree. It is, but it's only the best city from May to August. Oh,

Mike 54:27

right. Okay.

Sunny Jackson 54:30

about that. We got, we got the holiday train. got the rooftop igloos, you know. We've got the ice skating rink down at Millennium Park. Okay, don't play with us.

Ken 54:41

we got all of that here too. nothing.

Sunny Jackson 54:44

with us.

CJ 54:45

Look, I'm just going to

Mike 54:46

You

CJ 54:46

step aside. Absolutely.

Mike 54:54

We could do it in an igloo. got flowers that can hang out outside in the cold.

Sunny Jackson 54:58

We've done flowers on a boat. We've done it on the city cruises. So, we

Mike 55:03

Nice.

Sunny Jackson 55:04

anywhere.

Mike 55:05

Sunny, we're having everybody who does an interview with us, at the end of the show, they have to do a Wakanda peace pause. And what it is, why are y'all laughing?

CJ 55:14

inquisitive. Like what the hell are you talking about?

Ken 55:17

As well. You should as well. You should be.

Mike 55:20

So, yeah, so I was just randomly thinking one day, I was like, we need to do something like that's like weird and different, you know, we did the lightning round, but a lot of people do the lightning round. So I just randomly came up with the Wakanda peace pause. And what it is is at the end of the show, everyone, I'm going to count to three and everybody's going to do this. And you're just going to smile at the camera and just pause. And then we're just going to use that later. I'm just going to take a picture of it later and use it on social media. It's just one

Sunny Jackson 55:48

I'm ready.

Mike 55:49

Okay, you ready? We're going to count to three and we're going to do the Wakanda peace pause. One, two, and three.

Ken 55:58

Silence.

Mike 56:07

Well, again, I really appreciate you. You've been great, Sunny.

CJ 56:10

Thank you so much.

Sunny Jackson 56:12

So much for having me. Thank you so much. This was awesome.