IN THE CONVO:
Join us for an inspiring episode of the Celebration Pro Podcast featuring Nadine Boseman, a former middle school choir instructor who transitioned into a successful career as a master bridal seamstress and educator. Discover Nadine's journey and gain *gold nuggets* into creating unforgettable client experiences, building authentic vendor relationships, and discovering your unique superpower to attract ideal clients. With a focus on personal connections and incorporating a sensory experience into your service, Nadine empowers us all to follow our passion and embrace new beginnings in the wedding industry. Tune in to learn how to 'thread' your passion into a successful career and create magic moments for your couples!
CONNECT WITH NADINE:
📸 @secretsofabridalseamstress
🎙️Secrets of a Bridal Seamstress
CONNECT WITH CARIN:
Hey CEO! Join us over at our new membership the Success Cellar 🍾 - exclusively for growth-minded wedding pros just like you!
🌟Write a review, share, and tag @celebrationpros for your first month free!
📸 - @celebrationpros
🌐 - www.carinhunt.com
IN THE CONVO:
Join us for an inspiring episode of the Celebration Pro Podcast featuring Nadine Boseman, a former middle school choir instructor who transitioned into a successful career as a master bridal seamstress and educator. Discover Nadine's journey and gain *gold nuggets* into creating unforgettable client experiences, building authentic vendor relationships, and discovering your unique superpower to attract ideal clients. With a focus on personal connections and incorporating a sensory experience into your service, Nadine empowers us all to follow our passion and embrace new beginnings in the wedding industry. Tune in to learn how to 'thread' your passion into a successful career and create magic moments for your couples!
CONNECT WITH NADINE:
📸 @secretsofabridalseamstress
🎙️Secrets of a Bridal Seamstress
CONNECT WITH CARIN:
Hey CEO! Join us over at our new membership the Success Cellar 🍾 - exclusively for growth-minded wedding pros just like you!
🌟Write a review, share, and tag @celebrationpros for your first month free!
📸 - @celebrationpros
🌐 - www.carinhunt.com
We are back on the podcast today and, as usual, I'm excited. I always joke that I don't have another word for excited. Excited is what it is and I'm just that today we have Nadine Bozeman on with us, and what's really fun is she is incredibly niched down to serve seamstresses mainly in the wedding industry, I would think and so she brings to us not only all the you know incredible nuggets that we're going to get in this conversation, but I just think it's so fun and I can't wait for her to tell us her story that she is serving such a what we would think is such a small group and she's done it so well and is so successful with it. So, nadine, thank you so much for bringing you know your enlightenment and your joy, and if you could see her right now she's like got the brightest smile I love it. Thank you for being here.
Speaker 2:Oh, I'm so excited. I'm so excited, so thank you for having me, and you have a really impressive lineup of previous speakers, so I'm like, oh, I feel kind of cool, so, yes, you are among all of us.
Speaker 1:That's something that I found when I stepped into, like being a wedding educator, being a quote unquote thought leader I feel weird calling myself that but everybody in this industry from the moment that I even stepped into the industry as an entrepreneur, it was like arms wide open. It's somewhere where I think a lot of us who are creative, like we didn't know what to do or where to go with our creativity. We found the wedding industry and it was like oh, it's our people, yeah, and so the education space is just the same. It's been a really fun circle to be a part of. So that's, that's cool. You noticed that. Yeah, well, nadine, we would love to hear your story. If you could let us know, like, bring it all the way back for us. How did you get into, how did you find the wedding industry? Were you a seamstress prior to that? All the things, yeah.
Speaker 2:Well, I think I think it's so funny that you just mentioned, like once you find the wedding industry. I love how you use that phrase because I feel, like most of us, we don't have this dream of like being in the wedding industry. It just kind of like finds us and then we're like oh, we're home. Okay, this is where it was all meant to be. I mean, I did memorize the wedding planner, obviously, as most high schoolers in the late nineties did, so I feel like maybe that was a clue for me, like I was supposed to be in the wedding industry. I don't know, but I started out as a middle school choir teacher, so I was in the classroom for nine years and I will tell you that within the first couple of years of teaching, I was like I'm not going to make it till retirement.
Speaker 2:Like this is not my jam, like I was watching teachers who were like stumbling into retirement and I'm like I cannot do this. And I noticed that my friends were like pursuing higher education. They, they, they could not imagine themselves like outside of the classroom. And I definitely could, like I would teach to pay for, like my, my sewing crafts or like the fun stuff that I wanted to do when I went home. You know, I mean, don't get me wrong, I did love teaching at the time. I really enjoyed my students. Um, I mean, I was there for nine years so I did put in the time, you know, but early on I knew I wanted to kind of develop this, like exit strategy essentially. So it started out with like custom quilts I would make, like like potholders and, you know, like the cute little kitschy things that you sell at local markets or whatever.
Speaker 2:And then that led to, okay, what if I head into alterations? And I really liked alterations because it was like a puzzle, like I loved taking things apart and then putting them back together, and it was like, Ooh, I want to make sure it looks seamless, you know, and like perfect. And I remember when my first brides came to the door and they were coworkers, you know, most of my alterations, uh, customers were, you know, other teachers. They would bring their garbage bags full of clothes for me to alter, you know. And so when I had my first couple of brides, I was like, oh, my goodness, this is it. Like I love the beautiful dresses. I loved like the relationship and I think that was the biggest part was like hearing their story, like I wanted to hear the wedding plans. I loved that. I got to see the brides, like you know, three times. It wasn't just a, you know, drop off your jeans and pick them up later. It was like a more intimate experience and having the higher ticket obviously was alluring as well. So I was like, okay, I liked this idea of just sticking with bridal. And then, once I found bridal sewing, it was like I was obsessed. So then I was, you know, um, taking dresses apart, putting them back together, like watching all the YouTube videos, reading all the things and just immersing myself in bridal and like thinking back on that time, I'm like I don't know how my husband and I survived because I was teaching. And then I would come home and I would be so passionate about, like, building up the skills to get to a place where I could, you know, quit teaching, like I wanted this to pay our bills, to a place where I could, you know, quit teaching, like I wanted this to pay our bills, um, and then I hired a business coach and things just moved so fast Once I found out this is what I want to do, you know, like, and it was like it clicked Like as soon as I started working with brides, that's all I wanted to do and, um, I was able to quit teaching, like within a couple of years of that, and then I worked out of my home.
Speaker 2:The business outgrew our home, and so I found, like this perfect little storefront in 2020, because it's so funny I remember my husband and I went for a walk and this was, like you know, during the pandemic. This was May, so it was early on 2020, you know, when everything was like freshly shut down, there was nothing to do except go on walks, you know. And so we were talking about the business and just how quickly it was growing. At the time, I was the only like specific bridal seamstress in my area. So everybody else every other like alterations shop or whatever would take, you know, jeans and and slacks and also bridal and so I wanted to be specifically a bridal seamstress and in my mind, that was like genius.
Speaker 2:I didn't know that people around the country were already doing that, because there were only like four of us on Instagram, you know. So at the time, so, uh, my husband was like, all right, well, let's, let's think, think about getting you out of the house. And I had this very specific storefront in mind because we drove by it all the time. It was a toy store at the time. I hope they're not listening to this because it's kind of sad.
Speaker 2:But I would drive by and I'm like, oh, that would be so cute. I love the window, I could envision where the little waiting room would be and where the fittings would be, and I mentioned that shop to my husband. I'm like that would be perfect. And then literally that weekend there was a for rent sign in the window because they shut down because of the pandemic. Like a lot of these retail spaces were shutting down.
Speaker 1:Oh, they shut down because you manifested it. Let's be honest.
Speaker 2:Also that, but the pandemic may have Might have had something to do with it.
Speaker 2:Let's be honest Also that, but, um, pandemic may have, uh. So I was in there within, like I, that was May that we had the conversation and I had the keys by June 1st. So it was just like I and it's just so crazy, Like, when things are meant to happen, and like you find where you're supposed to be, it just happens and you can't force it to happen faster than that. You know, like everything it's like one day at a time, your business is exactly where it's supposed to be, where it is now, and, like, if you rush things or just like move ahead of yourself, it's like you miss out on those cool opportunities where things literally like fall into place. So that was so fun.
Speaker 2:And then, um, as that grew, I was meeting, I was finding these seamstresses on Instagram and, like I said at the time, I think there were like four, like probably 2017, 2018, there was one, Andra, if you're listening hello, we connected. And then it was like, okay, there was like just a handful of us and these, the more connections that I was finding, I was learning that, like, these women had incredible sewing skills, but they didn't feel super confident in their business skills and I was like, oh my gosh, that's what I just spent, like you know, the past four years honing in on with my coaches and like with my like. Well, my coaches, let's get real.
Speaker 1:I was a teacher.
Speaker 2:I didn't have any business skills. So I everything I learned was taught. But I wanted to help these women like shave years off of their learning experience. You know what I mean. And that's where Secrets of Bridal Seamstress came into play. It started off as a podcast and then we would have these like little bootcamps and then it turned into membership and we just had our second in-person retreat and like most beautiful and they know the word like vulnerable is so like overused, but I don't know how else to describe it it's such a beautiful community of women who just really show up as themselves, they show up for each other and they give so much like there's no um, like they let go of the ego. You know what I'm saying. So I'm just like I can't believe this is where it ended up and and oh, what's going to happen next. You know what I mean. So that was the full story. Thank you for listening that far.
Speaker 1:No, and you know, everybody has their story and I find and I know if I, if I do too, that listeners do too, and this is why it's so important to start off with that is that we find things that we relate to or or we're like oh, I know somebody like that.
Speaker 1:Like I have a client who was a teacher and now she's doing wedding planning and she's like I didn't have, I don't have any business sense. Like, teach me all the things. And one thing that you had said in the beginning is that you know you, you couldn't see yourself staying in the classroom. Yet you are a classroom, you are like you know this of knowledge right. All of a sudden you're back teaching its full circle. It was just to teach about the right thing to the right people.
Speaker 2:Exactly, Exactly, Exactly, Without an administrator and without parents, right? So it's like the perfect combo and I thought of that like and one of my girlfriends has pointed that out she's and she's in the membership and she's like this works because you're a teacher and as a classroom teacher, like I learned so many skills and you had to be organized and you had to just be on top of it or, yeah, you'd be called out by that administrator you know.
Speaker 2:So there are so many skills that I picked up, but it's like I do love teaching and I love, I love the one-on-one and I love like the small groups and I love the conversations. It's like so many things that lit me up as a choir teacher. That is what like lights me up in. Yeah, it's like tenfold now I'm sure. Yes, yes, yes, totally.
Speaker 1:Oh, what a fun story. Well, again, I know the people listening in. They definitely, as they listen through, they're like, aha, me too. Yeah, well, today we're going to be talking about how we can keep the you know, the people who are following us or coming across our social media or our names in conversation, how we can continue to keep them wanting more. So, nadine, I'm so excited to get into this. You know, obviously we're in a digital age, so things have changed quite a bit and I think it's like our, our potential leads, have like a two second attention span.
Speaker 1:And that's because what we're like scrolling, we're looking at TikTok, it's the short clip videos, and if you don't keep things moving along with exciting information, we lose their attention. So how do you think that we can build the client experience which is so important from the start, so that we can keep people engaged?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I feel like the like it's so old school, but it's like that personal touch goes such a long way, you know, and I think sometimes that like it's so old school, but it's like that personal touch goes such a long way, you know, and I think sometimes that you know, when we think about like okay, our marketing and like okay, our posting and and like we tend to lose sight of the fact that it's like word of mouth in the wedding industry is huge, like you're thinking of, like you work with a bridesmaid, okay, then they she has a really good experience with you, and then she's going to tell the bridal party and then they stay in touch and then they come back for other weddings, cause I'm saying this because this totally happens, right, Like I they come for the next like three weddings in their friends, in their friend group, and then their turn to get engaged and they come back to you and so I I don't want to be too quick to forget, like the power of an excellent experience, like they felt so good with me or they felt like I heard them and it was like we were relatable to each other and they wanted to tell their friends, maybe like we took a selfie.
Speaker 2:Together I've only taken like two selfies so I can't act like I do this all the time, but like you know, or they one of the two times worked.
Speaker 2:if you're bringing it up those, two times did work, so they're worth mentioning. But, like, if she takes a picture, like in my shop or like of the flowers in my shop or something, and then there's a tag and then they're, you know those photos are in her stories and you know, like the, the friend groups that we serve, when we're serving a bride, we're serving these friend groups, you know that want to come back, or they want to come to the appointments and experience the fitting with their friend, and then they want to have the same experience too, and so that is what I feel like has driven my business so much. And again, like, yes, of course I'm, I'm doing all. Like the social media things I'm not as great as I would like to be.
Speaker 2:On my local Instagram page it's like, oh, that's like my, like my stepdaughter you know what I'm saying. Like it's like, oh, I need to give her a little more love. But, um, the personal experience everybody wants to feel special, you know. And so, thinking of like those little, like the little nuances that you know the the client's going to pick up on how you interact with them, like the eye contact or like how does it smell in your studio or your and I know you talk to a lot of different vendors, so they may have like studios or it might just be an online experience.
Speaker 1:Oh I talk about. If you have a signature scent, spritz it on a you know welcome to the team, you know letter and send it out. So when they open it and then when they see you in person maybe you're wearing that, you know, and it brings that memory back, like using the five senses it's. I'm all on board for this. Oh my gosh, I love the.
Speaker 2:Now I'm thinking what can I mail to? Yeah, I'm thinking of my. This is what we do.
Speaker 1:We start getting like the your mind's going.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then we can have a scent made and then it can be a candle and the candle gets sent out and my whole thing. So, um, yeah, all those little details are like having the music playing in the background or having, um, you know, having like the little uh dish of mints in the dressing room and having the beautiful textures in the dressing room so that the brides are feeling like really well loved. I think that all translates, because those are the things that when brides come to me even if they've had like consultations with other seamstresses that's what they remember they're like oh, I'm so glad that I found you, because I actually had a couple other appointments and it just didn't have the same feel. And they don't even know what they wanna describe. Right, they don't know what they want, but they do want a feeling.
Speaker 2:And that's what I hear is like I don't know. I just I just have a good feeling here and it's like okay, you can't put your finger on that, but what we can do as wedding pros is create this like really warm environment. The brides want to feel safe. They have like all these decisions to make. So when they come into your bubble, it's like oh, okay, yeah, I've heard I don't need to try so hard to push my agenda Like this person gets me and they get my, my vision. You know what I mean and I think that goes a long way.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely, and I think just you describing like the experience of somebody going through your studio you are hitting the five senses down to the minutes, right, you know, but it's true and it's like so they get this it's a full experience of emotions and being able to touch and feel. You know, I'm sure your studio has a beautiful look to it, so it's inviting, you know, and all these different things. When we lean on the digital side too much, we start creating like that feeling of a machine where our clients might start feeling more like a number and parts of that I think the digital side people kind of expect that. They expect, you know, the payment reminders and the things like that and all that's very helpful for everybody. But we have to remember that when we step aside from the digital world and we're able to show up with something tangible and something that ignites those senses, that's really what's going to set the experience apart from some of the other things that were right Right.
Speaker 2:Yeah absolutely, and even like with the, you know the automations. Sometimes you know as a service provider, and then when you work with other local service providers, whether or not they're for a wedding, you can't help but like, notice all the details that you're like, okay, you didn't set up your own message, you're still using, like, the auto response. That's like the program, I'm like what. So everything from like how you interact with your clients in person, to the copy that you have on your website, to the copy that you use in your Instagram or whatever your social media posts, to the copy that you use on your invoices, like does your invoice just say thank you or does it say like, hey, beautiful, thanks for an awesome first appointment? Like you know, do you use the same lingo, because that should translate across, like every like fingerprint, across your digital fingerprint, should match your in-person experience and then that's going to just start the experience sooner for your bride, and then they'll know. Or your client, I, I keep you do all work with your, your audience, um, they're working with couples.
Speaker 1:Yeah, everybody listening is everybody's wedding. Okay, great, great.
Speaker 2:Okay. So that's going to translate to your potential client is when they hear the same message from the initial time they contact you. You know, when they first start stalking you on social media, they're going to hear the same voice as they're going to hear when they meet with you in person, and I think that goes a long way too.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely. There's a photographer that, um, I highly recommend down here in in South Florida. And they one of the things they do is in their emails. They have the best gifts, you know, like the little, like mean things, yeah, and, and in person they're so much fun, their imagery is so much fun, like they. It's like this really unique kind of couture but funky style that they have when they're, when they're shooting and and it like I want to open their emails because I want to hear more from them, because everything about them is just fun. There's a florist on here that's the same way too and their, their brand message comes through and everything they do and it just makes you want more, which is what we're here for.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, well, you know, I've always, I've always felt like you know you were. You were just saying like, oh, who are the people that we're talking to? Right, and you know, as vendors in the wedding industry, we're serving couples, but I I think that looking, you know, to the side, instead of just at our couples, looking at each other, looking at the vendors that we work with, the people we're collaborating with and that help us build that referral power, I think that they are just as important as the pain. Absolutely. I'm curious when we are looking business to business and those collaborators that we work with, what do you think are some ideas to make sure that we're top of mind for them and vice versa?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think you know there's so many instances where, like I shouldn't say so many, but there've been enough to like make an impact. I guess, when I have these like cold DMS from people who, like, just request something, or they want a donation, or they have a photo shoot and they want to donate a dress, and first I mean that's happened probably half a dozen times and first of all, I'm like I don't make dresses, um, and I'm not going to be lending out a client's dress, and that also tells me that you haven't done any research to know, like, what I do. But we've all been in those situations, right, where, like, we get hit up by a local vendor and it's in the name of like collaboration, but really it's like, hey, can I use your services? And then maybe I'll tag you in this photo, right. And so I think, when we approach these relationships with truly a heart of service, like like what can I? What can I give you? Like, what can I help you with? That goes so far because it's it's not super common. You know what I'm saying. When I've participated in like some collaborative events in the past, I think what really sticks out to me is when I can participate without being charged, which let let let me explain. Okay, because you're like, you just want free stuff. So I'm hosting an open house at my storefront on Saturday, actually, so perfect timing for this conversation.
Speaker 2:And, um, I know other um, obviously, like major wedding shows, like these big ones locally in Seattle, like you're paying a pretty penny to get a booth at these wedding shows, right? So if you're scaling something down, like you're putting together like a little event for your local brides, wouldn't it be awesome if you could organize this collaboratively? So everybody's pitching in, they're all kind of putting in their time, they're sharing the posting, they're, you know, bringing to the table the best of the best that they offer. What if you didn't have a fee for that? What if you could organize a beautiful event and just invite your friends to join you and have it be just that their work is enough, you know?
Speaker 2:So the vendors that I've invited to my open house, I have like four or five, five that are coming. I'm not charging them, it's just an opportunity for them to show off their business and have like a little bistro table at my shop and talk to brides about what they offer. Um, and I'm cleaning up my shop for them, like I'm making sure that they are like comfortable and they have like a great setup, um, and I don't I I even a couple of them are. They're bringing food, so like I offered to like split the bill with them because it comes from a place of like hey, you're helping me and I'm helping you and there's no expectation for you just to like, oh me stuff. And I feel like that sometimes can be I don't know, have you experienced this with other local vendors where you're like I feel like you want a lot from me and I feel like you are getting a lot from me, or is it just me?
Speaker 1:No, it's, you know, it depends. So what I, what you're doing, is what I call the mutually lucrative relationship, right? And a lot of times when I say lucrative relationship, people think like, oh, you're just trying to find somebody who is going to get you more business and it's all about, it's all you know selfish reasons. And when we're looking at a mutually lucrative relationship, we're looking at an opportunity. I love what you're doing. We did boutique wedding expos and it was similar. They paid for a booth, but it was like very low cost, yeah, and it's an. It's an opportunity to one show up with the people that you feel good about, right, the people that you would, you would sign off on for any, any bride to be referred to and vice versa, because you're hosting this event. Now, these high-level pros, I would assume, that are coming in, that you love to work with, you're now gaining you're gaining the referral power back, right.
Speaker 2:Right, right, and so it's a mutually lucrative.
Speaker 1:but then when you have people who come in you know we get this a lot when it comes to marketing people will call and say, hey, do you want to spend $500 on a quarter page ad at the back of our magazine? And you're like you know, or I, you know, when I was working at venues I would have cold calls hey, I was wondering how, how I could get on your vendor list. And you're like, like, this doesn't feel great. Um, but when you have that mutual relationship, we're like, hey, I have this space for you to show up in front of local brides. I love what you do. Um, let's do this together.
Speaker 1:This is a collaborative effort you know, and maybe everybody is sharing in different places and and it's a group effort to bring light to it and everyone's there to succeed and to grow and rise together and move forward. I mean, it's it's collaboration over competition every time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then you, then you, it's so natural I, um, in 2021, when everything was shut down, I had a like an official like bridal show at my shop, which is so funny Cause my shop is like not huge but, um, we moved everything out and like brought these vendors in and we had, like we had a great turnout of brides, and I think because they were just like so eager to do something when everything was shut down.
Speaker 2:So this is I think this is going to be like my new annual thing um to host just something at the shop. That's like low key, it's only three hours, like it's very doable. And in the past I've also done like photo shoots where I've organized. You know I've had my brides come in with their tailored dresses and then you know the photographer and the florist and like the wedding shop show up, and that's been really fun too.
Speaker 2:Totally lost track of thought. It was what I was saying about collaboration, about win-win, about I don't know. It wasn't important, I guess.
Speaker 1:That's okay. Yeah, we did boutique, we did the boutique expos. We did it three years in a row, and having those I think the more intimate experiences too matters so much. Yeah, yeah, you have more time with that one-on-one um, and so I love that you're doing that too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then it allows the vendors, like you can't help but share stories when you're like setting up or when you're tearing down, or when there's kind of like that lull, it's like you just you know, oh my gosh, you get me. So that crave creates that environment too, which is a perk, because we're not alone.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think you know that also allows having them come to you and we're in your space and this is again everybody listening in. What part of your business can you invite people into? And when I say you know not just the client but your vendors, how can they be a part of that experience? Now these vendors have come into your shop and they're feeling those five senses.
Speaker 1:So if you're working from home, like me, like I don't have a studio that people come to but I'm able to, like I have a signature notebook I send out to certain people. I have signature wax seals I sent out we have, you know, the signature scent we talked about and I have these like really cute little champagne lollipops that I pop into you know, packages and stuff and if I'm able to send that to my clients, but I'm also able to send that to my collaborators. Now they're seeing, okay, this is how Karen treats right, this is how Nadine treats her clients. It makes you feel so much better about sending somebody to that person, knowing that they're going to be. You know, I love that. Well. So everything that you said in the first question, right, just pulling it right through to that experience and then again having that. You know, hey, let's do, let's have a mutually beneficial collaboration. Yeah, no, this is I love it. This is again where I'm like parallels. It makes me so happy. East coast, west coast.
Speaker 1:So when we're in hospitality and so we've talked about, like, how we can be hospitable, right To everybody, to make that experience, Well, they teach us to, you know, go above and beyond with surprise and delight exceed expectation. Wow, then, like, there's all these different things, and so what happens is the people who really harness that we end up with, like this whole industry of superheroes, we all have something to bring to the table, and what I thought was really fun of a topic that you wanted to chat about is how we can hone in on those unique, differentiating superpowers. Um, so that when we're looking at this sea of vendors and I think this is so important to the fact that you've, like, niched down right, like you found your superpower how can we harness that and run with it so that, one, we can be a differentiator, but then, two again going back to the last question, we're not able to serve the vendors and clients even better?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Well, I, even though, like I'm niched down, it's like I still can struggle with insecurities of like, oh well, other similar vendors, or like other similar educators.
Speaker 2:It's like I just I think that we almost assume that we're going to get to a level where, like we don't have the weird feelings or like we don't have the insecurities and like there are definitely times, like certain times of the month, that it's like I can't go on social media you know what I mean? Because I get so like insecure and I'm like come on, you're 30, you're going to be 37.
Speaker 2:Like you got to get over this, you know, and for me and this is it's so funny we talked about this at our recent retreat because I wanted to challenge our attendees to think of what their superpower could be. So at the beginning of the retreat we talked about like, okay, we're going to hear from the same speakers, we're going to hear the same uh pieces of education from our three keynotes, but they're going to be received so differently by each woman because of where they are in their business, because of who they want to serve. Just different things are going to light us up, right? So I challenged each attendee to write down those little, we call them sparkly nuggets that just stick out to you and they don't even need to be like in context. Sometimes we just hear things and we're like, oh, that, I love that.
Speaker 2:And when you, you know, so you can collect that, even as you're like social media or as you're listening to podcasts, what kind of things just light you up, and they don't need to make sense, and you just keep track of those things that resonate with you and resonate with your brand, and it doesn't need to come all together. Yet you have this list and once you're kind of reading through the list of things that at the retreat, for instance, we kept track of. There's going to be a theme that pops up, and so it was so cool. We started that conversation Thursday morning and then at the end of our retreat, like the final conversation was hey, did anybody pick up their superpower? And women did, because they were able to. Just, oh my gosh, it's something that has just been part of my DNA. Like I don't even realize it's a thing, it's just who I am and that is a superpower. And sometimes we overthink it, like what is my branding?
Speaker 1:What is it?
Speaker 2:You know you're, you know we're. We hear like the term personal branding so much and we can overcomplicate it and it's really simple. It's like literally just who you are and you don't have to think about it. It's just how you show up, how you love people, how you feel led to serve people, and you can just feel so passionate and so like called to these people who you're supposed to serve, and that purpose is bigger than you.
Speaker 2:It's bigger than your business plan or whatever you can't help but show up as that person, and then you just do it intentionally and that's when the magic happens, right? So you're not coming up with this whole new plan, you're just showing up as yourself, and you're showing up as yourself on purpose and the things fall into place. So for me, like I have to remember that when I am feeling those weird feelings of like imposter syndrome or like the comparison feelings come up which you know I hate to remember that when I am feeling those weird feelings of like imposter syndrome or like the comparison feelings come up which you know I hate to admit they do, but it's like, okay, they're not me and I'm not them. And there are going to be some people who want to work with you because it's you, like they don't want to work with anybody else, you know, except Karen. And then there are others who, like they don't want to work with you because it's you.
Speaker 2:So we have to kind of be honest about that too. Right, like there's, there's no need to like overthink it, because we're just going to. When we're intentionally showing up as ourselves, we're going to draw the right people who we want to work with and who want to work with us, and then we also have the freedom to let them go if they're not meant to work with us, and we can't do anything about that anyway, you know. So it's like, instead of trying to force it or instead of feeling like it's like a personal, like we're doing something wrong when people don't want to work with us. Maybe we're not, maybe it's just we're not meant to be together, you know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think it goes back to knowing and accepting that not everybody is going to be your client. It's not everybody's going to, you know, jive with you the way that you might want them to. And a good example of that is if we look at people in our so like as educators.
Speaker 1:there's mentors who I know people are obsessed with and like they're not my person, Like I not listen to their, I can't listen to one more episode of their podcast. And then there's, you know, as some people are obsessed with David Tutera and some people are just like done, and you know, and you can go across the board with anybody living on this planet, not everybody is going to be your person, even at, you know, a success level like that.
Speaker 2:Right, and so, instead of using that energy of like trying to meet everybody and be that person for everybody, you can use the same energy to like pour into your people and it's like, and so when I'm in that mindset, it's like nothing gets me down, like I'm like woo, like it is.
Speaker 2:It's like, yeah, I feel like I'm flying you know what I'm saying but then what is like super horrible is like in like half a second, I can get back to that other place and be like, oh my gosh, and it's like, no, you know. So, like putting it and I, you know we hear that term like put your blinders, and it's not necessarily like ignoring everybody else, but just not letting yourself get distracted by what other people are doing or how they're attracting their client. It's like, but it's not you and you have a mission and like you are like called to this mission. So like, don't let yourself get distracted because you're letting down your followers, your people who you want to coach and mentor, like you're doing them a disservice by getting in your head about stuff.
Speaker 1:So what I think that comes across in the end is that Nadine wants us to go back to our sparkly nuggets. Right? What do you talk about?
Speaker 1:that what what lights you up so that when we get into these places where we're like, well, that didn't light me up, like now I'm at, now I'm now I don't think I'm enough, I'm not worthy to be in this position. They're doing so much better and all these other things. To go back to that list of you know, the sparkly nuggets I love it and, okay, this is what lights me up. Let me shift my focus over here, because all that doesn't feel good. This is good, yep.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love it Very free fun.
Speaker 1:It's such a fun and simple exercise that can be so powerful in mindset shift. Yeah, that real good. I don't know if you would be willing to share anything that came from the bootcamp or if you have a personal experience, but I'd love to hear maybe a story around somebody or yourself who you found your superpower and ran with it and just like an overall success story.
Speaker 2:I think like the membership honestly, because and that's like a really vague answer but, um, I at first thought that I wanted to just like start this hub for seamstresses everywhere, like bridal seamstresses, let's come together. And I soon realized I actually do not want everybody, like not even close. I'd rather have a group of women who are very committed to their craft and committed to each other and committed to showing up for themselves, and that they want to be accountable to one another. And, like my, my descriptors for my membership has just become a little bit, a lot, a little bit a lot more descriptive, and that's okay. It's more detailed, because now I know exactly who it is that I want to work with and there are people who want to be with me too.
Speaker 2:It's not just like, oh, I'm going to like watch this training and kind of check in. It's like, no, are you going to be invested in this? Because that's how we're growing. We're truly seeing growth like working in each other's lives and truly seeing growth like working in each other's lives. And if you can't show up for that, I really don't want you anyway. You know, I mean say that kindly, but I remember even just first starting the membership and I had like a lower ticket price for the membership and I would just get people coming in like these looky loos, you know, and then they would leave and you know how you have. You're like tell me the reason why you're leaving, or whatever. And they would say, like you're like tell me the reason why you're leaving, or whatever.
Speaker 1:And they would say, like, just have these weirdo comments like these, expectations where they don't do much, but I actually do a lot more, you know, and just these little clues were like oh okay, this isn't who I want, so how can I really fine tune like who I want to work with?
Speaker 2:And then it came back to what do I? What I personally feel like my superpower is like hospitality, which sounds really um, that that encompasses a lot but like I love having people over for dinner.
Speaker 2:I want everybody to feel like, hey, you're at my house for like a really cozy dinner party, and so that's what I want to create for my brides and that's what worked with my brides right. Like this is the experience they're getting when they come to Sweet Francis Sewing Co. And I want to give that same experience to my members. Like you're not just showing up for a call, you're getting these like follow-up messages and you have a group of friends who are like they have your back, they want to hear your scary stories. Like we want to help raise your particular average ticket.
Speaker 2:Like what I love about our community is all the women in our membership. Like we know where everybody lives, where we are in our business you know what I'm saying. Like we know the details of our dreams and I want women who are invested in other women's dreams, not just themselves, and you can really pinpoint exactly who you want to serve once you hone in on like what your superpower is. And like I just want the women who want to come to the dinner party you know and like bring a dish, because you know we don't like when people show up without something to contribute, because Wine usually, but yeah, I've become the person who I'm like, oh, I have to stop at the store and buy something and I kind of feel sad.
Speaker 2:I want to be the person who, like, bakes the bread, but that's not happening, so I've accepted it.
Speaker 1:I love that your membership has it's like its own persona, as like an extension of Nadine, which I think is what it is, though right Like you're, you're you've been very intentional about who's in there, and I've always said you know you really need to find the people who are willing to invest their time and money in their businesses, and those are the people that you want to run with and you're putting together for again this like beautiful little corner of the world of applique lace and you know all the things right, like how much is that to yeah, just really on so many levels with your members?
Speaker 1:I think that's beautiful, thank you and it is.
Speaker 2:It is very intentional. I had a a one-on-one with one of our members and she's like I don't know if this is something that you've meant to do or not, but like everybody is very nice. I'm like, yeah, it's very intentional because we're all women still, like I'm not saying that, like, oh, we're all perfect in this group, but it's like, you know, there's, there are ways to even um approach like, oh, that comment wasn't cool. I'm not going to call them out, but it's like how do?
Speaker 2:you. How do you address things like that, or even like when they come to our retreat, like you agree to show up a certain way and to treat people a certain way, and like you sign your initials to show up. So there's that accountability too. So we're protecting each other by making a choice to show up for each other.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love that. Yeah, that's it we. I found that when you bring people into a group like that, suddenly the, the cattiness, the gossip, all of that falls away, because everybody feels more comfortable together, Like the more. We did that with networking events here because there were a lot of clicks and a lot of hearsay and you know, the seamstresses don't get to meet the, the officiant and the you know, what I mean.
Speaker 1:Like there's certain vendors that don't touch each other or don't see each other yet we're all recommending or not recommending each other based off of what. So we're like let's all get together and it, it it created a more welcoming like place for all the wedding vendors to come to and like on wedding day. It was like they had this team Right, that's awesome. Yeah, and it was, it's just it. It really does make a big difference when you have a community, and I love and my word of the year is intention, so I love how intentional you are with yours. Well, we are at the point where we are going to go through a little bit of I call it fast Q and A, and I say that, but you know it's the same pace. I would say A little bit more about you, if that's okay, okay, okay. So usually, well, maybe, maybe I'll ask you both questions. One question I didn't put on the list here was what is the last thing that you bought for your business, if you can think of it?
Speaker 2:I like to know this because everybody has a different answer and lately it's all been very tech-based well, I just came out of a retreat so I bought a lot of things, but oh, I'll show you our families, yeah. So everybody got a branded. And then I got extras. I'm going to do a giveaway for, like, podcast listeners. So that was really fun for me. I was like, okay, that was a nice chunk of change, but it was like, so worth it because it was so fun and it was like this really fun, tangible thing. And so I I bought a bunch of fun things for, like, our little swag. We had some great donations, but I I made some investments for our swag bag. I don't know. I literally cannot think past the retreat.
Speaker 1:That's okay. No, that's perfect.
Speaker 2:I mean it's very on trend too, I know I ordered them before the target phenomenon so I was like wow.
Speaker 1:Right, all right, and what has been your favorite? Or you can choose a most challenging sewing project to date.
Speaker 2:Ooh, I think, um, anytime communication is horrible. That is the challenge. Like, more so than like the, the physical sewing. It's like if the bride doesn't know what she wants, um, that is the worst. So when a bride comes and she's like I really want to redesign or I want to take my mom's dress and turn it into something, something right, and I'm like okay, I'm going, and there's no like visual, I can take photos, I can look at photos and make that, but I'm not a designer, so let's not confuse the two, and that is always a challenge. Like, I really don't like those projects unless they can come with, like a very clear vision. Clear vision, yes, oh, yeah, well.
Speaker 1:I had a bride who, oh, I'm sorry, go ahead. Well, it's totally different when they come to you, you know, as a planner, but they would be like well, I like these colors, right, and I can put something together with that at least. Right, and she can say yes or no for you. It's like it's such a personal project, right? You know, if the napkins are a slight shade of coral off, more than likely it's not going to be the end of the world. But if you know you chose the wrong, you know you did it, but it actually is very much so.
Speaker 2:Yeah, oh, yeah, I did have like on the flip side, I had a bride this past fall and she bought this beautiful satin ball gown like clean slate and she wanted have you seen those like 3d lace flowers? Yeah, like, oh my gosh, it's so fun. So she showed me a picture and I was like we can make that and I ordered the lace and we recreated that photo and that was so much fun because it was like really fun for me to like I had freedom of where I could place the flowers, but it was a very crystal clear vision so that was fun to run with.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Love it. Okay, and let's see, if you had a fictional superpower, so with this, I'm like, if you could fly or be invisible or have like laser eyes or something like, what would your? What would your?
Speaker 2:that's like like really scary, I feel like that says X-Men with the flying, 100%, no questions asked. I have so many dreams about flying and it's like the same dream where I have to get to a rooftop and then I have to jump three times and on the third time I can get above the trees and I, I love those dreams, so I would love to fly.
Speaker 1:I have dreams. I can breathe underwater and probably because I'm here in the Florida keys and that's like a lot of um, you know our culture here. But yeah, breathing underwater is a really fun one for me when I'm dreaming.
Speaker 2:That'd be super cool. I'll add that to my subconscious.
Speaker 1:All right. And then, if we're sitting across from each other one year from today celebrating something for you, what would that be?
Speaker 2:um, I'm, I'm applying to do more things outside of my comfort zone. So we've talked about imposter syndrome and I've been, you know, fighting that the past few months and so this time next year I'd like to be celebrating the fruit of that, of like putting myself out there and the things that follow. So there are some fun things happening this year that I'm like OK and yeah, hopefully just kind of opening up like a new chapter of the business. So that will be what the cork is popped for.
Speaker 1:I think this is going to be just for everybody, and this is one of my brand values for the year is just looking for opportunity and creating opportunities for others, and I have a feeling that we're going to see a lot of that from you as well. Oh, thank you. Well, nadine, if you could tell everybody where they can find you and connect with you, and then if you have any of those things coming up that you'd like to share, please feel free.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so you can find me at secrets of a bridal seamstress podcastcom. So that's our podcast information. If you'd like to be a partner, a sponsor partner with the with the podcast, if you want to chat with me in the podcast, my audience is bridal seamstresses, but we love to hear like your business strategies. I love to chat with other wedding pros too, because we all have similar situations right, whether we're sewing or planning the wedding.
Speaker 2:So I'd love to hear from you. I'm also on Instagram with the same handle. Secrets are bridal seamstress, yeah, and I would just love to connect with all my little wedding peeps out there.
Speaker 1:Love it Well, nadine. Thank you so, so much for coming on today and sharing all of this with us. No-transcript.