Pandemic

From Self-Doubt to Queen of Crowns with Kevlyn Walsh of Festive Gal

In this episode, we are bringing back Kevlyn Walsh, founder of Festive Gal, who you may remember from episode 155 of our Pivot & Sell series back in May of 2020. We have had the honor of working with Kevlyn, for almost a year now, in our Mastermind program and she is going to share with us where her business is at now (hint: it's multiple six figures!)

“Learn to Take a Win — Then, Keep Winning!” - The Product Boss Podcast

At the start of her journey, Kevlyn was a school teacher who knew she wanted to leave the the education field when her school went on strike in 2019. Since Festive Gal was making about the equivalent of her teacher's salary, she knew it was time to leave her old life behind to become a full-time entrepreneur. Now, Festive Gal brings in multiple six figures!

Kevlyn’s major growth during the pandemic had her worried that her success was a total fluke and that it wouldn't last in 2021.  She was able to strategically implement and lean into some new things which has allowed her business to continue growing and scaling to new levels.

As a result of these actions, Festive Gal brought in even more sales in 2021 than 2020! Thanks to wholesale, Festive Gal is now in 200 stores, and has a permanent showroom space. 

Early on, Kevlyn realized that she needed to clone herself three times to continue to be able to operate the company at its new levels – so that’s what she did. She hired two more people just like herself to take on the workload. Since then, Festive Gal has expanded to a team of eight! 

Continuing an established pattern with our guests, she points to participating in Masterminds, specifically The Product Boss Mastermind,  with likeminded people as a catalyst that helped her handle each new step of her entrepreneurial journey. 

Kevlyn's growth and success of Festive Gal over the past couple of years is an excellent example of how surrounding yourself with fellow product based business owners, who are at the same level as you, can make all the difference in your business journey.

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How to Build a Brand with Ashley Viola of Meridian

Today, we highlight the amazing work of Masterminder, Ashley Viola, who founded Meridian in 2016 and has since grown it into an amazing, highly sought-after producer and purveyor of beautiful, handmade home decor pieces.

“I always had that plan and a vision for the brand.” - Ashley Viola, Meridian

Ashley started her career working with the world famous Muppets. Specifically, she was a producer and director on Sesame Street, tasked with finding ways to produce content and grow the brand on new and emerging platforms. That’s arguably the start of her entrepreneurial journey, as she had to go out and discover new possibilities and turn them into reality before anyone else had laid a path yet.

The skills she developed on Sesame Street transferred right over into launching and running a product line – especially one like Meridian which is sold direct to consumer, and without a reliance on paid ads.

Ashley talks about how she believes the pandemic contributed to the rapid growth she's seen over the last couple of years - her business was fortunate enough to remain operational as the rest of the world closed down and, with everyone stuck indoors, people started making an effort to decorate their homes as nicely as possible. 

We also get into the deeper introspective side of business building. What is your identity? Are you a business, just a shop, or a full-blown brand? In Ashley’s case, it seems pretty clear that she’s now operating as the latter! Then we explore what the future holds for Meridian and how Ashley is continuing to turn her plans into reality.

Brought to you by the Shop 1 in 5™ Pledge! Commit to making 1 in 5 of your purchases from a small business, whether online or offline. The Shop 1 in 5™ Pledge is a way to make an impact together when (and where) it matters most. Join us and take the pledge today!

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  • Meridian on Instagram

  • Meridian Website

  • Product Biz Owners at $200k+ yearly revenue: Are you a product business owner that has built your business to a multi-6 figure to multi-million dollar business? If so, sign up here for our FREE live training, The Proven Path to a Million Dollar Product-Based Business, where we will discuss the 3 stages of business to grow and level up to a profitable million dollar business that works for you. The Product Boss Mastermind has limited spots available that are open for consideration to applicants $200k and above, apply here.

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