Meet Kiara Richards

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kiara Richards . We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Kiara with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
Funny that you asked , because I started working at the age of 12 and I would only get two days a week to work due to being in middle school , but I would always be the first to take someone’s shift. I knew I got everything done before it needed too and plus I wanted to see the number go up in my account to be able to purchase what I wanted from my own hard working money . This went on for about a good year and my mom would say you stay on it I know that and I would say I get it from you and until this day I wouldn’t change my answer and still won’t but my parents over all are the ones that always made it happen and never gave up, their work ethic was amazing . I think about that all the time to keep going and it gets better and better.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Hi you guys , I’m Kiara but I go by kiki I’m the creator and CEO of my small cosmetics brand Lajoycosmetics. We’re located in the Wilmington area of Delaware, been in business for two years coming up on our third year in November which is really exciting. Lajoycecosmetics provides all things vegan and cruelty-free products that are handmade and made with love in the comfort of my home. Definitely have some big goals for LJC so we have a lot of things in store this year while I don’t rush making products or any launches you’ll love to be apart of our Community. Focusing of loving the process of being a ceo of a brand and learning the pros and cons is a great thing to enjoy and focus on loving what I do to continue to put out AMAZING products that has the perfect quality for all that’ll love . I started my brand when I was pregnant with my son in 2021 that is now two years old . I always had the idea that I’ll make my own lipglosses and make it into a business just knew I had to do all my research to be steps ahead . I worked my whole pregnancy figuring out to make my own website, inventory, and how to ship , you name it I was teaching myself. Practicing my formula in my kitchen when nobody was around to practice until I got it right. I launched my business 4 months after having my son and made 14 sales which was so huge for me. Everything I was teaching myself for a year was all worth the frustration, tears, wanting to give up and didn’t was all worth it and to know I did it all while carrying my baby and got it to where it is now is a living prayer. Being able to launch back to back with different products that’s getting sold out within days of launching while preparing for huge launches that our LJC community are so ready for and I don’t blame them! We shipped to over 14 states since launching but had over 150 plus locals support which is major for my state when it comes to handmade products. We plan on expanding our shipping to international countries very soon , attending huge expo events and attending small business panels and that’s a huge milestone I’m aiming for. A lot of things in the works and the journey makes it worth while . Excited for the unexpected.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
Looking back now I wish I gave myself more grace of being in the present moment a little more. Clap for the little accomplishments. The feeling of pressure that no one else was pressuring me but myself was a headache itself. Focus on the whole business, not on one or two areas within it. Being a leader that delegates tasks to balance a workload, so adding a calendar was a big part of this journey. Keeping track of analytics to optimize my online presence . Making sure I’m showing up even if it go to one person. Nobody will see your vision the way you do and that’s what I stuck too.

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
What I do is very simple . It’s one word . I pray, praying whenever I feel this heavy weight on me that I know that makes me shut down , I stop to breathe and express what’s going on. God has been priority in my business and will continue to be. I pray when the business is going well, when it’s going bad , 25 sales and even none. Everything will get better so staying prayed up and praying to the one that’s the almighty is my go too. This OUR BUSINESS

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