We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brittney McKinley. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brittney below.
Brittney, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
I accredit my mother to being the model image of where my resilience comes from. Growing up in Milwaukee Wisconsin, my mother was a single parent and did everything in her power so that my sister and I could have a fulfilling life. She sacrificed so much for us, sometimes working three jobs at a time to provide for us. Even though she was exhausted, she still made it her priority to put us in activities and to show up and support us. There was never a time my mother missed an event, and even now when I am doing outreach for my brand or events, she is in attendance and my clients adore her. For me, seeing my mother be so accomplished and completing all that she set out to do solidified my personal resilience. Being a solo entrepreneur and wearing many hats can sometimes be overwhelming but I love my work and giving up was never an option. Having the privilege to do what I love every single day and making an impact on my clients is a blessing that I hope to maintain and a lot of who I am is a reflection of my upbringing and my resilience.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I’m Brittney McKinley, but my clients and loved ones call me Bee. I am the first Floral Wellness Designer in the floristry industry and founder of Contained Stems. Contained Stems is a floristry brand that focuses on designing beyond aesthetics for the betterment of client’s emotional and mental well-being by using specific ingredients that contain certain palettes and properties to heal, balance Chakras, and enhance our mood. Contained Stems further integrates wellness into the brand by introducing clients to experiences like our Floral Wellness Workshops, Floral Wellness Bars, Sensory Breath-Work Sessions, and Intentional Spaces by Contained Stems which is the curation of a client’s space aesthetically and energetically. Each experience is based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, but the brand is available for hire for travel as well. We’ve done residencies to expand our clientele this past year in both Los Angeles and Austin Texas. Beyond our service offerings, we have a vast product selection including flower essences by The Flower Apothecary based in Agoura Hills, crystals, original and customizable floral and crystal grid canvases, daily delivery to the mainland in the US, floral subscriptions, and floral delivery after hours for the DFW area who have last minute needs. Most recently, we’ve launched an E-Book called Flowers With Benefits that details the making of Contained Stems and is a useful self-help book for anyone feeling lost on a journey. We cover secrets from the industry and also have an option at the end for those who are compelled to do the work that we do, to become a Floral Energy Specialist by completing a self-paced online immersive course. We also released a poetry book called Love Notes at the end of December to close out 2023. We want to make an impact in the floristry and the wellness industries, specifically challenging the mundane trajectory of how the world currently experiences fresh flowers by incorporating self-care rituals for our clients. We have a foundation of sourcing inspiration from everywhere which is why it was important for us to release a poetry book. We also understand that to make the imprint on this industry we want to make, we need to have more specialists trained in how Contained Stems has come to be, experience the true science and research with all we’ve done, while designing more mindfully during the creation of intentional pieces and spaces. In 2023 we held space at 88 events after our launch in April and are excited for the beautiful connections we will make in 2024.
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?
There has been so many takeaways on this journey so far which has impacted myself in business and personally, especially because we’ve expanded organically and fast. For anyone who is just starting out on their journey I would offer these three gems:
1- Become comfortable with pivoting. In business there will be many times things won’t go as you believed they would in your head. Learning the skill to pivot is crucial because you will have a main plan and some alternate ideas should plan A not pan out. Should this happen, don’t get discouraged or be so focused on something not working that the blessing is missed in how the new plan is unfolding.
2- Don’t feel you have to be everywhere, doing all the things at once. Do what feels right for you and truly take time to understand what that is, what you love, and what makes you feel the most alive. At the beginning of my journey, I wanted to be every where and although it was great exposure to get my name and Contained Stems’ in the public’s eye, all of those events did not always equate to sales. Money is important and the first few years of business can be challenging so try to connect with where your clients are so you can align yourself with those who will believe in your brand and your offerings. Know that what you seek is seeking you always, your job is to align with the frequency to attract whatever that is to you.
3-Have a self-care ritual or something that grounds you. Being an entrepreneur can feel lonely especially if you’ve ever experienced imposter syndrome, following your dreams can feel crippling at times. Having my mental, emotional, and spiritual health in order has been extremely helpful for me. Try to do something you love every day, even if you only have five minutes to do so it will cause you to pause on constantly thinking of what you’re trying to do and where you want to be and fill your cup. Community has been important to me as well. I am a part of a beautiful collective, Sacred Sisters, along with spending time with my [intimate friend group] who are very much so my family, [and my sister Savannah,] has kept me in good spirits and provided the support and energy I need to energize me at times.
As a bonus, REST! When you allow yourself to rest you can sort out your tasks much easier.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
The biggest area of growth for me over the past 12 months has been to live in my truth and power, purposefully every day, and produce beautiful and intentional work for my clients. With this, there have been many times of being uncomfortable, having to get out of my head, and put myself and my work out there, but it all comes down to believing in yourself and moving past fear. We as humans truly have the power within us to do anything and we all have personal superpowers and strengths that we can use to our advantage. You never know who needs to experience your work and who needs to know your story to gage what is possible for them. I personally am choosing to be the inspiration because I don’t know who’s watching or who I can impact for the better. I am constantly attracting dreamy clients that love my offerings and experiences, and I have so much love and gratitude for the community I’ve built. I want to leave here with a piece of advice for the readers- not everything has to be a study from formal education, some talents are simply gifts that should be honored. Know that you are worthy enough of sharing the gifts that you have been born with and talents that you have nurtured.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.containedstems.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/containedstems/
