We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Raquel Rose. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Raquel below.
Raquel, thank you so much for joining us and offering your lessons and wisdom for our readers. One of the things we most admire about you is your generosity and so we’d love if you could talk to us about where you think your generosity comes from.
When I first started my business, I was a single mom, just pursuing a side hobby in hopes that it could add a little extra income as I finished grad school, worked part-time, and raised my daughter in my parent’s basement. In those years, I didn’t sleep much or get out much, but I remember I received so much love and support from my friends and family. They always believed in me through the trials. Friends graciously babysat my daughter, a neighbor once gifted me some cash and beautiful card of encouragement, and I’ll never forget that a friend of my mom’s (whom I didn’t know very well) stopped by and brought me a coffee. These small acts of generosity had a deep impact on my heart. I remember wishing I could repay them-but I knew I couldn’t at that moment-however I resolved to pay it forward the second I was able.
Flash forward a decade, and this little business I had started in my parent’s basement has become my full-time career. I now employ 10 other women and our mission is to make an impact by designing intentional products. I am now able to pay it forward and give a portion of our profits to local service organizations and was able to give over $15,000 last year. It is an absolute joy and honor to be able to give back because I was so deeply impacted by those that gave their time, money, and encouragement to me in my biggest time of need. My heart for giving came from a time in my life when I was so blessed and taken care of, often by strangers who didn’t owe me anything-they did it out of the goodness in their heart and I’m forever changed because of it.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
The mission of The Little Rose Shop is to bring faith into everyday life. This shop all started after I went through a transformational experience in front of Jesus in the Eucharist. At that time I was 21, single, pregnant, alone, and very afraid and desperate that my future plans were about to be shattered. I didn’t know how I could possibly be a parent or make a living. I stumbled into St. Peter’s Catholic Church in downtown Greeley, Co and sobbed-feeling so ashamed of my circumstances. Jesus spoke to me that day through the sparkling stained glass windows and showed me his mercy, and gave me hope. I left that church knowing it was going to be ok. I didn’t know how it would be ok, but I had peace in my heart that things would work out-I also knew my life needed to be different. I needed to change and bring faith into my everyday life, it wasn’t good enough for me to just live it out on Sundays at church and then totally rebel during the week. I needed to own it.
So I committed to bringing faith into my real day-to-day life, not just for me, but for my child growing in my belly. This was the birth of The Little Rose Shop. I started designing little faith based toys and items for my daughter to be able to learn about the faith right at her level. Saint dolls and church quiet books were the first things I made- they were a hit and suddenly I had people requesting to buy them. I soon opened an Etsy shop and started selling more and more. Apparently there were other moms out there just like me – looking for cute ways to incorporate faith into regular life in a tangible and fun way. The business has now grown to be a full-time endeavor with 10 additional women working alongside me to bring beautiful faith inspired items to your homes.
Our latest focus in on heartfelt marketing, by serving these like-minded women of faith and walking alongside them as they take up the daily challenge of truly living and owning their faith.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The three qualities that have been pivotal in my journey growing a small product based business are:
A listening ear: listening to your audience is key in growth. They are telling you exactly what they need, their pain points can become your biggest source of inspiration for new products. Listen to what they need and find a way to offer them a solution.
Flexibility: Things change constantly, the “algorithm” changes, the economy changes, your own season of life changes-being able to be flexible is crucial to surviving as a small business owner. Having a willingness to try something new and adapt when things aren’t working takes a lot of humility, but will keep you going.
Risk taking: You can’t grow without taking a few risks and being willing to push just outside your comfort zone. Sometimes this risk looks like hiring help when you’re at capacity, or investing in your own skills via coaching or courses, or maybe it’s testing an all new product concept and just putting it out there!
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
Free to Focus by Michael Hyatt has played a huge role in my development. Some nuggets from this book include the often rude awakening for entrepreneurs that we CAN’T DO IT ALL, and we actually shouldn’t do it all….Doing everything in your business is no way to scale and is the quickest way to burn out. Once I realized this and started getting help- a funny thing happened, by business took off. I now had more time to focus on the things that ONLY I could do for my business and could tune into by “zone of genius”. Finding my “zone of genius” which is the part of my business I not only enjoy, but I’m really really good at is the best way to invest in myself and my business. Also learning to protect my personal time, my leisure, and my rest have been crucial takeaways. We are whole persons and need to value our whole selves to preserve our wellbeing. Protecting my personal time and rest time have improved my quality of life and may family’s connectedness drastically.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thelittleroseshop.com
- Instagram: @thelittleroseshop
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelittleroseshop
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOXu8LY1vOI3C2jxYLOg6pQ
Image Credits
Brittany Rose, Little Rose Photography
