Today we’d like to introduce you to Taylor Reese.
Hi Taylor, We are so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I first began making jewelry in my sophomore year of high school. I was trying to find a pair of earrings to match a dress for an event and couldn’t find what I was looking for. On a random trip to a craft store with my mom, I stumbled upon the bead aisle. I remember being shocked and overwhelmed by all the pretty beads and the endless things I could create. My mom was kind enough to indulge me, and I went home with some basic tools and the colored beads I wanted and assembled my first pair of earrings. From there, I was hooked and started researching techniques, methods, and styles, and before I knew it, upperclassmen and friends were asking for custom pieces to match their prom dresses.
I continued making jewelry throughout college but needed to be more consistent. After graduation and moving back home, I picked it up again and started a blog to show how to style my jewelry. The blog took off in a way I never expected, so at the time, I shifted my focus to growing it and figuring out how to make it a business. It was going strong til 2020, and when I found myself at home and very pregnant, I also found I wasn’t getting dressed or going out as much, and it felt inauthentic to get dressed up just for photos. My jewelry and blog have always been a real representation of my life, and I didn’t want to put anything fake out there. The abundance of time at home left me antsy and needing to funnel my creative energy somewhere. I felt inspired to start making jewelry again, so I pulled out my boxes of beads and started playing around.
In September 2022, I decided to make Taylor Reese my full-time business and shifted my mindset from hobby to hustle. I opened the business to Wholesale channels and now have over 20 retailers in the southeast carrying Taylor Reese jewelry. Today, the brand focuses on giving the underserved fan bases quality, wearable, fashionable accessories for game day and every day. I went to a (at the time) smaller university and had a hard time finding anything in my team’s colors. I don’t live near the university bookstore and have never been a logo + t-shirt girl. Here in the South, many others feel the same way. Saturdays are a chance to flex your fashion muscles, and it’s inspiring and exciting to be part of so many looks. We strive to give fashion-forward fans an assortment of jewelry that completes their look, and they are proud to wear it for the rest of the week.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I would be lying if I said it was all sunshine and roses. Any entrepreneur would be. Starting, I needed help figuring out pricing. I have always wanted my product to be accessible. I’m here to serve the fans and give them something beautiful, but I’m still running a business and must be profitable at the end of the day. It took trial and error and a few mistakes to find a product price range that satisfied both needs. While I have great retail buying and trend forecasting experience, I went to school and did all my early sports broadcasting and media work. Many times on this journey, I felt I was way off course in starting a business or that I must have been nuts to think I could do it. I have yet to gain formal education or experience in running a business, but I feel strongly about my product and what I’m building. That is what pushes me forward each day.
Scaling has also been pretty challenging. Retail is always a balancing act of carrying enough inventory but only a little that you’re. Left with excess, you can’t move. God has been so good to me that He has brought me the opportunities I needed and could handle and protected me from the ones I wanted but couldn’t handle or execute with my current infrastructure. Most business lessons I’m learning are about scaling and growing a team. Education and knowledge are so important to me, so while I may not have a degree in any business field, I’m always listening, reading, and experimenting to fill in the gaps of what I don’t know to be a better leader and business owner.
I appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I have always been a bead girl at heart. My brand is built on beading techniques and features all beaded styles. I love the versatility that working with beads has to offer. I also love the color and the movement. There are so many different types of beads out there, and each one changes the piece to have a different personality.
In the jewelry space, I am known for beaded game-day jewelry that always has a hint of sparkle. I am also really proud of the quality and strength of each piece. I am a mom of two toddler boys, and they are solid. As a jewelry lover, I like wearing a few pieces daily and know my kids will tug on it. I make everything to be as strong as it can be. It’s not all kid-proof, but it’s kid-resistant. The hand-knotted necklaces are a great example. Instead of stringing the beads on one strand, the strand is knotted after each gemstone is strung to ensure that if it does break, you won’t lose all the beads, just one or two. A whole blog post on shoptaylorreese.com details how strong and great our knotted necklaces are.
In addition to the game day bracelet stacks, I also have the option for clients to create custom beaded necklaces for a specific occasion or for their team. They are some of my favorites as I get to flex my creative muscles and make something special for each person and their style. The core of my business is team colors, but we also do a lot of GWPs and company gifting for retreats and holidays. My team is great, and we welcome any opportunity to create something special.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I love most about my city is how small town it is. I’ve had the privilege of growing up here and coming back to raise a family, and running into people at the grocery store or church event is so fun for me. My kids are going to the school I went to and even have some of my teachers. The community is strong here, and I’m grateful to be part of and contribute to it in any way possible. There are so many wonderful things about Gastonia. We are close to the mountains, the beach, a big city, the state line, and many wonderful farms. The city is growing so fast, and I’m proud of that too, but the thing I like the least is the traffic. My husband and I joke that we sound like our grandparents. Instead of talking about what I remember the price of gas to be, I talk about how I could get across town in half the time.
Pricing:
- Bracelets: $15-$80
- Necklaces: $65-$130
- Earrings: $45-$75
- Custom Orders: $350+
Contact Info:
- Website: www.shoptaylorreese.com
- Instagram: @shoptaylorreese
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shoptaylorreese
Image Credits
Demi Mabry Photography (Charlotte, NC), Sunni Photography (Louisville, KY)
