As first published by Canvas Rebel. Click here to view the full article.
We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful JODI SCHWEFEL. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with JODI below.
JODI, appreciate you joining us today. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business? I spent 20 years in financial marketing prior to my career taking a beautiful & unexpected turn in 2016, when I designed a signature scent for myself {later to be named Pure Love Boho}. From the day I began wearing Boho, I was incessantly asked about my mesmerizing perfume…which led me to my journey of perfume design. Within a few months, orders quickly grew beyond friends & family, to local boutiques & spas, so I setup a small home apothecary that allowed me the production space to meet demands. By 2019, my perfume business became far more than a full-time job, so I decided to take a temporary pause. With a quest to design health-conscious & eco-friendly scents, I put pen to paper, and developed a business plan that would define my path to successfully rebranding my product line. From there, I added two more scents {Moroccan & Rebel}, and partnered with an IFRA-compliant perfume house to manufacture my original formulas. In 2021, we also proudly partnered with Pantheon Industries (Nashotah, WI), who serves as our fulfillment & shipping resource. They’re a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which strives to help individuals with disabilities achieve their full potential through a variety of employment opportunities.
We also financially supporting Semper Fi & America’s Fund, who cares for our critically wounded soldiers, as well as the Fight to End Exploitation, who strives to end human trafficking.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My company, allurESSENCES LLC, is a woman & independently-owned perfume company headquartered in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. I personally & soulfully designed our line of perfumes, cologne, and hair serums with mind, body/hair, and planet in mind. Our intensely euphoric, certified-clean skin scents are aromatized with pure essential oils, and are like nothing you’ve ever experienced before. Their mystical, highly-addictive aromas are designed to seductively enhance {never overwhelm} the wearer’s natural aura.
Have you ever had to pivot?
My company’s business model was designed with a two-prong selling approach; wholesale partners (boutiques, specialty shops, etc.), and direct-to-consumer via our website shop.
Given my brand launched right before COVID hit, my ability to grow my wholesale partnerships was negatively impacted, naturally. That said, we had to pivot to a direct-to-consumer selling model, only. Our main source of growth during this time was via social media advertising.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
Currently, Pure Love Essences perfumes & cologne are retailed in 83 stores across 20 states, and I’m beyond proud to report that my business was entirely self-funded. Because my product line was launching during a world-wide pandemic, I wanted to proceed with caution, and allow sales to directly fund expansion and growth, without going into debt with loans and/or investors.
