Why We Left A Profitable Business To Stay True To Our Core
It has been said that in business (and in life), it’s important to always stay true to your core and your passion. But what exactly does this mean?
Here at Wela Creative Studio, we’ve experienced this first-hand. In the past several years, our business has grown and changed in many ways…yet through all of these changes, we’ve learned the importance of staying true to your core and what you value as a business. While the world we live in is constantly changing and evolving (and so will your business), it’s more important than ever to define what makes you unique and what you LOVE to do while remaining strong and steady as a brand.
Our Story
Nearly 5 years ago, Bloguettes was created with a mission to empower the entrepreneurial age. Our Co-Founders Lorena and Sakura set out to equip current and future business owners with the knowledge, tools, and skills they needed to build their brand and stand out in the ever growing, highly competitive digital space. This was done through our in-person Workshops, where we would travel the country teaching our attendees everything they needed to know about branding, social media, graphic design, photography, and more. In addition to this, we offered stock photo memberships through our sister company, Stock That Rocks..
Through these Workshops, we met amazing women (and men!) who became part of our Bloguettes community–our family! In just 3 years, we travelled around the country putting on our Workshops and educating our audience through webinars, online classes, one-on-one training, and free resources.
In 2017, we made the big decision to stop traveling and putting on our 3-Day Branding Workshops. Instead, we decided to pursue something bigger–a conference! We created The Workshop, a 450+ attendee conference where creatives could come to learn about a wide variety of topics, such as social media, photography, design, blogging, entrepreneurship, and more. We brought in industry experts from around the country to teach our attendees in a hands-on, intimate environment. We designed this event to be the perfect balance between an inspirational conference and a hands-on workshop.
The Workshop was a success, and naturally, we started planning for the next year. We were so excited to receive positive feedback from our attendees and the brands we worked with and couldn’t wait to come back for round two. However, as time went on, we realized that we wanted to help people in a different way that was much more hands-on. In the midst of planning for our first Workshop, we had transitioned our company and began offering consulting services in the areas of branding, content creation, and social media. As our client base grew and grew, so did our passion and our responsibilities. We knew The Workshop was a profitable venture for us, but we couldn’t do everything at once. So, we made the decision to choose passion over profit!
Finding Our Focus
In the summer of 2018, we were faced with a decision. We knew that we could continue pursuing all avenues of our business (The Workshop, our consulting services, and Stock That Rocks), but would never be able to give each avenue what it needed to grow.
So, we took a step back and evaluated. We went back to why we started Bloguettes in the first place…which was to empower entrepreneurs by giving them the knowledge and tools they need to stand out in the digital space. We asked ourselves, ‘How can we best accomplish this today?’ The answer was clear, and we knew that despite all of its success, we had to let go of The Workshop and invest in our consulting services and Stock That Rocks.
Who We Are Today
In making the decision to transition into becoming a consulting agency, there was just one thing left to evaluate–our company name. For many people, the name ‘Bloguettes’ gives the impression that we are a resource for bloggers. However, we knew we wanted to reach an audience beyond just this. So, we decided to go back to our roots and go by the name Wela Creative Studio…which is our actual company name. This transition certainly was not easy for us, as we have spent the past 5 years growing our brand and credibility as Bloguettes. but we are beyond excited to pursue many new and exciting opportunities as Wela Creative Studio!
Who We Want To Become
Our vision for Wela Creative Studio is to become the go-to studio for building successful brands in today’s entrepreneurial age. People come to us because they know we can help, and we want to become known for creating the most creative, beautiful and innovative brands the world has seen. When a go-getter has a dream, we want to be their first choice when they’re ready to turn it into a reality–whether they need help with branding, social media, web development, content creation, or all of the above!
It’s our priority to only take on projects where we know we can make a true impact. We give our 100% to each and every brand we touch and never settle for anything less! By collaborating and working alongside our clients, they can focus on what they’re good at and get the recognition they deserve while we support them by providing the tools and resources needed to take their success to new heights. We want our clients to know that their success is our success, and they can consider us their right hand as they create the business of their dreams.
5 Tips For Staying True To Who You Are As A Business
Our hope in sharing our story is that we can encourage other entrepreneurs out there to follow their hearts and stay true to who they are as a business, remembering why they started. Here a few simple, yet vital tips we’ve learned along the way on our business journey:
Always Go Back To Why You Started. All too often, brands lose sight of why they exist in the first place. Every company has a story, and this story should be the motivation behind everything you do–even 5, 10, and 20 years down the road!
Remind Yourself Of Your Mission As Your Brand Grows. Your mission is a simple sentence that describes what your brand is, why it exists, and its reason for being. Use this statement as a tool for success that guides each and every decision you make.
Picture Your Audience. Community is everything. Remember, at the end of the day, everything you do should serve an audience! Open yourself up to feedback from the community–they hold valuable insight and can keep you grounded throughout the success and failures of your business.
Consistency Is Key. As a business, it’s important to be consistent on every level. Your brand’s voice and values should be consistent across everything you do–from your website, to your social media channels, to the ‘thank you’ emails people receive from you when purchasing one of your products.
Have A Long-Term Plan For Growth. Successful businesses always have a gameplan. Regularly ask yourself questions like, ‘Where am I going? What are my goals? What’s the big picture I’m working toward?’
At the end of the day, we hope our story can inspire all of you to pursue the business and life you’re passionate about. With hard work, dedication, focus, and lots of passion, anything is possible!
