#622: From Influencer to CEO: Building an Authentic Community in Western Fashion

Foreign.

Business can be a lonely game. But it doesn't have to be. Welcome to Boutique Chat, where we explore community over competition and how to scale your company with the balance and the happiness that we all seek. We'll hear from product based businesses of all types, retailers, e commerce and wholesale brands, along with industry experts shaping the future of our industry. I'm your host, Ashley Alderson from the Boutique Hub and I can't wait to chat.

Facebook groups aren't dead.

Let me repeat, Facebook groups aren't dead. In today's episode, I couldn't be more excited to have this conversation because I share the same opinion as today's guest, my friend, Megan Erie, the founder of Turquoise and Style. Megan is a huge influence in the western world, has been a western fashion influencer for a number of years, but also has an amazing turquoise business. Over the last year, I've been so lucky to get a bit of a front row seat to watch Megan's business grow and unfold as she's been a part of Retail Bootcamp and many of our offerings here at the Boutique Hub. So today I couldn't wait to unpack all of this with her and ask her about where this growth is coming from. How she has such a crazy, engaged community, how she's leveraging Facebook lives, and how a Facebook group with I think just over 5,000 people maybe is so incredible. And you guys, she's got great advice.

For you on how you can continue.

To leverage your own community, whether it's on Facebook, whether it's in a group, or whether it's on Instagram. How you can sell yourself more than you're selling your products. You guys are going to love this episode. Although Megan is an amazing jewelry business owner and is wildly known in the Western fashion world, this episode is literally for everyone listening.

So buckle up.

Hope you enjoy it. Meet my friend, Megan Erie with Turquoise and Style.

Hey guys.

Welcome back to the podcast. This week. I have been looking forward to recording this episode for a while because, Megan, I feel like our paths have crossed in the strangest ways this year. You? I don't know, we just spend a lot of time together in Vegas. I'll let you tell the story. And now all of a sudden, I've been watching your journey from like, I feel like the front row seat and I'm like, holy crap, girl, you have had an incredible year. Take me back to first. Like how we ran into each other, but you got to walk me through what's been happening in your life lately.

Yes. So I actually had Already committed to work for somebody for the nfr, which is in December, which is retail busy month. But I'm a person that doesn't back out on commitments. So I was there, and we were both staying at the Westgate, and it was like elevators, hallways, the. What was it? The shuttle to the Thomas and Mac that. I don't think it showed up. Maybe. I don't know. It was late, but I just kept running into you, and I really feel like that's just so true of my life. Like, God continues to place people in my path, situations in my path, to put me in two situations that really are needed in my life. Because I was like, ashley, I really think I need the boutique cup. Like, I literally don't know what I'm doing, but it's working. So I don't know. It was just crazy how we kept running into each other. I was like, okay, this is a sign.

It was a sign. You jumped into the Hub. You jumped into retail Bootcamp. I've seen you take massive action this year and see some massive results, which is really cool. Before we get to the results, I don't want to be, like, a spoiler, because we've got to talk about what's happening now.

Take me back.

So before you were at the nfr, before all of this became really serious this year, tell me about what you were doing before that in your life. Influencing and starting. Starting a business a while ago.

So I've always been somebody. I mean, like, I grew up in a rodeo family. I grew up in the Western industry. Like, that's so in my heart, in my blood, like, horses, rodeo, fashion, all of that is just me to the core. And then I found myself, like, needing to promote a small business on social media, our small business. And it was like, well, I can do what they're doing. This was, like, at the very, very beginning of influencing. Not quite the beginning with, you know, you and, like, Ursula and all of that stuff, like gypsy soul, because, you know, that's huge. But it was still towards the beginning, and I was like, I can do this. Like, I love fashion. I love dressing up. I love inspiring women. So I found myself doing that, and then that just continued and to where photo shoots were starting to kind of become a thing. But it was like, you had to be somebody. You had to be, like, the elite, the cool people. I felt like. And I was like, I can do that. So I started planning photo shoots, and then it just turned into creating this huge love for small businesses. I love helping small businesses and bringing People together. So then I really got to where I was promoting a lot of different people's small businesses and, and working then working for small businesses. Like, it just kept evolving into more and more and more. And then I found myself like almost a 40 year old in this industry of young 20s. It really, really shifted and it's like this huge influx of young girls and there's nothing wrong with that.

That's great.

But me as a mom, almost 40, I can't really relate to them. I don't really dress like them. Like, I feel like I'm kind of on the bubble still where I might dress a little young, but like my tastes are changing. So I felt like I was kind of lost. Like, Shaylee and I had had some conversations and I just didn't really know what I was doing. I didn't feel relevant anymore because I felt like unfortunately the algorithms or the tastes of the viewers were going towards liking those younger girls. And I. I'm not somebody that's going to get on camera and dance. Like, I'm not gonna do that. Like, I'm not gonna learn a tick tock dance. I think I've done like a couple of them as a joke with friends, but, like, that's just not me. So it just kept going from there. And I sat down and had a conversation with Pascal, the Bijou Fab at WESA last year. And I'd had my business since February 22, 2022. Just a hobby. Like, I like turquoise. I like selling turquoise. And her. And I had a conversation and I went home and worked my business every single day, all day. And what I found was I created this little community and this little niche that liked my live sales, that liked that I was a scattered hot mess. And I just kept working it every single day. That little itty bitty Facebook group, I think I maybe had 1500 members at that point in time.

Oh my gosh. There's just. I got a pause because there is a whole lot of pieces of this story that we could unpack and go deep in.

Yes.

I have to go all the way back to the beginning, though. So starting out as an influencer, I still think that's like kind of a foreign land for a lot of people to really understand. What does that mean? How did you build a following? That sort of thing. So just start with like, how do you think as an influencer? Like, what could retailers learn from the way that you started to build relationships and build community early on? What was it that made people first see, start to know you start to follow. You be attracted just to being in your presence and being in your space.

I think because I was. I've always tried to be real. Yeah. And authentic and raw and off the cuff. And like, I am. I always say it like, I am such a hot mess. I'm so scattered. I'm literally. I am adhd. And you probably can tell, like from my little rambling, it's kind of ping pongs all over the place. But I just try to be like, real and like, tell people how I was feeling. And like, like the things that I stand on, I'm firm in my beliefs. Like, I just really lost my train of thought there. So that's gonna have to be edited. But I just really try to be authentic and real. And they liked the fashion. They liked. I've always dressed a little differently, A little louder, a little more colorful. I was one of the first people. I'm not saying I was the first. I'm not claiming anything, but, like my turquoise hat. I was like one of the first in the industry to have a turquoise hat. And then I feel like it kind of took off from there because that was a point where I was doing a lot of photo shoots and a lot of my friends were wearing my turquoise hat. So my turquoise hat, I feel like has gone. It's. It's been around the Internet a lot.

You know what I think is really cool about that, as you talk about, because your photo shoots have always been amazing and that was something that you did really early on. But it's neat to see you say, I pair the photo shoot like the beautiful edited piece of influencing with the day to day. Here I am. I'm a hot mess. This is my daily life. You get to see both sides. And I think whether you're an influencer or whether you're a business owner, people are still hungry for both of those experiences. Would you agree?

Oh, absolutely. Yes. I think that's what they crave more than anything now. They don't want those pretty, edited, beautiful feeds. I mean, yes, it looks great, but like, what.

What's deeper?

Like, what's on the inside? What's behind that? Like, who's the person behind the brand? Because I feel like our industry is so saturated and at the click of, you know, or the flick of a swipe, you can have so many boutiques and so many different products literally at your fingertips like that. So you have to go deeper than that. And I remember one of the first things I did was I would post my outtakes, like Where I'm like, like, ridiculous, you know, like, about to fall off a rock. Like, there was one. And, like, they ate that up. Like, the real. Like, the polish is beautiful. Don't get me wrong. Like, I love beautifully edited photo shoots, but, like, those are what I remember. Probably more like the funny outtakes than those great shots. Yeah. You know, the memories.

Totally agree. When you think about now, how a specific, like, Western fashion, Western influencers, all of that, and it is a lot of really young girls coming in, which is awesome. Right. Like, the influence that Western has on mainstream right now is just incredible. What advice would you give to those who are aging through that process? To not stop, but your tastes evolve, your, you know, commentary probably evolves, your. All of it evolves. What advice would you have for someone who's young coming up through that process?

Just be authentic to you and stay true to yourself and your style. Don't feel like you have to fit in any kind of mold, you know, to make it. Like, I think people want to attach themselves to something, and maybe it's not really them, but just be you. Like, I think that's what more and more time has shown is people want you. They don't want the pretty package with the bow. They just want you. And I think that's what will attract people to you. That's what I know. That's how I grew my following.

Yeah.

1,000%, because I like, I probably cuss too much or I probably, you know, have a little glass of wine and get on a rant or something, like. And I. I don't do that as much anymore, but I just was, like, very. I had a lot to say at one point in time. And, yeah, I think people appreciated that. I was just real.

Yeah. Yeah. So the ones that are in this space, like, you that have now, I'll just say, like, they're 40 or they're almost 40 and. And continuing to grow. What's neat to see is so many have these amazing businesses they've created or they've made, like, a real career out of it. And I think about, like, really, at the end of the day, whether you're a boutique owner or a wholesale brand or an influencer, what everyone has in common is you've built a lifestyle brand. You built a community. And when you build a lifestyle brand or a community, you can sell anything. Doesn't matter if it's yours or if it's someone else's. But in your case, you decided, hey, guess what? I love turquoise. I'm going to sell turquoise. Jewelry. I'm going to make a business out of this. And what you said earlier was you had this conversation that led you to, okay, I'm gonna work my business every day. I'm gonna take it seriously. Now what does that mean and what does that look like on a daily basis?

It was just funny, like, because her and I were having this conversation with another influencer who had started a business. And like, I'm like telling her these things and I'm like, but I'm not applying these to my life. Like, I'm not showing up for my people every day. Because my group, my community of women will be my proudest accomplishment of anything. I mean, other than my children, of course. But, like, I have built this community of fierce, God fearing women that pray for each other. They have my back, they love my business. I mean, I could get on there and sell them like cheese sticks and they would buy it, you know, like, they just, they are there for me. They post their stacks every day. Like, it's crazy. But I started showing up for them every single day. Whether it was posting something funny, something that was like ridiculous that I did in my life, like wore two of the wrong shoes or something, like just, just like the reality of what I am doing every single day. And then I just kept finding new and different things, like things that other people didn't know existed because I had gone out there and I had gone to the wholesale shows. I feel like a lot of people sit at home and buy online and that's fine. There's nothing wrong with that. But there's so much more to be gained by going to the shows, going to different shows. And I just started showing up for them every single day and doing live sales. Live sales, they. I can sell all day, every day.

Literally.

They will sit on my live sales. But it was funny. I did the, the poll and people were like, your lives are too long. I was like, if y' all are selling, I'm staying on. Unless I have to go.

If you're buying something, you're going to keep going. How did you tell me about your first live sales and are you using comments sold or what are you using to do your lives? Tell me about, like, what they look like.

My first live sale. I'm trying to think it had to have been 20, 19 maybe. Like, I feel like before live sales really took off, I feel like that was like the baby start of live sales. I don't know, maybe I just didn't know about them, but. And like my brother was in the Background wrestling one of my friends. It was at my parents house. I ring lights I don't think existed at that point. I didn't even know if they did, but I did not have a ring light. It was really funny. But then I just randomly like, I have an inventory buying problem. Like I'm. I'm a lover of jewelry, so I have a lot of jewelry. So I would get on there like before I would go to market and it was, I think last summer I just popped on and started selling. And then I was like, whoa, I've done like $5,000 this week. Like, what the heck? Like this could actually work. And then I just started doing it more and more and more and more and more and more and more. Like I had no idea that it would.

Yeah, but it did. So this year, fast forward to I kept running into you in December. You jumped in the hub. I've seen your name pop up. You were super active, like in all the groups, asking questions, answering other people's questions. And then you jumped into retail bootcamp and you were like every live just showing up whether or not you could implement all the things. That's a whole nother thing in retail boot camp. It's. It's pretty massive. But you showed up and then all of a sudden you're like, dude, my numbers are. This is what's happening. My business is really growing. Tell me about, like, as you started to learn things, what did you implement and what results did you start to see based on what you were implementing?

So because I do live sales and I do a lot of single items, like I might only have like a couple of this necklace or one of this necklace. I was entering everything as custom items and then custom items in Shopify. That does not give you very much reporting. That does not give you like any kind of breakdown of anything. So that was like the very one. One of the very first things I implement implemented, you know, because you were like, attract. What is it you say the attract number.

Attract number grows.

Yes. And there's something else, like, about like keeping track of. I don't remember. But, but anyways, so I started doing that so I could see where I was at. How much money am I spending, how much money am I making? Like, what is doing the best for me, what is not so good for me? And then I have been a horrible bookkeeper because this has happened so fast. I mean, we're talking like September to December. I did my whole year's goal in under 12 weeks. Like, it was. It was crazy. And I had not kept track of anything. Like nothing. So that was the second thing I did was I hired a bookkeeper and an accountant because I know it has grown beyond where I can even manage it. So, so I knew I needed help.

I love so do what you do best and hire the rest, right? So you're amazing at being with people. Like you're a people person. You're a community builder. You do excellent on lives. So you have to know your numbers in order to like you said, if you don't know what's selling, how do you know what to buy next? How do you know what to sell? Like it is all willy nilly. And what's funny about that is I think this is probably one of the most common things I hear from people who are new in business or new to taking their business seriously. In your case, where you get started with Shopify, but you don't have any of the product categories set up right? Or like the classes aren't broken down. So. So those of you who are listening that are in apparel, I'll just say you're tracking tops, but you're not tracking sweaters, short sleeve blouses, graphic tees, basic tank tops. Like that's five different ways to track tops and that drastically changes what you're going to go to market and buy. And in your case, same with all your jewelry categories. Yes. Yeah. Makes a huge difference.

Are you ready to participate in Pink Friday 2024? This is your official invitation. I hope you join us to shop small first and promote your store. Whether you're online or you have a beautiful brick and mortar that you want to really tell your story about. Why to shop small first this holiday season, November 22, 2024 is the Friday before Black Friday. And annually, every single year on Pink Friday, we join together to promote this idea of shopping small first before Black Friday before the stores. You know I love Small Business Saturday and I just hate that it comes after Black Friday. It's an afterthought. That's why Pink Friday again is always the weekend before Black Friday. So join us. Sign up to promote your store to be on our Shop Small first map and receive all of the ideas. Toolkits, stickers, window clings, graphics, anything you can use to set up an event in your community or to promote your online business on Pink Friday November 22, 2024. Link is in the show notes. Be sure to sign up. It's complet completely free to promote your business on Pink Friday.

What other actions did you take that made some impact as you started to grow.

You preach about being the. Are you the bottleneck of your business or are you the CEO? And, like. And I'm still struggling with that. Finding help is hard because this isn't my home. And I don't. I have advertised a little bit, but I'm just very wary to trust. So I've been working with, like, virtual assistants and somebody to help me at market because I cannot keep all the plates spinning. So it's. It's even paying my friends to come help me pack orders or something like that, because you can't do everything. So I. I knew. I know I need to continue that. It's just finding the right person for that. And I do these little brain dumps every night and try to, like, plan out my day because I will sit and do the same task all day if I don't time block myself. Like, okay, set a timer, and then you need to go do something else.

Yeah, that's a really good point. And I love that you said earlier, like, I'm an ADHD brain. And I honestly think most business owners are, like, that's a pretty common trait because it allows you to be creative and to, like, chase all these wild squirrels. But to your point, if you don't keep them a little bit harnessed and, like, give them a boundary of some kind of. We'll just squirrel chase all day long, but never really accomplish anything at the end of the day.

No, no, not at all.

Yeah.

So I have learned that I have to keep myself somewhat organized. I have to write things down. I have, like, another little to do whiteboard right here. Because I have to see it. I'm a visual person. It's out of sight. It's out of mind. I mean, I forget about inventory that I have if I don't see it. So, like, my inventory is everywhere. It's just finding out and implement. Implementing systems that will help you and set you up for success in the future, like, planning ahead. Because I am a squirrel brain. I am very, very busy. Mom. My life is crazy. You know, kids, doctor's appointments, horses, sports. Exactly. I mean, like, your life, like, we are very, very busy. So you have to set yourself up for future success.

Yeah, absolutely.

Otherwise, your squirrels will be raving.

I got a lot of raving squirrels right there with you. Talk to me about your products. So those who are listening that understand the west and Turquoise specifically understand the value of your products. But an objection that I hear from a lot of retailers that are worried about raising their prices or they're talking about markups and what they sell. You know, my customers would never pay $50 for a top. Well, let's flip it, and let's look at your business. And yes, a customer, you know, may balk at a $50 top, but they aren't going to balk at a $4,000 necklace.

So, I mean, they're harder sells. I have to have those, right? You know what I mean? I have to have those, but then I have to have the lower end.

So.

But people that. I feel like people that get into this industry get it in their head, they're like, I'm gonna. I'm gonna be a affordable boutique, or I'm gonna do affordable. Because I got into it with that same thought, like, I'm gonna sell affordable jewelry. Well, I want to sell accessible, affordable jewelry, but I want to sell those $4,000 squashes, too. So while this is great, if your margins aren't there, you're really not going to do anything for yourself. You're just chasing your tail. And what are you going to do? How are you making money? How are you going to stay afloat? How are you going to pay your bills? How are you going to feed your family? And now, looking back on it, I'm like, that is really not good for the industry either, because I had that same mindset, like, I'm going to be affordable. No, you don't want to be affordable. You want to be accessible.

I love.

But I want to sell those $4,000 squashes.

Yeah.

Granted, the $50 necklaces are my bread and butter. And I can. I know confidently I can buy, you know, how many of those and sell those, but I'm still going to be pushing those $4,000 necklaces, those $600 cuffs, those $300 rings, because you will take that customer, that $30 necklace customer, and she will stay with you. She'll fall in love with you. You build the community. You are the human that they fall in love with. And they want to be a part of your community, and they want to be. And then they're going to become that fifteen hundred dollars a week customer. I've seen it happen over and over and over. I mean, you just have to sell you not the product so good.

And once they trust you, they will. They will invest in what is more accessible. It's interesting because as I think about our industry really changing, right? And customers really gravitating toward, like, the sheens and the Temu's and these cheap things, the retailers of all types. So jewelry, for example, you. Those in apparel, those in children's, whatever. The ones who I see really doing well are the ones who have expanded and really moved into the higher price point goods. Yes, they still have what's accessible. They still have, you know, that budget friendly top or gift or whatever. But then they have the barefoot dreams, the 300 blanket and they have the four thousand dollar squash and they have the three hundred pair of boots. Because I feel like people are really moving to really want more quality and things that are a little bit more long lasting than just something that looks good for a minute and it's gone tomorrow. Do you, you must see that in your business every day.

Oh, absolutely. Because I've tried some like lower price point things that aren't typically western, but I try to make things western also. Like I, I have that, like, I like a little bit of contemporary modern stuff and, but I like my western. I like to mix them together. But I think what people want from the boutiques is something that they can't get on Amazon, something that they can't get on temu. They want the nicer things they want and they want to see it styled. Yeah, they want to, they want to know how to wear it too. But over and over again, I mean, I'm even talking to other people in the hub, in the groups, they want what they can't get on Amazon.

Yeah, yeah.

So I think you have to offer that and you constantly have to pivot.

Pivot like Ross on Friends. It's the word we all hate. But you're absolutely right. We have to find what. And that's really what boutiques are. Right. If you go back to the definition of the industry and how it all started, it's, it's the higher end, it's the more curated, it's the more unique things that you can't find everywhere else. But somewhere along the way, everyone started to look like everybody else and it really lost its originality. But your business, I mean the photo shoots, how you style things again, that makes it feel more elevated and curated and unique as well. It's an experience you're providing people.

Yes, because I take them with me. Like I actually got in trouble. Not my last buying trip, but the one before. There was no pictures like, or no signs posted that you weren't supposed to take pictures. And I posted a picture of me like sitting on the floor going through this. It's very overwhelming at times. It was like this drawer. I don't even know how to describe this thing like this. It was like I look, it looked Like a dresser, and it had bins on top and it had about 10 drawers. And I just snapped a picture of myself sitting there on the floor, like, going through everything. But it makes them feel like they're there.

Yeah, I take them with me.

They want to see you go to market. They want to see you travel. They want to be a part of all that. They want to be in the buying experience. But what do y' all think of this?

This.

Do you like this? Or what do you think of this? What about? Or should we not get this at all? They want to be. They want their opinions to be heard. They want to be seen. And it's. It's all about just going back to that whole community thing and being the human.

So what do you say when you hear people say, facebook groups are dead, Instagram's dead, algorithm's dead, Facebook group's dead, no one sees anything anymore. What do you say to that?

It all goes back to pivoting. Like, they don't want to see the product. I mean, granted, that's unnecessary evil, I feel like. And you do need to be posting that content. You do need to be curating that content and posting, but they also want to see you and what you're doing and what your life is like. You can still live a very private life and be a very public figure. I mean, I've done it for. I mean, I think we're going on six or seven years now to where I share a lot of my life, but there's a lot of my life that's not on there, too. So they just want to see what's behind the doors more than the product. A flat lay is great, but I promise, if I got on there and I took all my necklaces off and I just started pulling stuff and building stacks, it would sell like that. Because they want to see it styled. They want me. If I say I like something or this is what I picked out for myself, that'll be my number one seller. This necklace right here is my number one seller because I wear it every day. Or these earrings, this is my number one seller because I wear them, like, every day. Like, to be a jewelry owner, I'm very much a creature of habit. Or a jewelry business owner, I'm very much a creature of habit and wear the same things over and over.

So good. You're solving people's problems. That's what they're after. You're making it easy for them. You're solving their problems. So good. So go back to the Facebook group. So you build a community, you solve their problems. How else do you maximize your Facebook group? If your Facebook group is dead, how could you revive it? What would you say to somebody?

Yeah, I just don't really understand that. I think if your Facebook group is dead, you're just posting pictures. Like, what are you doing to learn about your customer, to learn about them as a human being? Like, because I can get on there and be like, renee, how is your mom? She broke her hip or whatever. You have to be more than the product. You have to learn about your customer. Like, they have to become a part of your family. You can still live that public life and be private, but they want more than just the product. Facebook groups are not dead. There's my bread and butter. Like, every day, all day. As much as I want to be in there, it is so busy. I think it's just showing up. Stop selling product and just get in there and be like, this is what I'm going on with my life, or, this is what is going on with my life. This is what I'm struggling with. This is what I'm going through. Pray for me. How can I pray for you? Show up for them. Be the human, not the product.

Amen. We're putting that on a quote card. That's good. All right, let's do a little lightning round question session. You ready?

Okay, I'm ready.

Okay, if I give you two hours back in your day to do something that's income generating, what do you do?

Post in my Facebook group or go live.

I feel like that flowed seamlessly. How many times a day do you post in your Facebook group?

Between 3 to 6 ish.

Okay.

Just depends. If I'm at market, I'll be in there all day, every day. Live twice a day as much as I can, because they're gonna buy.

Perfect.

Next question.

What's the best advice someone's given you in business that sticks with you?

Be the human, not the product.

What's the hardest lesson you've had to learn in business so far?

Keep track of your numbers.

Painful lesson. Painful lesson.

Taxes, man.

All right, next question. How do you. You're a mom. You're busy. How do you set boundaries for the most important things in your life time?

Blocking and writing my schedule down and having my calendar on my phone.

Perfect. What is one metric you live and die by right now? What's one metric you look at every single day?

My year to date numbers. Because I really, really want to hit my goal, like, real bad and my.

Month to date and your Month to date. Perfect. What's. What is one metric that you haven't mastered yet, but you're like, you know what? I'm gonna figure that formula or that metric out soon.

Just really niching down those numbers. Like you said, like, you can have a top in there, but like, is it a sweater? Is it a graphic tee? Is it a that? Like, those categories. Categories for my stuff, like, yeah, our necklace is my bestseller, but what necklaces? Like, because I could go break that down even further, and I feel like that would help me a lot as well.

Yeah, absolutely it would. Absolutely it would. Okay, so let's just say there's retailers listening that sell apparel and they want to sell more jewelry. What would your advice be to somebody listening on how to better sell jewelry to complement everything else they're already selling?

Style it. Show them how to wear it. Wear it yourself, because those are my number one sellers is what I love, what I wear. Like, the clustering. Like, if I could find a hundred of these, like, just show them how to do it. Implement it in your own style. Style it and pair it with your clothes.

Yeah, I feel like that's a huge miss for a lot of people. Just styling a top.

Buy all of these things, but then, like, but what are you gonna do with them?

So good. All right, I. Bigger question. I just have one question left after this, but just bigger question on just, like, Western fashion, the industry, where you think things are going. Western fashion as a whole has had such an amazing last, I'm gonna say two years, two and a half years. I mean, the rise of Yellowstone, we've got the whole Beyonce thing happening. Mainstream is going on. What do you think is next for Western fashion? And how can we continue to embrace just new faces that are finding it on a daily basis?

I think that's what it's going to be, is it's going to continue to reach these new people. And I feel like people are either they're really for it or they're really against it. And, like, I'm. I'm very much for it. Because you never know who might buy a ticket at the local rodeo or might buy those white Amazon cowboy boots that everybody loves to hate on, but then might start supporting that small business that advertises at that local rodeo. I just think it's going to really continue to grow because everybody's doing a country music album. Everybody, like, country is cool again. And I just think we're going to see massive, massive continued growth. So we as, like, you know, the pillars of the industry or the OGs. Like, we need to be there to educate and support and, you know, really, you know, we can. We can capitalize on this. More is good. More people supporting our industry is so good. It's not a bad thing. Yeah, I just think we're gonna see huge, huge growth.

I love that. I'm here for it. I'm ready for it. The more welcoming, the better that we.

Can be because we can teach them, we can show them that, like, it's not bad. Rodeo is not bad. Ag is not bad. We are not scary people, like poisoning your food or something.

Right.

There's just so much misconceptions.

Absolutely. All right, Megan, last question. So this is the big question. You sling a lot of jewelry, right? And it's lovely jewelry, but at the end of the day, I know your life is about so much more than that. So fast forward 30 years from now, you're on a front porch. You're with kids, grandkids, family, friends. You're talking about this amazing journey. You've been on those trips to Westa long ago, your stay at the Westgate long ago. All the things. And you're looking back and, you know, just bringing them along this journey. As you reflect, what's the thing that you really want them to remember most about you and the person that you are?

How much I love supporting small women. Don't businesses and empowering and inspiring other women. There is nothing that, like, makes my heart happier than seeing all my girls on my little VIP group posting their selfies, posting their stacks because they feel so beautiful in their jewelry. And I've provided that avenue like women that never wore jewelry are now because I stack. So they. They now stack their jewelry and they post their stacks. And that will live with me for the rest of my life. And they know how much I'm very much somebody that likes buying from small businesses. And I let them know, like, this is from a small business. So it's going to cost me a little bit more. So it might cost you a little bit more, but, like, we are literally putting food on other people's, you know, tables. So that's something that's very, very important to me.

The spider web of small businesses. I absolutely love it. Couldn't agree more. Megan, this has been so awesome. Thanks for spending time with me today. I was so looking forward to this and just getting to shed some light on your journey. Congratulations. Way to take massive action and just continue to show up and for the way that you inspire others on a daily basis.

Thank you for having me. You've always been such a huge inspiration to me, so this means so, so much to me.

Awesome. Thanks.

Thanks for listening guys. I hope you took away all kinds of nuggets and new ideas from this week's episode. Don't forget to subscribe and leave a rating and review. We love to hear your feedback and give you a chance to be featured on the show each and every week. For more information on our spirit of community over complex competition and to access guest downloads and bonuses and all the resources we talked about on the show, head on over to the boutiquehub.com and join the community. We'll see you next week.