Today we’d like to introduce you to Keida Dervishi.
Hi Keida, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I started my company at 19 years old with the simple idea of making a gift for my mom for her birthday. I thought of the idea to take a photo of me and my mom, outline and embroider it onto a sweatshirt as a gift. I experienced the sight of seeing my mother cry for the first time after receiving this present.
I quickly realized how a gift with a personalized touch, can make someone feel so special and Soulmate Customs was born. I would never have thought that in just under 11 months I would have reached 150+ million gift-givers on social media and over $1 Million in revenue.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I learned that entrepreneurship has huge ups and downs, but I do see every obstacle as an opportunity. It’s finding that muscle within yourself to want to move forward no matter where you find yourself taken down. I learned from watching my parents’ entrepreneurial journey that no matter how many times they failed or faced an obstacle their first response was “How are we going to solve this? And what steps do we take so this doesn’t happen again?”
After our first year of success, we found a post-holiday slow down and that was the first major obstacle our company faced. For a while right after the holiday season (because I was so drained emotionally and physically) I stopped focusing on posting consistently on social media and I stopped making the content as special as I used to. I had this huge mental block that stopped me from doing anything.
I was stuck, lost, and afraid. One day, we sat down with my family to think about what we might have done or changed to have this outcome. That’s when I realized that I need to go back to doing the same things that were making us successful in the beginning, one of those things being the content I was creating. I began again and haven’t stopped since. Now my content consistently goes viral and the orders continue to come in.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We are a customized embroidery gift business. We take our customer’s cherished memories and turn their photos into wearable art like hoodies, jewelry, and accessories. We have expanded into blankets, frames, totes bags, and lamps with plans to incorporate more categories later this year.
What makes our business unique is that we can make gifts for anyone and everyone. Any age, gender, or occasion. Being Gen Z-owned, the way we utilize social media is very unique. To us, it’s super important to be close to our customers treating them as if they are our best friends, updating them on what happens daily in the business, taking time to reply and converse with supporters one by one, and even giving them the chance to see their order being produced before they get delivered to them.
Through social media, we have been able to bring heart, humor, and even some shock value in our “spicy photos” where people take boudoir-style images and we turn them into fun but less scandalous stitched creations. We are finding our customers love the empowered feeling they get by wearing them or gifting them to their romantic partner or spouse.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My parents have been business owners their entire life. Growing up, I’d spend my time in my parent’s factory in Albania. I’d be drawing clothing designs right next to one of my mom’s designers, cutting fabric pieces with my kid scissors alongside the fabric cutter guy, and attending every business meeting there.
Imagine a room filled with 15 adults in training and a 9-year-old sitting right next to her parents taking detailed notes of everything they’re saying. That was me. I think because I grew up in that environment, ultimately, I was meant to be an entrepreneur even if I didn’t know it yet.
My parents have helped me scale and grow this business alongside a team of about 20 employees from designers to customer service reps and marketing experts. Everyone brings their unique skills and background to the company and I understand how important it is to surround yourself with great minds to achieve success.
Contact Info:
- Website: soulmatecustoms.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soulmatecustomss
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/soulmatecustoms/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5kfjXIpWond6qF7G4t489w
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/soulmatecustoms/
Image Credits
Erik Pel
