Desiree 0:00
Whoo. All right. So thank you so much for your time. And after reading your, your bio, or how you got started in the weeds. It sounds like your business got started off a big obstacle from

Lika 0:21
Yes, my life was in the weeds.

Desiree 0:25
Yeah. And that’s how you started your your business and came up with a name. For the people that aren’t familiar with the product, would you mind sharing what your product is about or what your business is about?

Lika 0:38
So I’m in the weeds, we make all natural skincare products, candles, and some other little things that are kind of like home, not home health, but like self care. So my starting my business actually was the fall this fall, like nine years ago, this fall was trying to get that out of my mouth. But so yeah, it’s almost been nine years in business since I got my DBA. And I went to school and graduated with my degree at Texas State and interior design. And it was right after the recessions. And it’s kind of hard to find that kind of job. But I ended up working at a furniture store. And it was only there about a year before I had a really bad back injury. And it was just kind of like I was spending my lunch breaks trying to apply for other jobs. But I couldn’t really find anything. And so it was just getting to the point where I couldn’t really work there anymore. And the position that I’m supposed to have got kind of taken away from me. And so I was just like, What do I do, I originally went back to school to become a makeup artist and just get paid. And then I made a school project. We had a school project and to make a an exfoliant, which is essentially really easy. But I break out everything. And while I was in school, I started realizing how many chemicals were in cosmetics. And actually, so it’s still disappointing nine years later, not much has changed. But like only 10% of any body cares skincare is actually that’s put on the shelves is actually ever tested, they just mostly asked for, you know, shelf life and things like that. But as far as like safety, that’s not the case. And considering I am such a great test bunny, and I ran out to everything. That’s where it all started, where I was kind of the the a student where I’m like, I’m gonna take this project and make it you know, you know, I want the best one in the class. Yeah. Like competitive. Yeah, I am a competitive, a little competitive. But um, I knew I had something going when my peers because these were just in little like Gerber Baby jars for my sister that I gave out samples and some girlfriends from college. But then my teacher was purchasing it for her son. And I’m like, we have all these brands that are well known brands in school that we’re using for our you know, we have facials to get our hours and things like that. So I was just like, why is she choosing me. So that’s kind of how it all started was just my curiosity. And I was introduced to essential oils in school, so by a massage therapist there, and she was one of the best in the in the state. So it kind of just it’s, I don’t know, the way I describe it is that I was desperately looking for the universe to give me signs. And those were the signs I was getting and these little puzzle pieces that I put together. And I always tell people that there’s like their signs out there like crazy if you’re paying attention. So that’s kind of in a nutshell, the very short version of a story.

Desiree 3:53
Yeah, I just wanted people to really get that feel of of the struggle you really had to go through. And as you mentioned, the stars align and you’re not giving up and having that resiliency, especially through your injury that you had to go through. But if you don’t mind, we can talk about that a little bit later, and the resiliency that you had or the mindset you had to have, but I wanted to just learn more about your product, where it is at today, since it’s been nine years. What What would you say is your favorite product that you use for yourself?

Lika 4:31
Oh, that one’s tough. There are three for sure. That we have in the making right now. And another one that we haven’t even introduced yet that I’ve been testing for a long time. So there’s three products it would be Dollface our face scrub, high five our face. It’s a Cream Serum, so like melt, it’s amazing. And then LoL is the body version of dollface. So those three products I actually said it several times this past weekend at one of my shows that If I wasn’t in business, I would still be making those products because I use them regularly. High five I use twice a day that recipe took me about two and a half years, it was originally just this little zero dropper bottle. And this so all the products I do go through like 20 test runs. And it’s extremely frustrating it I don’t think it’s ever happened where you get it, you knock it out of the park in the first two or three. So several test batches that I’ve been working on a deodorant for a long time. And like I said, I break out for for everything. A lot of natural deodorants either have baking soda and or coconut oil. And Coconut oil is a very fatty oil. And if you’re acting crony, you will break out to it. To the point where I have like pimples on my armpits.

Desiree 5:50
That’s not, that doesn’t feel good

Lika 5:54
than baking soda. Though it’s a good deodorizer it changes your pH balance. So I like I’m the girl that gets a rash in my armpits in New Orleans in August, it was amazing. So but I really pride myself in because I’m so particular about the products that I use, about testing them. And if it’s not something that I really, really like, I kind of don’t I don’t see the point of you know, a kind of I want my sales girls to also and I say girls, because it’s just mostly big girls, I don’t think we’ve we’ve had a guy before. But I want them to believe in the product too. And they get kind of like a monthly allowance to shop, whatever products we have to because I want them to have the experience of using our products and being able to relate that to customers too. But those three products that we have, and then of course, that deodorant, and I’m hoping to get that out next spring, too.

Desiree 6:51
Oh, congratulations. That’s exciting. So it sounds like not only that, you really believe in your projects, but you really it goes through a whole gamut of testing to make sure that there’s no reactions for yourself. But you allow these your sales goals to really understand how these products are used on themselves. And know that they’re what is their take on the testing of the products themselves.

Lika 7:21
Like if I test it? Well, I use, I’m always the first one to test it. And I can always tell by smell or consistency or texture. Like there’s several things I’m looking for before like, and I will debunk it and be like, Okay, we have to tweak it again. And so it goes through a lot with me before I even have a group tested. So my sales girls, sometimes they always actually say sales team just to be neutral, but they sometimes they’ll be curious and they’ll volunteer, they want to try something and they know they’re working on something. But then we go through another kind of group test where we would do like an open call for people to test our products and see like after it’s already gone through me. And I like it, I just get some extra feedback. So if there’s anything that somebody else is concerned about, too, so I think that everybody knows that my intentions is to make the best quality product. I’ve seen other companies where they just knock out a bunch of products. And I’m just kind of like me, have you even tried it? Like, you’d be surprised how many people actually don’t. So that is one concern, too. But another thing that I’ve noticed with competitors is that so you can easily purchase like a base cream from a distributor, you can buy it by gallons, where you just add your own scent, and then it’s like, oh, I made it. But unfortunately, this is way of course, it’s like I never get the easy route. I break out to the stuff that’s in the base, so I can’t even use that option. So I’m really starting from scratch and I compare it a lot to like baking, you know, it’s like you’re just looking for different, you’re adding ingredients and you’re trying to thicken it up or you’re instead of taste or going for smell or texture or things like that. So yeah, it’s something I wish I had more time to be in the kitchen. It’s been a little tough because I feel like I’m being spread a little thin so I’m trying to work on some new products. Hopefully that’ll be coming I don’t know if we’re gonna have it before Christmas but hopefully that spring.

Desiree 9:31
Yeah, well thank you for sharing on the upcoming products that’s exciting and how you really experiment with before the before and after as far as your what is needed for you to feel safe and letting us know what other people are doing. There’s a base and adding ingredients

Lika 9:54
will do that. I’m not saying that but I have seen that out there where I’m just like why do they have so many products so fast? asked, and I’m like, Oh, well, if that works for them, that’s fine. But that’s just not me. And there’s enough commerce to go around that they can have their lane and I can stay in my lane. And that’s fine. It’s just that’s it’s not going to work for me even if I try. Yeah.

Desiree 10:18
And I understand that there are certain ingredients that us first started, probably started experimenting out with, what would you say is your favorite ingredient to is your go to your products? That’s a tough question. Well,

Lika 10:37
that is a tough question for me, because so the way I formulate products is almost like a reverse puzzle. It’s almost like I see the puzzle and I’m putting the pieces together and I know what I want. So there is something called a common Genesee scale. And it’s basically a list of different oils and butters and it go in it, it’ll rank the oils and butters from a scale from zero to five, five being the most likely to clog your pores. So when I’m formulating I go by this list, and I’ll never use anything higher than a two. So for example, almond oil is a two I would say almond oil is my favorite oil, because it is good for like redness, inflammation, it has anti inflammatory properties. I’m also a big fan of cannabidiol cannabidiol is a natural hydrocortisone. So for people with eczema and psoriasis, we have a couple of products that have the cadmium infused oils. So this oil is just a crock pot. That’s the only thing that’s ever been in that crock pot. And they are constantly going just infusing the cannabidiol into the oil and then we use the oil to make anti ah products or add a different bit of gentleness to because it’s anti inflammatory properties too. But I definitely use that scale to formulate my products. And I tell people so people that love coconut oil, probably never were acne prone. And Coconut oil is great, especially for mature non acne prone skin. But coconut oil is a four out of zero and a five. So I will not be putting that on a product that goes you know, on the face or, you know, prescribe it and that’s also like what I was telling you about the deodorant. So coconut oil is a very Fatty Fatty oil so it’ll make you break out if you’re prone to breaking out. And then of course lavender lavender, but the thing is a lot of people are allergic to lavender, surprisingly, but lavender is a natural antibacterial properties. Of course, the smell is great, but then it’s just really good for healing. Oh gosh, Cena you asked me these questions. Now think about all these ingredients. And the last. The last one was honey is like amazing for wounds. Acne, has emollient properties. It’s good for dry skin. So those are my my top four I couldn’t even give you

Desiree 12:54
no problem. I have heard a lot of since this is an autoimmune type of podcast and getting businesses and products into and I’m interviewing them. What would you recommend for somebody that has autoimmunity and has skin problems that

Lika 13:13
I would definitely say the lavender and honey together is amazing. Honey, I’ve used it for allergies and dogs, like my dog actually had the worst seasonal allergies and I would just put a tablespoon of honey in our food. And then of course the other two dogs were like we went on an interview too. But she had to wear shirts all the time because she would break out into these rashes and she was scratched so much that she was like bleeding. But honey is just amazing and its properties and especially if you get it local to your area. So that helps with that too. And then, you know, for auto immune issues, I would consider honey to be a really good internal and external healing property. Like I’ve seen I’ve had a really bad burn on my hands and instead of putting all these other creams, I just got honey and wrapped it in gauze and I was this was years ago but I was surprised how I didn’t need any extra medical hair after that it didn’t even blister or or anything, just keep it moist. And it’s amazing what these natural things that our environment and provides for us. My brother also has an autoimmune disease. He has psoriatic arthritis. So and then he has psoriasis too. But it’s it’s I know it’s hard for him to find products that will work with him because a lot of times that these products that have chemicals will heal one thing about your issue, but then the side effects to other areas of your skin and acne products like that too. It’s like it causes problems elsewhere. It’s like it’s it’s a side effect worth At the you know the healing of your original problem.

Desiree 15:05
Right, right. And with this, I was wondering if you are willing to share with his psoriasis? Is there any products that he’s using from you? Your that may that may help him.

Lika 15:19
So actually, my mother and my sister and my brother all have psoriasis. I don’t know, I think it’s because I took after my dad, I was always the one with the oily acne prone skin. So unfortunately, well, I guess fortunately, I feel for them for having to go through it, because they’ll have it in different areas, but my brother has on his leg. And it’s gotten better. He’s been in a clinical trial. But I’m glad that you could still use topical products, I have a salve called mama T’s TLC. And it’s just the chamomile flowers with a base, it’s very gentle. So the only smell you get from it is the actual chamomile flowers itself. And this is like I’ve used it on dogs on babies, pregnant women with their you know, in their belly start to edge. But that one I like really well for him because years back the mark that he has on his or the area on his cab, it was so raw that it looks like shingles, it was just, you know, and you want to be able to put something on it, that you’re not going to have some kind of reaction. And that and I love that product because it will spread really easily. So you don’t have to put a lot of pressure, we have products, we have to kind of like rub it in on like a really, you know, it’s like you’re adding you’re rubbing something into like a burn almost, you know. So that was a product that I always give him and that I actually just made him a little cameo oil on the side just to just the oil itself. But yeah, that definitely helped him. And it was a shame with him because he couldn’t even go out the sun. Because two seconds of the sun. It’s like the sun just saw that spot and just go straight for it. So he was very, very tender to it. Ouch.

Desiree 17:03
Thank you for sharing. And it sounds like you have really helped many people. And not only people with their acne or psoriasis. But your dog’s, like you said that you’ve helped them and their skin conditions. And I know

Lika 17:19
it’s so funny. I’m only down to one now I recently had to put down another about a month ago, a month and a half ago. But she was a white dog. And she was very sensitive to the sun. So I have to put sunscreen on her. And I was just like it was funny how they all had these different skin issues. They’re just like people too. But yeah, so we’ve had it. I’ve helped so many I’ve helped a lot of people by think that when it comes down to it, I know that at times with so my mom has her psoriasis right on her hairline, in interface, and my sister has it in her hair, but in the back. So the thing with whether it’s psoriasis, or acne, or whatever it is, it’s just I feel like I’m in the business of helping people get their confidence back. Because whatever it might be that they’re ashamed of whether it be like, Oh, I have these spots on my hands, or I you know, acne proud. And I have this cystic acne. And there, I actually had one woman, oh my gosh, this is probably the best described response, one of the best emails I’ve ever gotten where she sent me pictures of her son who had long hair, and he was covering his he was using it to like cover his face. He was like hiding behind his hair. And she sent me a picture of him like playing cards with I guess, like another family member or friend, where he had his hair pulled back in a ponytail. And he was like smiling and laughing and she was like, thank you for bringing his smile back. Like, is the most touching thing I’ve ever, you know, one of the best emails that somebody told me where they’re just like, thank you so much. You just brought this like, you know, my son back to me. And that really meant something because competence comes in different in different shapes and forms and you sometimes you don’t even realize what’s taking it away, you know from from that that’s really important. And I’ve been there too. I’m quite tall. And I grew up in South Texas where many men aren’t as tall as I am. So I always kind of felt that. Even if I wasn’t trying and I walked in somewhere. People were staring at me. And once someone says like, oh, when she walks in a room, everyone’s looking at her. I was like, Oh, I hate that saying because like then they’re noticing all these things. And I wouldn’t even go the gas station and my acne was so bad that I would like wear makeup just to go to a quick trip to the gas station. So it’s funny how that manifests in other ways, and you won’t even notice that you’re just like, Oh, I just want to look pretty, but why didn’t you think you look pretty before you know?

Desiree 19:56
Yeah, in just like as you mentioned confidence can and come in different ways and shapes and forms. And it really has a domino effect on who you who you want to be in your future. And once you get that confidence back, it’s a domino effect on not only yourself, but others, you really change the way you are. And this kind of goes back to your your story of if we want to go back there, but what your resiliency in building this business up, what is the biggest thing that you you didn’t expect? And building this business up? Is it’s been nine years. Yeah,

Lika 20:49
the biggest thing I didn’t expect, definitely dealing with customers that have these issues is one how I wasn’t expecting to make such changes in some people’s lives. Also, my my own because when I started this job, job, right. I, when I created this job, I was desperate. I was I was also really moved to see, you know, I always tell people like being desperate is where miracles happen. That’s when you get people get creative, because they need to think out of the box, something’s not working. So one thing that I’ve taken away from it is my ability to adapt, I feel like, I don’t really like change. I don’t really know a lot of people that do. But I feel like I’ve gotten to the point where you can change and adapt pretty well. And another thing about me that it’s that I didn’t expect is like sometimes you are so set on something. And when you know it just like that, that adaptability and that some things like that used to get me so upset, I feel like I don’t even have time for it, you just have to like you have to admit you’re making decisions on a daily basis. So seeing that was was one thing, but also, I kind of didn’t expect how well received, my company would would be especially in the San Antonio community. That’s That’s it. That was another thing. So when I first started my business, I didn’t really think San Antonio was going to be a place where he’s like this natural and organic kind of line would be accepted. But San Antonio was really willing to listen, I tried in Austin first. But when I first went to Austin, because I grew up in Aurora and I grew up I went to school at Texas State right down the road was that they were like kind of like We everything here is organic, and it was just almost like Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever my promo This is different, or something like that. Because that I think the term organic is really overused. I personally don’t really use it in our work in describing our products, even though we do use organic ingredients, I just think that it’s so over overused, but people have been really accepting and willing to learn and, and, and then they and the last thing I want to say to that question is that so bad news travels fast, but good news travels real fast, too. If people that was one thing I did not expect because I feel like you know, I grew up in the valley, you know, everyone listens to the cheese, mares and the gossip. But people will speak on on the good too, for sure. And that’s my business was built on word of mouth at the very beginning.

Desiree 23:55
And I actually remember meeting you at a farmers market in I think at the rim a long time ago. And and I remember using your product and I absolutely enjoyed it. So from five years ago to where you’re at now, how many? How many products would you say have you thrown away and restarted? Or, like you said, you go through this process of experimenting and real and I’m out. And I only asked this because resiliency is part of an entrepreneur and part of autoimmune. There’s a connection give

Lika 24:38
the timeline of five years ago, I know that we started a whole different line of candles. We have close to 50 products now. If you include all the candles and wax melts and all that but just the skincare goodness, one, two 23456. Just like a little, probably a little under 10. In just the last couple years, I’m trying to think we there was one product we had that I did get rid of that some people still ask about it was, oh my goodness, it was called breaking bass. It was an ode to the show Breaking Bad. And it was just like a play on, you know, they’re making meth right. And so we had this Blue Mica Powder that we made our salts blue, but because it was in a clear jar, and this was before we had started using a preservative. So we do use an eco certified vegetable based preservative now. That’s a whole nother story. But at the time, we didn’t and the blue would start to fade and people wouldn’t buy it unless it was blue. And I used to have little menthol crystals on the top and then a silver spoon that was just a joke was a silver like little tasting spoon. The whole like bath salts thing happened where like people were like snorting basketball. Tada. So I was like, okay, like this was just a joke, but we didn’t get rid of it. Because of that we got rid of it just because we were nobody wanted it. If it faded to clear they wanted their breaking baths to be bad. I really don’t know anything about math other than what color I was trying to match to that was really it. But because that show was not really watched as much anymore. You know, it was just kind of like a temporary thing. But yeah, that’s the only product that I’ve kind of gotten rid of. Now, there was another scrub tube that was like a seasonal but it’s funny you asked that question, though, because I do have six products in the pipeline right now. Oh, wow, you only Jordans that are rebrand. And I didn’t want to debut them already. Because we would have to make one label now and another label for the rebate brand. And I just kind of thought like, why don’t we just make the rebrand and have this all launched at the same time? Yeah, yeah, there’s a good four different individual products plus the different scents. So that deodorant, we’ll probably have three different versions of it. Because I also am putting biodegradable glitter in it and there’s going to be somebody out there that does what glitter on their obits. That person I just had my friends who voted against the name sparkle pits, but I had pitbulls so I wanted to do a big campaign with like adopting a pitbull and have flower crowns. And had this whole, you know, bougie Pitbull sparkle pitch thing. So I want to do that like at ACL or South by Southwest or something. But yeah, the deodorant, we do have a glitter version

Desiree 28:07
of it sounds like chemistry and you enjoy the play on words and creativity. Yeah,

Lika 28:17
I do we have a headache. Stick that. So it’s actually bad when I came up with the name before the products done, because it’s always like a flop. So if I have, I have to have the product first. And then the name comes. But we have these little tubes. I’m like, I don’t have one right here with me. But they were like a chapstick too. And I would say it’s like it’s like a chapstick but it’s not a chapstick. And it got to the point where I could not think of a name for this product and it became not a chapstick. And then we had to not a lip balm because of the word chapstick. So yeah, we have a product that’s literally called not a lip balm because it’s like my liability all wrapped in a label it describes do not put this on your mouth even though people do it all the time. I’m like Did you even read the label? The other thing I’ve learned people do not read labels. But so we always give directions verbally to but the names are sometimes hard to play with because I sometimes you put on the spot like oh my gosh, like the printer people are literally waiting for this name. Give them the name because we need the label. We have a deadline and you’re just sitting there like yeah, that’s only happened a couple times but we are like on a deadline we need a product name. But not a lip balm was literally like a brain fart where it was just I don’t know what to call it but it’s not out there. And not a lip balm ended up being like genius, so whoever I feel like essentially when I started this business, I really enjoy the creative side of it. Unfortunately, when you’re a business owner, you got to be a little left brain to and get and get all that stuff taken care of to do.

Desiree 31:31
And how have you been able to balance those two things? Um,

Lika 33:36
well, I feel like the creative part, I’m kind of on my own. I don’t have a mentor in the kitchen, I kind of just have to learn and do my own research. But fortunately for me, being here in San Antonio, I learned so much through launch essay, the first couple of years they are I guess I can call it like an incubator, but they’re inside the public library. And there’s you walk in there, you’ll probably see Brian salts. He’s the director there. And also there, the Women’s Business Center there too. So they have a bunch of accelerator programs for small businesses. There’s a lot of help in San Antonio for small businesses that small businesses have no idea about. And if it wasn’t for lunch, I say I don’t think I would be half as good as I’ve been these years. I’ve learned a lot and it’s all you know, I always am very generous with my time with them. Because it’s kind of one of those things where they’ve given me so much learning and they don’t charge anything. They well some of the pain it forward. Yeah, you pay it forward. And somebody did it for me, because I’ve had a lot of people tell me that I should be like a business consultant. And I’m like, that just doesn’t feel right to me because so many people tell me that, you know, I have to forward to

Desiree 37:57
Yeah, yeah, sure. So since you talked about mentors, who would you say is your top mentor that just grabs your soul.

Lika 40:10
I’ve had several throughout the years actually, one I haven’t seen in a whole minute Daliah. She used to work with a small business development center down in downtown, but she’s still involved. My main mentor right now is Lucinda. She works through UTSA. I actually have a meeting with her this afternoon. And she introduced me to a manufacturing facility that’s near and getting started with them. But I’m in a weird limbo where I have a lot of puzzle pieces that are like kind of on the on the backburner ready to go. But a lot of the plates are moving at the same time, so we need to sync them in. So she’s given to me that connection so that when I’m ready to make no 10,000 jars, I have that in line. But you don’t want to make $10,000 If you can’t sell them, right? So, but Lucinda has been amazing. She’s almost like a mother to me where she can give it to me straight. Well, I have a Mexican mother. So if you know a Mexican mom, they’re very direct. But Lucinda is very direct with me, but also supportive. And then Margot Slauson, she used to be the Women’s Business Director at launch SA. And that girl is amazing. She’s not working with them anymore. But I think that she started her own business venture actually. But that that woman taught me so much about, I remember the first time that we did the spreadsheet, because I’m not the I can read a spreadsheet, I’m not the best about like, you know, putting them together a gotten better. But she helped me put together this whole spreadsheet of it was like a big math equation of basically, whatever my batches, how much that batch makes, how much are using that batch, and then breaking it down to the cost of each individual product to the penny. And when you’re first selling, you kind of just thought a price on it. A lot of people do this, I hate it when I see jewelry makers, that they put a price on it. And I’m like you made this. And they’re like, Yeah, it’s like, how long did it take you to make it? And then they’re like, well, about an hour? And I’m like, so you’re selling it for 20. But you did it for an hour, how much did it cost your goods cost like about $5. Like, you’re only going to make, like $5 off of this, like if you don’t charge your time. And so like Yeah, but I really liked doing it. I’m like, see, like how many shows and paying a fee. And then just making a little bit of money back, it’s like I want you to not only enjoy what you do, but profit from it. And so I tried to, you know, give my unsolicited advice to people just because I see the value in their work. And I want them to see the value in their time too. And before I didn’t have any any money at all, all I had was time. So I would, you know, cherish it out by as I almost equal to money. So when I see other people and just not valuing their handcrafted work, especially because I can make a batch of something where I get, you know, 20 jars in a batch or something. But they only make one necklace at a time, or whatever it is. And so unless they have like some kind of assembly line, because I have another friend that does woodworking she’s like, okay, no, I’m making assembly lines. So I’m like, okay, as long as you’re doing it in a way that your time is valuable. But a lot of artisans. That’s the detail, they don’t realize the time that it takes to make something. And then just because they made it doesn’t mean it’s automatically sold, they have to now go somewhere to sell it. So that’s the marketing piece. But that was a that’s extremely important in any business. at all, even if you’re selling something that you don’t make, what is the cost of it? What are you reselling, for? How many do you need to sell to make this worth your while, but Margo was the person that did all of that even my monthly expenses, when you go down to you go through your bank account, and everything in your bank account is like put in a category. That kind of organization. I’m not like a messy person. I’m just not the most organized person.

Desiree 44:34
Well, it sounds like more but the business aspect is yes.

Lika 45:37
Because well those things are I hate to say it, they aren’t the most fun things to do. But when at the end of the day, you’re not gonna have fun and you’re gonna get burnt out if you’re not valuing your time. It’s not gonna be fun anymore when you’re broke like, and it’s amazing how much money comes in and out so quickly. Like that is something I still cannot get over. I’m like how many how much money came in, and then it’s like, and then this bill got paid and this guy got paid. And then

Lika
by time, you know, it sounds like yeah, I can hear that business consultant come out and really wanting to pay that forward when you talked about these mentors. And as far as I heard you talk about your Mexican background or valet a few times. So I want to be mindful of your time, we only have about nine minutes left. So what would you say is your biggest takeaway, getting from your background as coming from the valley, soft Texan?

Desiree
What was your mindset to build up this business? what is my mindset from being in the valley? Yeah, the mindset and to build up this business, you know, what would you take from your background that really influences your business now?

Lika
Well, I come from a multicultural home and a sense that, you know, my father is Anglo, and my mom’s Hispanic. But I grew up more with my Hispanic family, and I feel that something with that culture is like community. Well, I feel like my dad’s really big in a community too. But I would say like, there’s a lot passion there. I don’t know if that’s just because I’m a Scorpio too. I’m like, I was telling my mom, she’s always telling me so stubborn. But I was like, this is the first time that my stubbornness actually worked out in my favor, because I refused to quit. So I feel like that is something that took from that culture too. But also it is kind of cultural for you know, I would say Hispanic people to have plants that they use, like for what they call that as a hostess. That’s not the right word. They make Tanika like, Well, that too, but like a compress with herbs and natural things and teas and things like that. So I feel like that’s something that my grandmother would do to was just like a natural kind of healing to it whether they just didn’t you know, Asana, Asana. I kind of feel like having that open mind to different cultures. Growing up, I It’s kind of funny, because I didn’t really separate it too much. I just kind of thought like, this is how life is. Yeah, but then it I guess when I got out of the valley, it was when I guess I didn’t realize how wide I looked. Until I left the valley. Because I feel like I have to tell people I’ve Hispanic here. It usually just comes up. But yeah, so I just community and passion, I would say would be the answer that one. Yeah.

Desiree
And the last question I want to ask you is your resiliency this mindset you had to be from overcoming this injury. And you were in the weeds? What? What mindset did you have to be or create to overcome that and build your own business?

Lika
That’s an interesting question. Because when COVID happened, I was soaring high. And then I had to really dig deep in again, when COVID hit to have that resiliency again. And it’s not something that I was just like, born with. And it’s not something that just because you had it once it you’re always gonna have it. You have I’ve had to find my way up. I started my business on $150 Check that I got from my aunt and my sisters, Gerber Baby jars. I was extremely broke. I made like 110 or $120 My first farmers market and that thrilled me and that’s because I used to cocktail on Sixth Street and come home with hundreds of dollars a night. And I didn’t have to make the drinks, you know, like I have to do now. So something that I would say to somebody is that it ultimately comes down to your happiness. You know, just because you might need to fight for something. If it doesn’t make you happy. I don’t think anybody should do something that doesn’t make them happy. I’m a big I’ve been watching that show. We’re like lady says, like anything that doesn’t bring you joy you should get rid of. And it’s funny how I will tie objects to feelings. And you have to sometimes let it go. Being resilient isn’t something that do I say this? Sometimes it’s not a choice. And sometimes you just have to do what you have to do. But ultimately, if you’re not happy, then I don’t think anybody should do something that doesn’t make them happy. Because even with COVID, I’ve actually had a little bit more struggles this year than last year with them. So like, if it’s not one thing, another word right now is like supply issues. And that amazing preservative that we use, right, it took me forever to find it, we’ve been using it for seven years, is in the vaccines. So I haven’t been able to find a jar of it myself this year. So right now we’re only making like our best sellers. I found something else that’s very similar. But of course, we have to kind of go through a testing phase for that, too. So you just do what you can. And if you’re not happy, like because I’ve explored that too, like, do I want to do this anymore, because and then hiring. And it’s been really tough. So I feel like I’m working more because I don’t want to say nobody wants to work. But I have never had so many no call no shows to interviews before. And that’s because I have a pretty extensive application. So there’s been a lot of challenges, but you ultimately say at the end of the day, this is what I want to do. Do I still find joy in it, I do still find joy in it. But there are some challenges that come. So I feel like being really honest with yourself is important. Because there’s no point in being resilient if you’re like dragging yourself through the fire, you know.

Desiree
So I’m here in creating those boundaries. Yeah. So I had

Lika
this an employee, she just left me a couple months ago, her and her husband moved to Georgia. But you know, I love this employee, she, her name is Victoria, she let me know, a year ahead of time, like, this is what I’m leaving. So I have plenty of preparation. But she was like my right hand, arm and leg. But she got her master’s in social work. And she was the one that created boundaries, because I was the girl that would answer messages, like, outside the time that were open. And she’s like, Lika, you stop that? And I was like, but then I forget tomorrow. She’s like, No, you’re off the clock right now. And she really helped me I’m not work 24/7 And I don’t have to work 24/7 A lot of people that are business owners think that they do. But I am a big advocate of like, No, I’m taking today off Oh, but I need this and like, I’m sorry. Like, today is my day off. I worked six other days this week. But so that word resiliency, to me, I’ve always replaced it with like desire slash want to be resilient, it depends on how bad you want something. And I’ve learned that it’s okay. Also if you don’t want something, but that just means you need to be really true with yourself and explore other things because
but that is so important. Because if you don’t want to do something like even if it’s just a getting out of bed, like it’s really hard for some people to get out of bed every day, and that maybe that’s their resiliency. So I kind of feel that that resiliency word to me has changed over the years before resilient. Maybe I wasn’t resilient, I felt like I was just desperate. And you know what I had to do what I had to do. But it’s funny when I hear people call it resiliency. Because I just thought like, well, that’s what I had to do. That’s how I was raised. Like you gotta take care of your stuff. And now I feel that way too. But they’re also in mental health has really been a big thing with everything with COVID in self care. So I kind of feel like those, all those things go hand in hand. There’s no point of being resilient. If you’re dragging, you know, you’re dragging yourself through through the house with fire and all that stuff. But at the same time, if you know that the reward at the end of like you did it is also very important to sort of keep that in mind. But also just be really honest with yourself. I know that’s a really long winded answer.

Desiree
No, no, no, it makes sense. It sounds like there’s quite a lot of balance and seeing the what is keeping you joy now or is it keeping it’s going to pay off in the end, if it is having these checkpoints I’m carrying and these boundaries are very important and it sounds like you you’ve made that balance of having those these checkpoints for yourself. And I appreciate your time and I see it as resiliency because not everybody can pick up and get up where they were at and It seems like the the circumstances has changed for yourself. But you still have that resiliency to push forward for what you really believe what you really desire, as you mentioned,

Lika
well, one thing I would say to anybody, my friends I know are 70 is gonna laugh when I hear this. I love Dr. Phil. And my friends, everyone teases me about it. So if you tease me, it would be like the millionth time I’ve been to use. But he does give some really good advice, especially especially for people, like I’ve been in some toxic relationships, and how you treat yourself and things like that. But one thing he says is that you can’t fall from the floor. So if you’re already at that low point, all you like, really all I have to do is get up. And it’s okay, if you take a really long time to get up, but just you’re already out the floors. So that’s how I felt when my back injury happened. I wasn’t even 30. And it was just like, I felt like my life. It just everything had changed. But I looked at myself while I was at the on the floor. And I was just like, well, now what are you going to do? And, you know, like, it’s kind of just the whole being honest with yourself, like, what are you going to do you? What are your other options, and I still say that to myself, like I don’t have to do anything. And I’m a believer in in that for anybody. Nobody has to do if they’re complaining about the job that they don’t have to be there, I feel like something is stopping them from having the competence to leave. So you have to know when you’re where you should stay and where you shouldn’t. Whether it be a personal, you know, relationship, or a business environment, or you know, school maybe it’s not just for you, but I feel like, like just being that real honest with yourself. But if if things are bad, how much worse could they get one and then two, if they couldn’t get much worse than All right, well, then it’s gonna get look great. If anything after this is gonna be great. Right? So yeah, it’s all gravy after that. Yeah, it’s just perception. So you know, we have one life and I’m sure that everybody through COVID has really realized that life is short. And you never know when yours is going to be, you know, your chapter. Your book is going to close. So you only have one as my dad says you only have one life limit.

Desiree
Thank you. Thank you like it’s been a pleasure talking to you. And not only learning about your business, but what it takes and what it took to build it and still continue to build it and rebrand it and hearing about your money influences and in your life.

Lika
Thank you. Appreciate you.

Desiree
All right, have a great rest of the day