Intro: [00:00:08] Coming to you live from the Business RadioX studio in Woodstock, Georgia. This is fearless formula with Sharon Cline.

Sharon Cline: [00:00:19] And it’s a surprise Tuesday for your list formula here on business Radio WEX, I am your host, Sharon Klein. And in our studio today, we have a boutique owner and their mission is free to be you. Their brand is designed to capture the mindset that every girl has the right to feel and be herself. They believe in wellness, and their products are designed to empower girls to create their own self awareness, their identity and their self care. Please welcome to the studio, Kaye Barnwell of Billiboo Boutique, which is the cutest name in the history of the planet.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:00:56] Hi everyone.

Sharon Cline: [00:00:58] Thank you. Thank you for coming on the show. I’m excited to talk to you for a couple of reasons. One is that this is a fairly new business that you started, and I feel like people who kind of maybe thought they were going to do one thing before the pandemic and wound up doing something else. There are a lot of people out there that have that experience, and I feel like you’re in that group. And so I’m like excited to see how it all happened. You know, people’s lives take turns and you don’t expect it when it happens. It’s like, okay, tell me about your journey.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:01:26] Totally unexpected. And I had no clue. I would start this journey this quickly as quick as I did. I believe it was January one, 2020, when I officially signed on to get the business name Billy Boo trademark.

Sharon Cline: [00:01:42] By the way. It’s like a dream, right?

Speaker3: [00:01:44] It is like a dream. Think about it.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:01:46] It is absolutely like a dream. It was actually something I wasn’t even thinking of thinking of. At the end of the day, I was looking for the right domain name for another wellness business and discovered that Billy Boo was not a registered domain name. And I said, Oh, I have to have it. Whatever I do, you have.

Sharon Cline: [00:02:04] To have it. It’s a great name. It’s catchy.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:02:06] It is named after my daughter Billy. And I’m happy to say that we not only got the domain name, but we officially are trademark or registered trademark brand name. Wow.

Sharon Cline: [00:02:18] I get that.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:02:18] That happened this year.

Sharon Cline: [00:02:20] Wow. Congrats. There’s nothing quite like knowing it’s official.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:02:23] It’s official.

Speaker3: [00:02:25] That’s correct.

Sharon Cline: [00:02:26] So back in January 2020. Yes. Two months before the big change in life, this was just a dream, just an idea of yours. You had kind of like impetus for it. You’re like, at some point I’d really like to build this out. And then the pandemic hits. And so was this sort of like, All right, now I’m really going to put all my time into this or as much as I can into building this.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:02:46] And actually, I should say January 2021, I’m at a loss here, oh, January 2021. So the pandemic had actually already started.

Speaker3: [00:02:53] Oh, okay. Got you.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:02:55] I wasn’t thinking about the name at all, but discovered again that the name The Domain was available, I believe, in May 20, 21, 2020, when I discovered that the domain.

Speaker3: [00:03:05] Name label.

Sharon Cline: [00:03:06] Got you. You still had the idea, kind of like in its baby form, in some form.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:03:11] All in the mind. But it doesn’t really matter until you have it out.

Sharon Cline: [00:03:14] And that’s the story of my life. Everything’s just in my head hanging out. But like you took you took steps.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:03:21] Yes.

Sharon Cline: [00:03:22] What was the next step?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:03:23] Well, I mean, I was working with a life coach, and fortunately for me, you know, I had a lot to talk about. And and that just happened to be one of the things I said, you know, I got this domain name. I’m not sure what I’m going to do with it yet, but we just started working toward the steps. I eventually built a business plan, and when I have that business plan in place is when I started to look for an attorney to trademark the name, because I want it to start with the end of mind. And for me, that was owning the brand name.

Sharon Cline: [00:03:50] It’s really smart. How many people don’t do that? Don’t think about that, that how important that legal part is. You know, very important.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:03:56] It’s very important. And, you know, I even had major name brands like saying, hold on, wait.

Speaker3: [00:04:03] Just a really pause.

Sharon Cline: [00:04:05] Oh, no.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:04:06] Yeah. Yeah. So that was an interesting journey. It took about 18 months to get the registered trademark, but it’s official. We do have two marks under Billy Boo and we are just we couldn’t be happier.

Sharon Cline: [00:04:17] So what were the steps that you took? Did you like what I did for my business? Did you just Google? How do I make a trademark legal or how do I make an actual official trademark?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:04:27] Well, I asked for advice. I love referrals. I’m all about referrals for everything. So when I have an idea and I don’t know something, especially women in business, I am like, go to the women who know, or maybe the woman that I think knows may know.

Sharon Cline: [00:04:43] But it’s so nice because you help each other.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:04:46] Absolutely. And I’m so thankful because, you know, I ran into a number of legal you know, I would say there are a few attorneys that I reached out to. And the one that stood out for me is the one who worked the best to make it happen. And I was just very thankful for that process. It wasn’t easy. There was some moments where I’m like, I. I was like, I can’t pay for this anymore.

Speaker3: [00:05:08] My gosh. Right.

Sharon Cline: [00:05:09] And every.

Speaker3: [00:05:10] Year. Yeah, That’s a business owner. Oh, yeah.

Sharon Cline: [00:05:15] So when you were talking about Billy Bu and you were making your logo, did you already have an idea of what you wanted your your product to be?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:05:23] Yes, I did. I had an assumption. Really? I really thought I was going to start with manufacturing goods under the name brand. In fact, I went to a manufacturing school in North Carolina and took a class because I said, well, hey, that’s the next.

Speaker3: [00:05:39] Step, right? Even during the.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:05:41] Pandemic, you can still go to a class, right?

Speaker3: [00:05:44] That is awesome.

Sharon Cline: [00:05:45] I never thought to do anything like that, but I love that you decide and you actually do it, you know, like even another state. Let’s just.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:05:52] Go. Let’s just go. It didn’t take too long to get there. I think the class was just a couple of days. I met some great people and the one thing that I discovered is that manufacturing in the U.S. is just really expensive. And so my next question was determine how much do people care about items that are produced in the U.S.? Gotcha. And, you know, I think from a business standpoint today, I would say that people do care, but they also want to meet the people who make it. So that has been the upside in the downside of the business. In a way, we primarily buy from women owned brands because we are a girls empowerment boutique and we believe that, hey, these girls are going to turn into women someday. So we want to support them in every way that we can. So that’s been an interesting journey for us. We haven’t manufactured any goods to date, but we primarily own buy from women own brands.

Sharon Cline: [00:06:46] So how challenging was that to stick to those parameters that you put for yourself?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:06:51] Very challenging.

Sharon Cline: [00:06:53] Because when I hear about clothing being manufactured in different countries and I know that it’s very controversial and there are even children doing things, you know, I’m not very versed on it, so I don’t want to speak like I know exactly, but I’ve heard that it’s difficult to continue to make Made in America have a different value. You know, it’s a financial value, but also a value for people to know this is not made on slave labor or something that I would feel bad about in my heart.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:07:21] Absolutely. It’s very tough because when you look at all the major brands they have, you know, products that come from all over the world and we still buy those products. So a lot of times it doesn’t really matter to the consumer. But when you are a shop, local business, when you are a brand that is consumer facing and you expect local dollars to hit your store, you have a real responsibility to see to it that most of the material is really funnels under that brand value that you bring. And so I try to do that.

Sharon Cline: [00:07:55] Really do what are some of the products that you have in your boutique? You have an online boutique, but you also have a physical boutique, which we’ll have to talk about too.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:08:02] Yes, physical boutique. We have an online e-commerce space and a lot of the products we do have a lot of apparel, I will say that. But primarily we sell a lot of girls accessories and gifts, unique items that you haven’t seen before. You may have seen, but they’re very obscure. So when you see them, you’re like.

Speaker3: [00:08:21] Oh, I got to have it.

Sharon Cline: [00:08:24] That’s what you want, right?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:08:25] That’s what you want. I mean, that’s what I really expect from the person that’s thinking of the young girl that they’re buying for, that they found something really unique, such as a treasure that this girl would hold close to our heart. I mean, I’m wearing one of our little fidget rings today, and it’s like it’s just very it’s very small. You wouldn’t even know it’s there, but I know it’s there. And when I’m ready to play with it or I have a little anxiety or I’m nervous about this interview.

Speaker3: [00:08:50] Then I can just.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:08:51] Play with this unique ring that you can find at the Billy Boo’s shop, right?

Sharon Cline: [00:08:54] I have one as well. I’m playing.

Speaker3: [00:08:56] With. See? Yeah.

Sharon Cline: [00:08:57] It’s not as mine is way chunky. Yours is really. I have one around my neck and I have one on my finger. But you know what? How nice for children when they’re in school, right? If they’re having an anxious moment, which was me in school, you know how nice to not have something that just glares. I need something to relieve anxiety that’s really cute to look at.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:09:13] And we have so we have a ton of fidgets in the store. And I will tell you, as a business owner, as a mom, I was very skeptical of fidgets. That is my aha moment in this business.

Speaker3: [00:09:24] This is your hobby.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:09:25] This is my one of my aha moments. There have been many. But because Billy is so young, she’s not even four yet. I am like, we’re not having these fidgets all around the house. I’m like every other parent. Like, No, no, no. You can’t have all those fidgets.

Sharon Cline: [00:09:38] Learn to learn to manage your emotions. I don’t know. That’s what I think. It’s like. Why can’t I just sit and be quiet? It’s like there’s something about the fidgeting, you know?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:09:47] Well, I mean, technology, right? You’re picking up. You pick up your phone every moment. You’re always on technology. Technology is always on. It’s always surrounding you. So this is I feel like these fidget things bring you back to the humanity of it. All right? It brings you back to yourself. And so I didn’t discover that until I bought my first fidget from a woman owned brand. It was a gold chain purse. And I said, if I’m going to have fidgets in the store, they must be highly functional. That is that is a qualifier. It has to be highly functional. And we have had everything from purses to shoes to hats that have fidgets on it rings. Earrings, you name it. We’ve had those types of fidgets in the store. I only buy toy fidgets when it’s around the holiday season. Then I say, okay, we can cut loose a little bit. Let’s bring something in the shop that is, you know, still toy like, but it has a maximum impact. So we have some of those in the store right now, but everything from watches to light up fidgets that you can put on your wall and create a design. You name it, it’s there.

Sharon Cline: [00:10:47] Yeah, that’s amazing. I didn’t know there were so many. Of course there are. That’s that’s awesome. Well, but it’s interesting that you’re kind of hoping that it encourages people to kind of get away from what is so prevalent right now, which is social media and technology, and just kind of center themselves with what they have right in front of them on them. You know, a ring.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:11:06] Absolutely. And actually, it speaks directly to our tagline, which is free to be you. And I always tell moms, if I’m in the shop, I’m like, if they see the sign and they’re like, Huh? And I’m like, Yes, that statement is absolutely wholly rooted in wellness because we want young girls to see that and believe I’m free to be myself. Yes. And our expectation is that girls feel that way like it’s long before they get to Billy Boo. But when you see it, you hopefully will discover that there are some things in there in our shop that speak to you. But just seeing it may change your perspective just a little bit. So that statement, free to be you, is rooted in wellness. That tagline is not going away, but it is the reason why we have these anxiety releasing fidgets in our store.

Sharon Cline: [00:11:52] I love it because you’re giving people permission almost. It’s like you’re normalizing, I guess just everyone. You have to fit into a certain mold in order to find something in your shop that’s going to feel like it belongs to them.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:12:08] Absolutely. And it could be the most you know, the interesting thing, it could be a piece of clothing or it can be we’ve had lots of diaries or unique personalized booklets that you can write. You know, write your life in journals, right? Yeah. So we believe in that as well. Write the story, look at these beautiful items. And, you know, I have to tell this story sharing because I really think sometimes I’m like, Oh, did this get lost in translation? But I don’t really think people know and maybe they shouldn’t know because it’s a personal story to me. One of the reasons why I thought I could do this brand is because I still remember one of the prettiest days I ever had as a little girl. That was I still think about this to this day. I believe I was either eight, no more than ten, and my dad had done my hair. So I have this big pouf on top.

Speaker3: [00:12:59] Of my head.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:13:01] On top of my head. And I just remember, I don’t even know what reason because I don’t remember watching Betty Boop. I’m pretty sure I didn’t watch her growing up.

Speaker3: [00:13:09] But I just love the way she looked.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:13:10] She just always made me so happy. And I remember I was wearing a dress that my dad bought me. It was a Betty Boop dress, and it was just. I just felt the most beautiful that day. And I still remember we were at the lake. And I can remember my hair is a little frayed, probably a lot frayed. And then seeing that my dad did it and I’m wearing the dress that he bought me. And it’s those types of moments that I hope girls have when they receive a Billy Boo product when they they have picked something out just for themselves. I’ve seen girls say, Oh, no, that one’s for me. That’s the one I want. I’m like.

Sharon Cline: [00:13:43] Yes, yes it is.

Speaker3: [00:13:44] That’s for you. That one I love Vivid.

Sharon Cline: [00:13:47] That moment wasn’t Who Knew back. And you know what? When you were ten or whatever that it would impact you even to this moment and how that can impact people. That’s really inspiring to me.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:13:56] It’s amazing because I just think about how much love for myself I felt in that moment, how much pride I felt for having a parent who cared enough to put a bow on my head.

Speaker3: [00:14:08] Regardless of what it looked like.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:14:11] And just, you know, just knowing that I was wearing the one thing that I wanted to wear that day. And that’s what I really try to channel, that I try to channel that energy through to Billy, my daughter now, because I want her to feel like she hoped for, for the day. However she hoped to look, look like that, whatever that thing is that you’re attracted to today, I want you to feel free to be you in that moment, to pick up the things that speak to you, to right, the things that speak to you, to feel your way through this experience. Call it life. Because, I mean, we we only get one us, right?

Speaker3: [00:14:43] I love that you.

Sharon Cline: [00:14:44] Like feeling because what you’re basically saying is whatever you when you go into your store, you’ll feel something. Yeah. That feels like you, you know, whatever that looks like. And it’s wonderful because I think it’s easy for me even today to not feel, you know, like I want to numb myself from when I’m uncomfortable or unhappy or have unhappy memories or any of it, you know? But what you’re encouraging is from the beginning of a kid’s life, child’s life is to feel.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:15:11] So it’s I think one of the reasons why I think we can speak to these groups of young girls is because we’ve all been that young girl who kind of feels a little maybe isolated or. Abnormal or I don’t know. I mean, our brand goes from 4 to 16. Those are the ages that we primarily serve, but we speak to anyone. The products stops. If it stops you in your track, go pick it up. I mean, that’s fine. If you don’t buy it, that’s fine too. But I want you to remember who you are in that moment. Right. And just speaking to your point just now, like, hey, you know, I even sometimes I feel like that that is probably one of those lessons in fearlessness that I’ve had to really sit with lately, which is being vulnerable, vulnerable enough to introduce this brand that I don’t like. I’m like, Why would you care?

Speaker3: [00:16:01] You know, we’re just one of many.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:16:03] Yeah, we’re one of many. We’ve only gotten started. Our physical store didn’t just open a year ago. The website is is what it is. It’s actually one year old today.

Sharon Cline: [00:16:14] 10th anniversary.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:16:15] Thank you. You know, and I’m a one woman show. And so when I have to go and be vulnerable with potential customers and say, hey, you know, check out our page or oh, you like that, come on by. You know, I didn’t realize how vulnerable I really felt or how, you know, shy I really am in those moments because I’m like, oh, how did how did I just do that? Or can I repeat that over and over again? And I’m just getting to that stage where I feel like, okay, maybe I can start to say it more. Billie actually says Billie Boo more than she does.

Speaker3: [00:16:49] Yes, she does. He’s like.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:16:50] Oh, you can get it from the Billy Boost.

Speaker3: [00:16:51] Shop like girl, Thank you. Because, yeah, because you’re three.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:16:55] And you can say that and you know, mom, I’m like, Yeah, you can stop by the Billy Boo shop if you like. Or, you know, here’s a card or, you know, So I’m finding that I am, you know, a lot higher than I thought I would be in this space, you know? And I’m like, opening this big idea up to so many women and saying, Do you agree? You don’t agree? Okay, well, what could I do better? You know, I’m not really asking all of those questions, but that’s the insecurity that you kind of feel as a new business owner, like, am I getting this right? And it is not until a sale happens that you’re like, Oh, wow, they finally bought that one item that’s been stocked forever and oh my goodness, I didn’t think anybody cared or I didn’t think that ever would sell or my goodness, how did they find me online? That’s awesome.

Sharon Cline: [00:17:40] It’s like your instincts being right. There’s like, that’s a wonderful feeling. Like, it’s the same for me. If I ever get booked for voiceovers, I’m always like, Oh my God, it’s working. It’s working. You know? Like, I just I’m so happy. Yes, because it’s so validating. My whole my head is my worst enemy and I live in it all day. So it’s like, have I made the right choice? You know, I am the queen of questioning whether or not I’m making smart decisions. And so it’s very actually normalizing for me to hear that even someone in a different kind of business has the same thoughts, because I’m by myself a lot. But this is something else I wanted to highlight with you is that you have a really strong network of other women business owners. And I, I have yet to really join any other business kind of group other than like a young Professionals of Woodstock, which is one of my favorite groups to go to. But we just chit chat and have coffee. And anyhow, I just I really think that there’s a resource out there that I know I haven’t tapped into. So would you be willing to talk a little bit about your some of the support that you have?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:18:40] Yeah, I mean, like I said, I started this journey with my life coach who I’ve known for years.

Sharon Cline: [00:18:45] Now that you have a life coach.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:18:46] Yes. She’s a really good friend. She focuses on wellness, 360 degrees of wellness. And so I love that mission. But I had to build the confidence to get there, to even walk into that room and say, Yes, I’m a business owner and my confidence is kind of skyrocketed in those places. Now I feel like I have to take it to the individual person that I don’t know who’s walking on the street or who’s just stopping by. And that is the space that I’m.

Speaker3: [00:19:11] Trying to go. I haven’t done that either.

Sharon Cline: [00:19:14] Well, a little bit, but it is very daunting. It’s like, Oh my goodness, do I even know? How do you you don’t know what their energy is going to be like. You don’t know what the reception is going to be like. So how strong do I feel in myself to ask that? Like, do you feel the same?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:19:26] Yeah, well, you know what? Okay, so I will share with you that this is a journey that’s continuing. So the Free to Be you tagline. I keep mentioning this because I’m actually on another journey to make that statement more bold than ever before, and I don’t even know that I’ll get there. But I’m hopeful and I’m putting one foot in front of the other so that I can do the work. And when I introduce it to our brand of our brand value, when I introduce it to customers, they will believe, but it will be a curriculum that is centered around free to be you. So it’s releasing you to just be yourself and discovering how to fall into yourself when you feel insecure or vulnerable or just not quite it today. I mean, I thought about this interview today and I’m like, Am I well enough.

Speaker3: [00:20:16] To do this? I was like, I’m not canceling yet doing that. Thank you. No, not canceling.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:20:23] I will be there.

Sharon Cline: [00:20:25] But you know what? I’m hoping that you’ll find that it’s just a conversation and we’re just kind of sharing it.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:20:30] It’s just a conversation. It really is. And I’m enjoying.

Speaker3: [00:20:33] It. Oh, yeah. Hey. Yeah, that’s a.

Sharon Cline: [00:20:35] Great one for me. Yeah.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:20:36] Thank you. Thank you. I’m serious. Thank you for the invitation. I’ve done just a couple of interviews, and, you know, I mentioned briefly the fraud factor before.

Sharon Cline: [00:20:46] We need to talk about that. But wait, if you’re just joining us, I’m speaking to Kay Barnwell of Billy Boo Boutique. And so we had just mentioned before we got on the air that it was. The fraud factor. And I feel like it sounds to me something like imposter syndrome, because I have that I live in imposter syndrome land. Okay, go ahead. I’m there.

Speaker3: [00:21:09] Okay. It is.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:21:11] It is very true. I said to myself, Oh, my goodness, Do they know how close I am to not doing this anymore? You know? Or do they know the conversation that I just had with my husband about? I’m not sure if that’s going to make that part of the business is going to make it or how do I keep going? Or we have these shows coming up and I’m really hopeful for that. I just don’t know if it’s working kind of deal. So it always makes me feel like, okay, I can’t quite do that interview or I can’t quite go into these spaces yet because I haven’t proven myself. And so the bottom line is, you know, as my husband said, he said, oh, you know, you’re putting that brand out. There it is. Your brand is forward facing. It is already out there. You you just keep doing it. And I have literally heard that in my head over and over again. Keep going, keep going, keep going. So a lot of days I am pushing past this notion that I’m a fraud.

Speaker3: [00:22:03] In some way.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:22:05] And it’s not the question of what qualifies me. It’s the question of why wouldn’t I qualify myself to be in this position? And so I want to answer the question that you mentioned a few moments ago about the strong women that are surrounding me right now. You know, I’m very fortunate to belong to the Roswell Woman’s Club. It has been the reason why I feel like I can speak my own mind and be in a room with other business owners, other women business owners, and feel very strongly about my brand, but feel that it also resonates with people. And even if it doesn’t, maybe they’re curious. And you know, I have very few followers right now, so if you.

Speaker3: [00:22:45] Haven’t.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:22:46] You don’t know who I am. I’m at official Billy Boo on IG.

Speaker3: [00:22:50] I need followers. I will follow you right now.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:22:53] It is crazy because I’m like, oh, these people have hundreds or thousands and I’m like, Oh, I’m itty bitty. And I again, fraud syndrome. But at the end of the day, if I touch one, that’s enough, right? And I think the way that these the network of women business owners or women in general have touched me to feel the confidence of knowing that I belong there, it’s just been astonishing to and it’s been very helpful in motivating me to keep going. One of the people that I actually who was one of my first customers who shouted me out on it, Lauren Owens. Fleming I love you, girl. I’m actually doing an event with her on on Thursday this week at the Painted Tree in Roswell. And I love her because, you know, she said, oh, you know, my daughter, she wore your the sweater that, you know, I just bought her from your shop. And I’m thinking.

Speaker3: [00:23:43] Wow, that’s great. Yes. Somebody actually loves the product.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:23:47] That’s great. And she didn’t know what that that message meant to me at the time. But again, it’s like every day if I’m telling myself, keep going, keep going. And then you have somebody that comes along and they just water that that seed that’s been planted or they give you a high five or they say good word and maybe they don’t buy a single thing, but it just means so much. And that’s what this journey has meant to me, is that knowing that I really do belong, even when the numbers are few on social media, when people haven’t bought a single thing in the shop that day, when I haven’t received an an online order in months, I still belong here. And so if I just keep going, right, if we just keep going, I believe that this journey will satisfy us more than we know.

Sharon Cline: [00:24:31] Wow. I love it because I think for myself, how much is enough? Like, I don’t. I don’t. I don’t know that I can ever be hired enough, you know, to do voiceover work. I don’t know that I could ever be, like, valued enough. Do you know what I mean? Like someone thinking, Oh, you’re great. I don’t know if I can ever hear enough. Oh, my God, that was so perfect, you know? Right. I feel like I’m an endless well of need.

Speaker3: [00:24:56] And so that’s kind of funny, I guess.

Sharon Cline: [00:25:03] But, like, what I think about it, I don’t know that there ever is enough. So what do I define myself as? A successful person, You know, because it’s never enough. I’m never happy enough. I never make enough money on and on and on. So I think for myself, I love that you talk about how it’s really not about how many sales did I make this month or because for me, how many times did I get booked for this or that. It’s more today. How did I do today? You know, Did I do what I promised myself I would do? Or even just having tried it doesn’t have to be end all, be all success. But just almost the competitions with myself.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:25:38] Yes. How did I handle myself today? Honestly, if I can answer that question a truthfully and know that there may be some weak spots that I hadn’t quite noticed. Right. That is the question I love to answer on a day to day basis. How did I handle myself today? Because to your point, we are always searching for something more. And when that more happens, it’s like, has that satisfied us? And the likelihood is no, we’re still searching. Yeah. And so the ability to even go into to oneself and say, okay, but all of these wonderful qualities that I have, all of these things are working. It’s working toward the good of what I’m trying to do and who I’m trying to be. And honestly, Sharon, I just love that you’re in this space because you belong here. First of all, you do you really do you have the voice for it? You have the attitude. You are always glowing and shining. And I get to say that because I know you.

Speaker3: [00:26:35] Quite frankly, I.

Sharon Cline: [00:26:36] Love that you came in today.

Speaker3: [00:26:37] By the way. Yeah, I just came to pump you up. Honey, I’ll be that 20, I promise. You Go.

Sharon Cline: [00:26:45] That’s so nice. Well, it’s fun. And I think what I really love is that everybody wins. It’s like you get to talk about your journey, but anybody else listening hopefully will understand something they didn’t before and take some wisdom from it. I mean, I do. I think that’s part of the impetus of this show is because I let fear decide a lot of things for me. And so listening to someone who moves past the initial impulse of how am I going to know if this is going to how am I going to know that this person’s not going to be like, No, I don’t want to be on your radio show, Some stranger, You know, I’m like, Hey, how do they know to trust me and how might I deal with rejection? It’s just nice when you find someone who can identify with those feelings and have. Here are my tips and tricks. Here’s what I do today. I’ll take it because I need help.

Speaker3: [00:27:27] I need help.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:27:28] That’s right. Listen, let me tell you. But you know what? You remember that meditation stuff that we are doing?

Sharon Cline: [00:27:32] Yes. That’s been helpful, too.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:27:35] That’s been very helpful. It’s been very helpful. And that’s definitely something that we’ll be introducing in the business.

Sharon Cline: [00:27:40] Well, that’s wonderful, because small business owners, I don’t think that’s something that’s ever really been talked about, at least on the show, about how important it is to kind of keep yourself in almost like a not Zen, but sort of grounded.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:27:52] Yeah, State of awareness. I’m aware that I have some weaknesses. I’m aware that I’m vulnerable. I’m aware that today maybe didn’t go as planned. I’m aware of all of these things. Can I be present in those moments when it’s not working? When it’s working well, when I think, aha, I did a really good job. And then when people are like, I can’t. No I’m not, no, I’m not going to pay that much money for that. And when’s the sale come. I won’t even be back. Don’t even worry about it. You know, somebody’s not going to like what you’re doing. And I think you just have to learn to be okay with that. But more importantly, you have to be okay with yourself first. And I think that this journey has definitely taught me more about the need to not undervalue myself in any space, especially this space. This is something that I’ve had the luxury and the ability to create. How dare I undervalue myself in this space, any place else that I would go And you know, a job that pays you, they may get to do that. But how dare you do that to yourself, don’t you even. But you know, that’s how I have to say. I have to sit myself down and tell myself. I mean, even today, you know, how dare you undervalue? I mean, I’m speaking to myself right now.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:29:03] How dare you undervalue yourself in this moment when you have been given the ability and the luxury to create something new, to create something vibrant, maybe it’s not going to speak to everybody. Maybe they couldn’t make it out that day. Maybe they don’t want to pay the shipping and handling. Maybe your prices are too high. Maybe they don’t like what you sell, but you do not have the luxury of undervaluing undervaluing yourself in this moment and this space in time when it’s you that has to keep going. You give yourself the credit of knowing that you have value and you walk in that. And if it doesn’t work today, cool. It may work tomorrow, but the point is to keep going. So I guess that’s the same you know, maybe that’s what’s been in my head that I keep hearing. Keep going, keep going. But in that, the lesson is, don’t you dare undervalue yourself. Now, it is too important that you keep going in this moment and you express the value as it has been given to you. And you walk in that. So you walk in confidence knowing that I’ve been able to create something new and it just may work out. It may work out maybe and I’m speaking to you now, maybe you’re going to do a trailer for a major movie.

Speaker3: [00:30:12] You know, maybe.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:30:14] Maybe you’re going to start speaking. And as I don’t know, maybe I don’t know. You know, we never know what the journey is going to look like. But the importance of showing up and saying, I will give as much value as I have designated in this day to myself, to my brand, to the thing that I’m creating that is more important than anything else. And if we can keep that top of mind, I think we’ll be unstoppable.

Sharon Cline: [00:30:38] That’s so powerful. I just love that you kind of talked about how the things that you’re experiencing kind of can show you some of the weak spots because obviously I, I, I mean, I’m perfect, of course, but I have.

Speaker3: [00:30:50] To.

Sharon Cline: [00:30:52] Know I just mean interesting along the journey that you talk about how different situations can bring up parts of you you didn’t know like you didn’t know that you might feel shy. Yeah. You know where I feel strong in certain areas of my life, but I am very weak in certain areas of my life, you know? So until you experience those things, you may not even know it. And I love that you’re willing to be vulnerable about it, because there’s no the bravado and the look at my amazing brand, it doesn’t resonate. I think, as hard as when you’re like, Yeah, this is hard work, but I believe in it, right? You know, because I think everyone has those feelings. You know, this is hard work.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:31:28] This is hard work. But you know, what’s the opposite of this? Living a life of regret? No. That if no regrets is is the voice that speaks to you. That’s that’s what speaks to me. I’m like, okay, there will be no regrets. So even if this goes on and it doesn’t do what it needs to do, if I have to close up anything, whatever takes place, there will not be any regret. Having done the work to begin with, having completed the journey. If that calls for a refocus or regroup, that’s fine. But I know that I don’t have any regrets in having started a journey that maybe somebody is still in their head.

Speaker3: [00:32:04] Exactly.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:32:04] Things are not in our head anymore.

Speaker3: [00:32:06] It’s out here. It doesn’t it.

Sharon Cline: [00:32:08] Feel cool to create something, though, Like it didn’t exist, what, two years ago and now something does exist? There’s just something so amazing about creating something.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:32:17] Listen, when I hear women in the shop and they’re like, Oh, I have an ima boo, or I call my daughter Natalie Boo, or, you know, and you’re like, What?

Speaker3: [00:32:26] Girl?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:32:26] Okay, so that makes sense. That resonates with people. But I never even thought about the brand in that way. I was just thinking about what we call Billie when she was a baby, you know, Now she’s just Miss Billy.

Speaker3: [00:32:36] But. Oh, miss me, Billy, It’s no Billy Boo there.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:32:40] Maybe we’ll get there, you know, later in life. But, you know, just to hear that it’s an endearing sentiment to to women with their daughters, I was like, man, that even that is powerful because you’re like, man, they thought about their Emma Boo or their Natalie Boo in that day, you know, when they saw the sign or, you know, whatever it may be. But that just capturing the essence of that feeling of endearment, of ownership of self.

Sharon Cline: [00:33:08] And something sweet. It’s so sweet, you know, it’s priceless.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:33:11] It’s priceless. And I didn’t even know what the logo would be, By the way, by the way, when I was thinking of this.

Sharon Cline: [00:33:16] Of the logo. It’s so cute.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:33:17] I had no clue. I had no clue. I didn’t even know how to get there or to who to direct my attention to. But again, just asking people or even looking on YouTube and saying, okay, these are the brands that I follow, you know, what advice would they give? That’s how I discovered these are the spots that I want to be in.

Sharon Cline: [00:33:35] So do you think that you have a moment where you could say this? Like, what was is this a tough question? I don’t always like asking it, but what was what’s something that you could say is one of your biggest mistakes that you’ve learned from? And I don’t know, no way that could help other people.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:33:50] Maybe I listen, I, I have the same low hanging fruit and, you know, I’m like, you just, you know, you see the low hanging fruit. You pick that apple right off the tree and you eat it, you know, And I’m I am quick to make that assessment. And and sometimes it is not low hanging fruit. And the biggest thing that I’ve had to admit to myself in this journey of business is that that shop that’s just down the street from where I live is not low hanging fruit. It’s a lot of hard work. It is a ton of work. It is. And you know, when you’re just starting something, you’re invigorated, You have all this freshness and it’s new and it’s exciting.

Sharon Cline: [00:34:33] It you.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:34:33] Believe it, it’s just and then you get a year out or you get six months out or sales don’t. Come. And then you think that, well, okay, now I got to go pick the low hanging fruit. Oh, there. There are no low hanging fruit. And I’ve had to discover that that low hanging fruit isn’t so low after all.

Sharon Cline: [00:34:51] Interesting. Yeah. Like, you think you kind of understand how something is going to go, or you have an estimation of how it’s going to go. And it’s actually completely different.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:34:59] Completely different.

Sharon Cline: [00:35:00] Tumbling.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:35:00] Isn’t it? It’s very, very humble.

Sharon Cline: [00:35:03] I’m thinking of my own experiences.

Speaker3: [00:35:04] So I’m like, Yeah, I know that.

Sharon Cline: [00:35:06] Feeling.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:35:06] Very humbling because you think, Oh, well, it’s it’s a shop within a shop. It’s it’s under another brand name. It’s all going to work. It’s going to it’s going to be this living thing. All I have to do is just show up, you know.

Sharon Cline: [00:35:17] And they’re going to.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:35:18] Love you and they’re going to. Yes. But you have to do that over and over and over again. So that low hanging fruit, it starts to get out of reach or you realize, oh, a new seed needs to be planted. Oh, we actually have to tear off these branches, or we really do need to do some pruning here and there. And that part is not easy. And even just starting the pruning process is not easy. So I I’m in that process now of like saying, well, these are the things you said you’re going to prune. When are you going to prune it? Because the low hanging fruit, it’s way up there now.

Speaker3: [00:35:49] Right.

Sharon Cline: [00:35:50] So interesting.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:35:51] Yeah. So that that has been one of those moments that’s kind of sit you down. But I also look at it like, okay, but what if I never sat down? What if I always thought that this was going to be just, oh, you just do it. Do it this way. You just yeah, you just keep going. But in the sitting, I’ve had to learn how to adjust my expectations around the definition of success. I’ve really had to tune in. I’ve had to tune in to other business owners. I’ve had to sit back and say, Oh, I have to take that. I need that piece of advice. I need to take that with me or, Oh, look, that part of the business is working or Oh, it’s not so bad after all or that. Keep going. It’s just a phrase because, you know, you have these phrases and you’re.

Speaker3: [00:36:32] Like, Yeah, yeah, yeah. Keep going crazy to say, Yeah, exactly.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:36:37] Exactly. But at the end of the day, people don’t experience your tears. They don’t experience your fears, they don’t experience your not so aha moments that you have with yourself about your weaknesses and insecurities and vulnerabilities and all of those things. But I think that if you can at least understand, okay, well we got here, how do we get there? So it’s a sitting down and it’s sort of this reckoning that you have with yourself. But at the same time, it’s not all bad. It’s it’s good because maybe you wouldn’t have done that otherwise or you would have continued on the same journey just because that’s what’s acceptable. But it’s not wholly who you are. Right. And so this is this is a tough part of the journey.

Sharon Cline: [00:37:18] I’m a spiritual journey.

Speaker3: [00:37:19] Is it is it really?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:37:20] This is the tough part of the journey. And I’ve taken some back seats and I’m like, I’m like, okay, you’re getting further away from the pulpit, honey. Like, you know, or I mean, like, are you in the crowd anymore? What’s going on with you? That’s the piece of it that is really you say, okay, where’s the connection or where’s the disconnection with who I know myself to be or who I created this for or why I even am in this. My story has sort of shifted and it’s changed, you know, throughout this process. You know, I would always tell people, because I work full time, because I have children, because I have a home to keep, I have all these things and some of my wonderful partners that I happen to share the space with, maybe their life isn’t as full, but I always say, you know, I believe God gave me this vision and I didn’t want to sleep on it. I wanted to create this thing, but there is a lot of work in doing so. Having said yes doesn’t eliminate you from the work. It doesn’t eliminate you from the fears or the vulnerability vulnerabilities. If anything, it highlights those things and it’s, you know, now I have to speak to those things and say, well, how are you going to talk about this today? Are you really going to revert back to what’s normal in your mind of what one?

Sharon Cline: [00:38:31] Yes and.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:38:32] Yes. And that is there’s a real fear in moving forward. But what’s the alternative? Regrets? I can’t deal with that.

Sharon Cline: [00:38:41] I have plenty, plenty.

Speaker3: [00:38:42] Plenty of those. No, no, no. We’re wiping those regrets. Those are two in the morning thoughts?

Sharon Cline: [00:38:47] I’m always awake at two in the morning.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:38:49] Two in the morning thought.

Speaker3: [00:38:50] Oh, my goodness.

Sharon Cline: [00:38:51] I’m like, oh, man, back in third grade. You never want to do that. It’s just that’s in the mix. That’s in the soup mix of things, I think. But I but I love that you talk about how it’s an everyday process because some days I feel so strong and Sure. Right. And everything’s working so great that I’m just like, man, I could write a book about this whole industry. And then the next day I’m like, I don’t want to do anything with it. And I don’t even know what the difference is between myself one day and the next day. I don’t know. I don’t know.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:39:18] Why. Well, and I think I think that’s natural to when you want to pull away from something that feels so right. But then you’re like, but is it wrong? Why am I here? Who taught me.

Speaker3: [00:39:28] To do this? I didn’t sign it. Did I say yes? Where? Show me. You know, I agree. But I love.

Sharon Cline: [00:39:35] That you talk about the fact that this kind of. Is a gift, even just in this country. Like sometimes I do sit back and I think, man, I I’m a woman by myself doing this. This industry made my own little, little LLC, Tiny LLC, and but just still did it because I wanted to. You know, it’s just kind of crazy, this moment of just an inspiration. And I’d like to see what happens here. And then the next thing you know, I actually have like a booth and it’s I have a page and it’s a website and it, it is kind of crazy, like there is a gift in it. And I think sometimes I need reminders that it’s not a given for every person on the planet, that they have an idea and then they can take it into fruition. Right. And what I needed that.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:40:18] What I just heard you say is I created a luxury brand and it’s not for everybody. I understand that. And I am willing to make sure that this luxury brand stands out and it sits high on the shelf so that someone will have to ask to pull it down. That’s what I heard you say.

Speaker3: [00:40:35] That’s what I heard you say, right?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:40:36] Like, ooh, luxury brand. I need to I need to run with that. This is how I think in my mind.

Speaker3: [00:40:41] I’m like, Oh.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:40:42] Well, maybe Billy Boot. No, I mean Billy Boots for everybody. But it is at the end of the day, it’s a luxury to even had the, the opportunity to create something that maybe someone is still a thought in their mind because it feels so far away and it feels like such a foreign idea for for somebody you’re already here. And and that’s just so powerful and empowering.

Sharon Cline: [00:41:04] So if you could speak to someone who’s got an idea out there and it’s it’s just in their head, what would you give advice to them? What would you say? How would you give advice to them? I’m not saying this articulately at all, but I just mean they’re this is this is part of the reason I wanted to do this show also is like, what did you do to kind of help yourself get past your own fears of, well, I can’t do this or I don’t know anything about that. That’s 99% of me is saying I don’t know anything about that. Like my mower is not working right now. And that’s really what I think is I don’t know anything like I’m so frustrated. But there are people that do and they are going to come help me. But at the same time, that is the immediate I don’t know anything about that. So I automatically have a bad attitude or a no in front of me.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:41:46] That’s good. I love what you just said. I automatically have a bad attitude or I have no in front of me. But the truth is, is when you start something, when when you start to talk about the possibilities, you ignite the fire in somebody else. Right? And then the people will come, the resources will come. You just start doing and start moving toward that. I think one of the biggest things that I’ve discovered in my own life, and this is since I was a girl, is that how vital communication is with with one another and the people that you know, the people that you don’t know. Because maybe the idea is that you express to someone else they may have something that reignites in you the passion that you always have for a thing. And then you start that journey because you now feel like I can do it where somebody may have told you in the past, No, you can’t do that. Or you’re not you know, you keep talking about that thing. That’s what I would say. First, you keep talking about that thing so that the right person, they’ll come and they’ll listen. They’ll sprinkle that seed that has probably already fallen. You didn’t even know it fell, right? You start writing it down because I was way nervous about writing a business plan. I had wrote one, you know, previously, and I was like, Oh, that’s a failed business. It didn’t work. I did one project and yeah.

Sharon Cline: [00:42:55] But you learned. But I.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:42:56] Learned. I learned that I didn’t want to do that.

Speaker3: [00:42:59] That’s valuable. That’s the lesson that.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:43:02] There’s no need for me to do that.

Speaker3: [00:43:04] Right? Valuable.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:43:05] That is valuable. It really is. And but I think it’s important to tell people what you want to do, because if only you know what you want to do, then how would anybody else know that? That they can be a support to you? Right. So the purpose in communication is that you you make sure those ideas leave your head, so to speak, at first. Then you can write it down and then you invite the resources in. So speak it, write it down and bite the resources and be vulnerable enough to attract the resources. So go to those places, go to the women’s group, go go to the network. Supports that don’t seem like it’s right up your alley, but I need to be in that room because I am a I am a luxury brand, right? I need to be in that room. I need to tell I need to tell more people. I need to continue to speak about this thing. And as I mentioned before, you know, I’m like, oh, I’m feel insecure when I speak to people. But that’s the point of speaking it. Because how will you know if I have a woman that comes up to me and says, Oh my goodness, I love her hip and where does she get it? Billy Boucher But if I never spoke it, she would never know, Right? Right. And so you have to continue to speak about it and then you continue to nurture the ideas. You know, if whenever you get a moment to write those things down or write something down, write something about your own being down so that it progresses you to move forward or move in the direction of establishing that new thing that you hope to to establish. Right? And then you just find a way to start attracting those resources. The people resource the financial resources, those things that are necessary to get a brand set up.

Sharon Cline: [00:44:37] It’s like little. Little things. I feel like I didn’t do it all at once. Sometimes someone will ask me, How did you even get started? And I’m like, How did I get started? Like, you know, what did I do? What was the first thing? Because once it’s rolling, right, you don’t really think so much about what it was like to get it going. But you go through those steps and the next thing you know, it’s you’ve got your LLC, you’ve got your EIC, you’ve got write, you know, your website, it’s like little steps. And the next thing you know, it’s right there. It’s like a physical, something that you look at.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:45:02] Well, and I also think it’s important to reflect, right, Because I know you to be a storyteller. And if you reflect, then you say, Oh my goodness, I actually was telling these stories for other people a little while ago and now I get to tell them for myself. Right. And I think the same thing about my business, I had to recall or reflect that there was a point in time when I graduated from high school that I thought I was going to be a buyer for a major luxury brand. And I said, Oh, I’ll just go to school and I’ll get my degree in that I want to be a merchandizer or a buyer for a major brand. And I had to recall when I started buying products for Billy Boo, the Billy Boo brand, that I am actually a buyer for my own luxury brand, and I’m calling the Lexi brand now, y’all, because I ain’t selling just me now.

Speaker3: [00:45:47] And I was like, Yeah, I know.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:45:50] She didn’t say that, but I was like, It’s a luxury to have created a brand, so I’ll call.

Speaker3: [00:45:54] It luxury.

Sharon Cline: [00:45:55] I love the notion of that because you just give such a different feeling of just being like, Here’s my little business. I always kind of downplay it because it does seem really little, but maybe if I talk about it in a bigger way, I’m putting it out in the world that it’s a bigger business, you know, or chalk it up more, I guess.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:46:10] Right? Or, you know, just speak it. You know, you have to talk it up. Just speak it. Just say, hey, you know, this is what I was able to create.

Sharon Cline: [00:46:16] My.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:46:17] Luxury and my luxury time. Yes, I had the luxury of time on.

Speaker3: [00:46:21] My side, Right? I mean, everybody has that.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:46:24] It is a luxury, I feel like. And Billy is not a luxury brand. It is a it is a wellness brand, quite frankly. And that’s the space that I desire for it to live in. It is a retail brand, but it is a wellness brand first. And, you know, hopefully in the year or two to come because I’ll still keep going. People will be will come to know the brand as more of a wellness brand and we’ll primarily sell accessories and wellness products. And then there will be workshops designed to meet the needs of young girls and young people around the world.

Sharon Cline: [00:46:56] Who knows how, where it’ll go.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:46:57] Who knows.

Sharon Cline: [00:46:58] Where it will go?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:46:59] The point is just to keep going, right?

Speaker3: [00:47:01] You got to keep going so it can go.

Sharon Cline: [00:47:04] Kate Barnwell, thank you for coming in.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:47:07] Thank you for having me.

Sharon Cline: [00:47:08] How can people get in touch with you before we go? I want I want people to be able to go see your boutique or find you online. Where can they how can they do that?

Kaye Barnwell: [00:47:15] Absolutely. So Billy Boot, it’s spelled with two L’s. It’s b i ll ib0. So that is our website Mobile Ibo. You will find our website there and please follow us on IG post a lot there. Fun, authentic stuff there. And it’s at official Billy Boo so at official Billy Boo on IG and please find us on Facebook under the same name. Thank you so much.

Sharon Cline: [00:47:43] You’re welcome and thank.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:47:44] You and see us at the Painted Tree Roswell.

Sharon Cline: [00:47:46] Oh yeah. Bicycle shop there. That’s really amazing. I mean, it’s like a great location. Yes.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:47:51] Right. It yes. Of Woodstock Road in Roswell. It’s a great location. Thousands of people.

Sharon Cline: [00:47:57] Walk by there.

Kaye Barnwell: [00:47:58] Hundreds of shops. Yeah, under one roof. And Billy Boo happens to be set up there. Space 18, Please come and see what we have in store and find us out in the community.

Speaker3: [00:48:07] We love that to you.

Sharon Cline: [00:48:09] And thank you all to you for listening to Fearless Formula on Business RadioX. And this is Sharon Klein again, reminding you that with knowledge and understanding, we can all have a fearless formula. Have a great day.