Spotlight on Moms: Tricia Price and Marci Hower of Reflect Who I Am

  

I first stumbled across Reflect Who I Am while looking for unique Valentine's Day gift ideas for my upcoming gift guide, which will run from 2/1-2/10.  And, like I do with all online stores I stumble upon, I like to check out the company's background and learn about the owners.  This is when I found out that two moms were behind this amazing company.  And, when I read their mission statement, I knew I had to reach out and see if they would share this story with you all.  

You will learn in the interview that both Tricia Price and Marci Hower, the moms behind Reflect Who I Am, have a background in marketing.  So, you would expect them to articulate this story well -- and, that they do.  So, instead of me trying to sum up the reason for creating these amazing and empowering mirror image shirts for girls and women, I wanted to share their mission statement, which you can find on their website:


"Our lives are filled with an infinite array of possibilities. What we choose to see becomes our experience. Whatever we focus on will grow. Reflect Who I Am wants to remind girls everywhere that they are who they see in the mirror. They reflect the beauty, the courage and the brilliance that is within them. We do not only want to inspire girls, but awaken them to their true self.

Reflect Who I Am was created by Tricia Price and Marci Hower, parents wanting to let girls everywhere know they are that amazing person in the mirror, regardless of what others may think or say about them.

Our Inspiration

 

 

From the time our girls are born we tell them how smart they are, how beautiful they are, how brave they are, and how they can achieve anything they want. We protect them the best we can, but as they get older the world starts chipping away at their self esteem. A teacher tells her she isn’t smart enough, a boy tells her she isn’t pretty enough, a coach tells her she’s not good enough and she begins to doubt the girl she sees in the mirror every day.   No child should feel there is no hope or be limited by the negative influences of others.

 

The founders of Reflect Who I Am want to give girls everywhere a daily reminder of just how special they are. Reflect Who I Am t-shirts were created to cultivate and cherish, to express and expand, and to discover and design their true selves. They live in the world they create.  We want girls to deliberately look for their inherent strengths, gifts, and positive possibilities in each of them."


Now, if the above doesn't move you and make you want to rush over to the Reflect Who I Am website and buy a shirt for that girl in your life (daughter, step-daughter, niece, god-daughter, etc.), or for yourself, then I hope after you enjoy their inspiring story about their 1 year old business, you will stop on by and show your support for these amazing moms.  And, when you are done, make sure you share their story and products with other moms with daughters (especially those with tweens and teens), as these shirts are a great way to encourage girls to love themselves, while helping to boost their self-esteem. :-)

And, make sure you head back here on Friday, when I will share my review on their shirts (for both girls and women), as well as offer one lucky reader a chance to win this beautiful "I Am Loved" Reflect Who I Am youth t-shirt for that special girl in their life  -- would make for a great Valentine's Day gift. Hint, hint!!!! (Note: I will also be sharing a promo code for FREE SHIPPING, too) :-)

But, in the meantime, please enjoy my Spotlight on Mom interview with Tricia Price and Marci Hower, of Reflect Who I Am.


Name:   Tricia Price and Marci Hower 

Company Name/Product/Service: Reflect Who I Am creates and sells original mirror image shirts for girls. These shirts are designed to encourage girls to love who they are and help boost their self-esteem. In a nutshell, our mission is that every girl love who she sees in the mirror. 
Company Location: Cleveland, Ohio 
Company Website: http://www.reflectwhoiam.com 
Facebook URL: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Reflect-Who-I-Am/124972764261232 
Twitter Handle: @reflectwhoiam 
Age of Company: 1 year 
Favorite Inspirational Quotes:  
"I AM. Two the most powerful words, for what you put after them shapes your reality" -- Author unknown 
Favorite Books:
If you looked on Marci’s kindle, it is loaded with favorites from her book club like First They Killed My Father and Rules of Civility. 

Tricia’s kindle is filled with lots of Young Adult books, including the Twilight series which is her absolute favorite. 

Tell us a little bit about yourself.  How many children do you have?  What are their ages? Your hobbies? Etc. 

Tricia Price and Marci Hower are co-founders of Reflect Who I Am. Tricia is the mother of a son and two girls ages 13, 11 and 6. You can often find Tricia cheering in the bleachers at a youth sporting event, giving standing ovations at the local theatre or enjoying an evening at a school music recital.

Marci does not have any daughters in her household, but as a mother of three fabulous sons ages 12, 11, 8 it is a safe bet that there will be some product lines for boys in the Reflect Who I Am future. Marci likes entertaining, she always seems ready to host a houseful of people.

Briefly explain your business.  How did it come about?

Reflect Who I Am creates and sells original mirror image shirts for girls. These shirts are designed to encourage girls to celebrate who they are and boost their self esteem. We want girls everywhere to love who she sees in mirror. The shirts are sold exclusively through www.reflectwhoiam.com. 

Tricia first thought of the reflective imagery when she wanted to help her daughter build up her self-esteem and confidence. Tricia wanted to remind her every time she looked in the mirror that she was beautiful -- both inside and out. This great idea was so strong, we wanted to share it with all girls struggling with their identities, and that is when Tricia partnered with Marci to help bring the business to reality.

What is a typical workday like?

In a word… Interrupted. Working from our homes, we have a lot of interruptions.

Luckily we are connected both online and with the same mission. We often work off hours or when the kids are at school. We are constantly writing, folding, packing, posting, tweeting, and mailing. It is the passion we have for our mission that drives us.

What has been a struggle while starting up your company? 

Creating awareness that our company even exists. That is why we are so grateful to Robin for reaching out to us. It is people like her that care about our mission, and help us grow. Like us on Facebook, and help us extend our reach further.

What did you do in your past work life?

We have worked, played and collaborated together for over a decade. Marci has been in the marketing business for over 20 years. Her last position was as the VP of Interactive Marketing at a direct marketing firm before sprouting her own wings with start-up ventures.

Tricia has worked as an online marketing specialist in the Cleveland area for nearly 15 years. She specialized mostly in Search Engine Marketing, but recently has added Social Media Marketing to the mix. Throughout the years she’s worn many hats in the workplace and is definitely a Jack-of-all-trades when it comes to marketing.

What have been some of your major successes?

Every success is a major success for us, especially because we are a start-up. Our web site launch, our first order, our first press release, our first Facebook like, our first re-tweet, our newest product launch, getting Robin’s email.

It’s nice to take a moment and breath in all of the things to be thankful for when you are moving so fast.

What have been some of your major challenges?

We believe strongly in our product and mission and we are excellent marketers. However, at the core of our business are t-shirts, and we knew very little about the apparel business. It has been a learning curve for us, but now we know all about sizing variations, thread counts and ink saturations. Our product line’s high quality is a testament to that knowledge.

On those impossible days, what motivates you to keep going?

Having a business partner has been incredible. When one is having a brain freeze, the other seems to be on a roll. When one needs a break, the other has the extra time. When one sees the glass half empty, the other sees it half full. We have balanced each other well.

And if we didn’t have a passion to inspire girls to see the beauty, the courage and the brilliance that is within them, we wouldn’t be inspired to spend so many hours working. It doesn’t feel like work, it feels like life.

What is your balancing secret in managing a business and family?

Our secret?... No matter what, family comes first.

(It also helps that both of our husbands are our biggest advocates.)

What is next for your business?

We will expand to other products that align with our mission, and maybe even include a line of shirts for boys ;-)

We also offer many activities on our site, that parents can do with their daughters to help boost self-esteem. We have gotten great feedback and encouragement to develop curriculum that will be available online for groups such as girl scouts, schools, and churches.

Do you have any advice for other mom entrepreneurs that are starting out and struggling, or are on the fence about starting a business?

Follow your passion. If you create from the heart, inspiration and money will follow.