In this episode your hosts Emmanuel Eleyae and Grace Eleyae talk with Jacquelyn Rodgers - founder and CEO of Greentop Gifts. She talks about her background and why she wanted to start Greentop Gifts. She talks about how she got her first customers and how she is able to work with her husband. You’ll also hear her talk about what it’s like going into retail and all the struggles that come along with that. In the Founder Rounder, they talk about struggles all business owners are facing right now and some ways to cut costs, as well as some tips for new customer acquisition. At the end, Jacquelyn talks about some of the lessons she’s learned, advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, and why representation is important to her. Timestamps: Jacquelyn’s Background/How She Started Greentop Gifts (0:37) Jacquelyn explains her business and why she started it - she wanted her son to have a black Santa. She also talks about what she did before Greentop Gifts - she worked in corporate for a candy company. (2:57) Jacquelyn talks about how she found her first manufacturer and had her first batch of wrapping paper delivered to her house. She would work all day then come home and package orders in the evenings. (6:06) Jacquelyn explains how she got her first customers - her friend filmed an “about us” video that was posted on social media and a lot of people saw it and started visiting their website. (7:27) Jacquelyn talks about how Greentop Gifts was her side hustle for the first 4 years and how she managed working full time and running a business. She realized that for the business to grow she needed to commit to it full time so she quit her job in 2020.  (9:17) Jacquelyn talks about being in business with her husband - they have different personalities when it comes to business and they balance each other out. (10:38) Jacquelyn talks about boundaries with her husband - they have learned when and where to talk about work-related things. Struggles in Retail (12:27) Jacquelyn talks about how getting into retail was not what she expected - there was a lot she didn’t know about and it’s very expensive but it was worth it for her product because most people want it the same day. (15:10) Jacquelyn explains how being in retail is seen as a sign of legitimacy for businesses and it can be rewarding for some businesses if done right. (17:40) Grace talks about how going into retail makes sense for some businesses because that’s where the most customers are, but it might not make sense for other brands with products that people don’t mind waiting on. (18:29) Emmanuel talks about why he hates retail - it does give legitimacy but it is also very costly and can kill a small brand that’s not ready for it.  (19:30) Grace and Jacquelyn talk about how tricky retail can be - once your product is on their shelf you still have to get people to go and buy your product, because if it doesn’t sell, they will take it off their shelves. (21:56) Grace and Jacquelyn talk about how intention and sacrifice are important when going into retail and how it can be a big hit to your cashflow with chargebacks and fees and the time it takes to actually see the profit from sales. (25:09) Jacquelyn and Emmanuel discuss how intention is important - if you go into retail to make a lot of money, it’s not going to work. It’s better to be able to say no or just go into a few stores to get that legitimacy. Founder Rounder (26:54) Jacquelyn asks about ways to get more customers. Emmanuel talks about how that has been every founder rounder question and something that all businesses are struggling with. (29:12) Grace talks about how new customer acquisition was really easy during the pandemic but now we’re in an economic downturn and it’s gotten harder. She says not to compare current numbers to 2020 numbers, instead compare it to your startup numbers and you’ll see that there is still life in the business. (31:01) Emmanuel talks about cutting cost