Today we’d like to introduce you to Sasha Floyd.
Hi Sasha, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi I’m Sasha Floyd owner and founder of Blackkribbon. I’m a mother, wife, and member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I’ve been making witch hats since 2017 but it wasn’t until 2019 when I started Blackkribbon that I made them professionally. Blackkribbon at first was my personal Instagram page and before focusing on crochet witch hats I would try to sell my artwork. It wasn’t until I noticed more people were interested in my witch hats is when I shifted my focus from my artwork to the hats. My first witch hats were terrible. They were either too long way, too big, or just looked bad. One day I was sitting on the couch with my kids trying to find a way to make my hats look amazing that I started to mindless crochet and when I was done the witch hats in which we sell now are what lay before me. At Blackkribbon I strive very hard to keep my products and shipping materials as eco-friendly as possible so every product we carry are all made in low quantities and I can make them with recycled materials. That’s how my dresses become a thing. I had a bunch of old t-shirts that I no longer wore but couldn’t find myself to get rid of them so I made them into a dress.
It wasn’t until I started wearing these dresses to markets is when people would ask me if I sell them. So I had thought if I were to make these dresses instead of going to the thrift store and purchasing t-shirts why not start a donation program! So for every t shirt, scarp fabric, or yarn that is donated to us in return, you’ll get a 25% promo code that you can use on your next purchase. And to my surprise not only did the dresses take off but I had many people in my local area and afar donating their t-shirts to me.
I didn’t start to gain popularity till I was vending at local and distant markets where I strive really hard to make my business different and really set apart from other vendors. I love Halloween. I’m originally from Cumberland RI and Halloween in the east coast is more of a lifestyle than a holiday so I model my business around that. I have a pumpkin skelington as a mannequin to model my dresses and I use pumpkin pals that you use to trick or treat with as hat stands for my witch hats.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
When I started Blackkribbon the first two years were the hardest. I started selling my artwork on Etsy and to be honest, I’m not surprised no one really wanted it because it wasn’t that well defined I made a few sales here and there but then in 2020 Covid happened and I went months without an income. I would spend days wondering if doing this business would even be worth it but with the support of my Heavenly Father and husband, I kept with it. 2021 wasn’t too different my sales started to pick up but not as much as I was hoped. My Instagram engagement was crap but it’s like that with everyone it wasn’t until the end of 2021 is when I reached out to a witch shop if they would be interested in carrying my witch hats in their store and to my surprise they immediately said yes. Now it’s 2022 and I started selling my hats in stores been vending at as many markets as I could every month and was even lucky enough to attend a few bigger markets is where struggling those first two years made it worth it. I learned that one I wasn’t ready to have the success that I so desperately wanted and two that I started my business right around a major pandemic that happened so that was going to make it harder to keep going.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
So Blackkribbon is known for our crochet with hats. I’ve been crocheting since I was 12 on and off a few years but I didn’t start making witch hats till 2017. With my witch hats, I try to make them inspired by Halloween or something that brings me joy or something I know will bring my customers joy. One of the products I’m most proud of is starting a line of Pride witch hats. Where I took a few flag colors and made them into a witch hat. Seeing the joy and happiness, it brought to some people and having them tell me their stories of how they’re struggling with this within they’re family or are appreciated seeing someone making these really warmed my heart. I hope this is a collection I can bring back every year and keep it going. I believe what sets me apart from other crochet makers is with my witch hats I always let people know that I take custom orders and I strive to be as creative in my methods to achieve what they want rather than tell them this is what I can and can’t do. For example, a woman asked me several months ago if I could make her a witch hat with a spider web on it. At first, I was like ya I can do that but then I realized I don’t want to do just your typical spider web appliqué I want it to look like she was walking in the woods and caught a web onto her witch hat. So after many trials and errors, I was able to do just that. I love to think outside of what is normally done to decorate my witch hats and be as creative as possible but I also keep them basic so if anyone that who purchases one of my hats can easily design it themselves.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I always love this question. I hope I’m the next 5-10 years that not only do I own my own brick and mortar shop here in Denton TX but that I’m successful enough to own several. I hope to own three maybe four in TX one definitely in my hometown and a few around the country and maybe even across the globe. I would love to see Blackkribbon become a household name where people know when they shop with us that not only are they getting something that’s been handmade and is eco-friendly but will love and appreciate the values that we strive to keep in order to keep this company going.
Contact Info:
- Website:https://blackkribbon.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackkribbon/
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/Blackkribbon-643480932763642/?ref=bookmarks
Image Credits
@to_a_tphotography_22
