Katie Schulzetenberg –
From hobby to small business, Nicole Wallerick is on the rise. Wallerick is a senior this year and she is certainly going out with a bang. She started her own Instagram business selling hair scrunchies and bracelets. Although, only a month-old business, her products are selling out within the half hour.
“I love making crafts and I’ve done a bit of sewing in my life when I started making scrunchies and bracelets,” said Wallerick. “I started making them for fun just for myself and my friends to wear until I noticed that some of my friends have business on Instagram and I thought that it was a cool idea that I could also do.” And that was only the start of something successful. Starting from her friends and branching out to friends of friends, Wallerick was selling her products to strangers before long.
Wallerick makes her scrunchies by buying fabric from shirts or flannels bought from thrift stores and by using a combination of sewing machine and hand stitching, she puts the elastic in. Her bracelets are a combination of lava rocks and stones with a cross charm on them. “My faith is really important to me and I think the cross on the bracelet is a good way to start a conversation with some people,” Wallerick said in a conversation about her bracelets. “The lava rocks are also unique because they are lightweight and absorbent so you can put essential oils in them and they will retain the scent,” she said.
The process of her Instagram business works by Wallerick posting a picture of her product. For scrunchies, she sells in packs of three for six dollars and bracelets are eight dollars. Underneath, she puts a description of the item and the price as well as the availability. The first people to comment that they would like to buy it, get a direct message from Wallerick checking to confirm their purchase. She continues to update the picture with the availability of her item until they are sold out, which usually does not take long.
“It’s still pretty small but I already have a lot of success and people who are interested. It is exciting to see it grow and see more followers,” Wallerick remarked excitedly. Her business is on Instagram under the name “wallerickwristwear.” Although the page has only been up for less than a month, it has been gaining popularity quickly.