How I used packaging to strengthen my brand and increase sales

The dream of Gabriel’s Good Tidings® began decades ago as I sat with my mom and grandmothers learning to sew. I imagined the day when I would create products that people wanted to purchase. As I spent many of my younger years in the sewing rooms of these women, I began to develop a love for fabrics and creating products. Little did I know that my aspirations would one day provide for my family, support other women working from home, and grow into a thriving business.

After college, marriage, and two kids, I worked as a pediatric nurse for ten years. Through a series of horrific events and deep grief, I needed to leave nursing. However, I had promised my husband that I would work to support him through graduate school, and he had approximately 18 months left to finish his master's degree.

As a way to take my mind off of the sadness and loss, I began sewing again. I had been granted a few weeks off work and needed to heal. I’ve always been a very creative person who thrived working with my hands, so naturally, I retreated to my sewing machine and fabric stash. However, the dream of creating products people would purchase had been long buried underneath the busyness of family, work, and life. Even so, a dear friend saw potential and suggested I start selling online.

In the summer of 2013, I started small and slow but was quickly met with a high demand for products and nothing but growth for the business. My signature product, the LippyClip™, was wellreceived and a consistently soldout item on many online platforms. I was one of the first sellers on some of the well-known daily deal sites, although they were quite small at that time. I remember some of our very first sales and the overwhelming sense of gratitude I felt when we sold out. I’ll never forget watching a football game with friends, checking sales on my phone, and bursting into tears of joy, for I knew we could pay the bills for the next month and that my dream was becoming a reality.

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