Embracing Fun to Build Community in Retail (After the Show)

Crystal Vilkaitis: Hello. Hello. And welcome to After the Show, I’m your host, Crystal Vilkaitis. And this is where I share my top takeaway of this week’s episode of Rooted in Retail. And this week, our guest was Darn Knit Anyway. I sat down and talked to Aimee and Carly who are cousins and running this incredible store.

And wow, they are doing incredible things. Their classes, their events, their lounge area. They are connecting to their community in new, creative, unique, fun ways. And I hope that you watch this episode or listen to it. If you haven’t yet, be sure to do it because you need to hear what these ladies are doing.

Like they’re doing 30 to 50 events a month, which is wild. Well, I should say classes, 30 to 50 classes. We talk about the behind the scenes logistics, how they’re managing all of that. But for me, the big takeaway, and actually before I get into my takeaway, I have to plug that we had EVOLVE a couple of weeks ago.

That’s our in person conference for retailers. And we did something new this year where we gave out three awards. I think it’s just so important that we recognize retailers who are working really hard and doing incredible things within their community and within their businesses. And so we had the 15 Mile Famous award, the Rooted in Retail Community Champion award, and the Most Evolved award.

It was so fun handing those out and I’m just so proud of our award winners, but Carly was there with Darn Knit Anyway, and they won the Rooted and Retail Community Champion award. And it was so fun because, I did, I filmed this episode with them already knowing that they were going to win that award and you know, seeing Carly that was just very excited because they truly are rooted in their community.

Why Crystal’s big takeaway from Darn Knit Anyway was community connection and finding ways to support your customers

Crystal Vilkaitis: And my big takeaway from this episode is yes, it’s definitely like that community connection and finding ways to support your customers. I feel like Darn Knit Anyway really understands their customers and really wants to serve them. But my big takeaway for this week is having fun. I just feel like since Aimee and Carly started this store about 15 years ago, they’ve started with fun.

You can just see it. You can see it by talking to them. You can see it on their social media. You can see it in their blog posts. You can see it in the events they’re offering and the classes that they offer. I just feel like they’re not taking themselves so seriously.

How running a business can be very heavy sometimes

Crystal Vilkaitis: Because running a business can be very heavy. It could be very stressful and it can be easy sometimes to focus on the things that are weighing us down, frustrations, overwhelm. Like all the questions, am I doing the right thing? What should I do here? Staff issues, all the things that come up with being a small business owner. And I just feel like Aimee and Carly are like, let’s just have fun.

I feel like they just wait, open up their eyes in the morning. You’re like, how am I going to make today fun? And they bring magic to their store and to their customers. And that is why they are so darn successful.

How Darn Knit Anyway are getting a million views on some of their Instagram reels

Crystal Vilkaitis: Some of their reels on Instagram are getting a million views. We talk about it in the show of what they’re doing.

You got to go follow them, see what they’re posting. They are scale clients of ours. So what scale is, it’s basically all of our service offerings bundled into one and we call it our scale package. And so they’re insider members where they learn from Steph, who’s on our team and get training and support.

We do their listings where we optimize over 60 listings for them. And we also run their Facebook and Instagram ads. And they have had incredible ad results, where we’re getting them thousands of email addresses for 14 cents an email. And we’re selling, like we’re driving traffic to their e com store and we’re getting them purchases for a $1.39 per purchase.

Like I talked about this at EVOLVE and I’m like, raise your hand if you’d like to be getting a purchase on your website and it only costs you $2.39 cents, like everybody raised their hands. But the reason this is happening so well, for Darn Knit Anyway, my opinion is one, of course, we’re running their ads.

So we understand their goals, their customers. We’re really targeted. We’re selecting the right creative, but they’re also so authentically themselves and really understand their customers. And then provide an incredible experience for those customers. In store, at the classes, at the events, it just makes it easier for those transactions to come through. Or people who want to join the list. Or people who are engaging with the social content because they can see that authenticity.

They can see the fun. It feels like, yes, this is a need that you’re filling for me, the customer, and I’m getting that out of your store. And so when we’re paying and we’re amplifying that. When we’re working with a client, like Darn Knit Anyway, it makes our jobs that much easier because they deliver that experience.

3 key questions to ask yourself about having fun in your business

Crystal Vilkaitis: They understand their customers and they really connect to them. And I just feel like these ladies are about having fun, not taking it too seriously. And their customers are too. And it’s just such a great blend. So for you, I would question. Are there areas in your business that you could have more fun?

And actually today I went on this great walk and I, in our neighborhood, we live like two blocks from a reservoir and it’s just so pretty cause you have this giant body of water. Not giant, but it’s this big body of water. And then you look to the West and you just have the Rocky Mountains and there’s a water tower and it’s springtime and so things are blooming. And I just decided to sit, there’s a couple of swinging benches at this little park, and we have a little beach.

And so I just sat there at the benches and I was just looking out. I didn’t have any music on, I didn’t have any podcasts on, which is really rare for me because I just need to be listening to things when I’m walking. And I just felt like I wanted to really connect in. And listen and be with nature and listen to the birds.

And I was asking myself, what would fun feel like and what does fun look like for me? And just letting myself be a little bit more playful instead of like I sat down and at first, I was thinking about the numbers and the sales. And I was like, this is not at all the feeling I’m wanting.

I don’t want to be doing math right now. I want to tap into a feeling of like, how do I want to feel? I want to feel excited. I want to feel creative. I want to have fun. Okay, what does that look like? And that was a really fun experience for me where I just had some really great visions and ideas.

And it was exactly what I needed. And I think that we don’t stop and take those times. We don’t give ourself that time in those moments to ask those questions and really tap in. And what’s funny is when I first sat down, I was like really resisting being able to be more creative and open and think of fun.

I was very much of the practical mind. We have to launch, what’s the marketing, what’s the numbers, all that. And I’m like, no, I had to work a little bit to get myself to that more creative, fun brainstorming. And I ended up looking at my clock and it took about 25 minutes for me to be like, I’m fighting it too.

I’m fully in it. Oh my God. That was such a fun experience. Oh my gosh. I have so many awesome ideas. Okay, I’m ready to keep going. So 25 minutes, you know, I think that you can find that same time and ask yourself those questions of if I was to have even more fun in my business, what would that look like?

If I was to have a lot of fun with my customers, what would that look like? What’s my customer’s version of fun? Looking through the fun lens at our business. I think can create more fun and more memorable experiences, unique things to you. And I just think there’s a lot of opportunities there if we look through that lens.

So give yourself that chance this week. And report back in the Facebook group. Did something like any big aha has come to you about how you can have more fun? Or maybe you’re having a lot of fun, like Darn Knit Anyway. And you want to share it, inspire other retailers, go into the Facebook group, our Rooted in Retail Facebook group and share either how you’re having fun.

Or an aha you had, or an idea you have to have more fun. I want to hear it in the retailer community in there wants to hear it too. So let’s collab, let’s connect, let’s allow ourself to play and have more fun. On next week’s episode, you are hearing something very special and very exclusive from our EVOLVE conference.

An exclusive sneak peek into the upcoming Rooted in Retail episode that was filmed live at EVOLVE.

Crystal Vilkaitis: I sat down and had the Retail Pro Panel where I sat down with four pros, and I asked all sorts of questions as far as advice and success stories and challenges and how to overcome those challenges. And it was such a great conversation, it was actually a highlight for me of EVOLVE.

I really loved that panel conversation and my panelists. So we’re taking the replay and we’re allowing you to listen to it here on the show. So it’s something very special that’s coming next week because it is that panel. There might not be an After the Show. We’ll see if there is, but be sure you tune into that one.

You’re not going to want to miss it. It could be some life changing advice, and that’s what I heard from attendees at EVOLVE. There were many people who said EVOLVE changed their life. Life changing event. So I’m very proud of that. As I am filming this, we are more than 10 percent sold out of next year. I mean, it’s in 11 months.

We’re already more than 10 percent sold out. If you want to get your ticket to EVOLVE, go to crystalmediaco.com/evolve tickets are the lowest they’re ever going to be. They’re super early bird right now. This is a chance you can get it for as low as $297. And I’d love to see you there. I have a feeling we’re going to sell out this year.

We sold out of VIP in 2024. I have a feeling we’re going to possibly sell both tickets in 2025. Because of all the feedback we got, it’s incredible. So I hope to see you there beyond the lookout for this Retail Pro Panel next week and share how you’re having fun in the group. I can’t wait to hear it.

Remember that I’m rooting for your success. Have a great week. Bye.