Meet Marjorie Reynolds

Today we’d like to introduce you to Marjorie Reynolds.  

Hi Marjorie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Voyage Ohio, 

My name is Marjorie Reynolds. I am the President and Founder of RainbowJoyByMarjorie. I recently quit my job in finance on October 8th, 2021, to become an entrepreneur. I spent my entire adult life working as an employee and grew up in the environment of an employee mindset, so this was a challenge for me. 

Through the process of working two bank acquisitions, facilitating the outsourcing of my own department, building brand new departments, including a Retirement Plan Services Conversions Team, I found exactly what I needed to believe in myself and my ability to accomplish anything I put my mind to. Something clicked and said Marjorie, if you give as much effort to building your own business as you’re giving to this company you will crush it! 

I knew I had to put myself in a sink-or-swim position. My first year and a half has been a roller coaster ride for sure. I have learned so much and have never felt so alive and happy every day. 

My late mother would hang clear glass crystal prisms in front of the windows at home growing up. This was how I learned that they cast beautiful rainbows all over when the sun hits them. It was such a relaxing and happy feeling when the rainbows were cast onto the walls, floors, and ceilings. For a long time after high school and in my 20’s I didn’t have any prisms in the places I was staying. I forgot all about them until my sister bought me a couple of them to hang in my window at my house about 5 years ago. I was so happy to receive the gift from her and loved the rainbows they made. I wanted to add more to other rooms of the house, but I didn’t really like the options that were out there. I started to wonder if I could make one myself how I envisioned it. I went to the store to buy some wire and hand tools and started practicing. I realized how much I enjoyed making them and kept practicing. 

Eventually, I mustered up the courage to try and sell them in my friend Ashley’s booth at a live pop-up event she was a vendor at in Medina, OH. She was always encouraging me to try new things to see what I liked making and offered to let me try to sell whatever product I wanted in her booth anytime. When I set up to sell in her booth, people were buying them!! I realized at that moment that not only did I have a viable product, but it was also so unique and set me apart from my competition. 

2022 Recap: 

I currently handle all aspects of RainbowJoyByMarjorie personally. 

January – Founded RainbowJoyByMarjorie. Mission statement: Uplift with Rainbows 

January – Opened online Etsy store 

February – Learned 3 social media platforms. I was not historically on any social media prior to my business venture, even for personal use, so I had to learn these from scratch 

March – Started Facebook account (Current followers 233), started TikTok account (Current followers 3638), started Instagram account (current followers 212) 

April – Learning how to take product photos and marketing on all platforms 

May – Started soliciting retail locations – Celia’s Boutique in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio / Live craft show 

June – Accepted at Looking Glass Gifts and Gallery in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio / Live craft show 

June – Accepted at Don Drumm Studios The Different Drummer in Akron, Ohio 

July – Established a business relationship with The Bird Store and More in Fairlawn, Ohio 

September – Accepted at River Light Gallery in Peninsula, Ohio / Live craft show 

October – Signed a lease to open my own brick-and-mortar physical retail store at an amazing new venue 

November – My friend Ashley Rudolph and I opened a permanent physical retail storefront located inside a brand-new venue called The Common Ground at the old Smucker’s pickle factory right here in beautiful Medina, Ohio 

December – Sought out by Hale Farm & Village / Live craft show – Hale Farm’s holiday market. 

2023 Recap: 

• Featured on FOX 8’s New Day Cleveland Show

• Sought out by Summit County Fair Holiday Mart (HUGE juried event)

• Landed a 30-minute meeting with the Chief Marketing and Communications Executive at a large financial institution and pitched them my concept to give away a piece of my art to each of their 20,000 employees for colleague appreciation week in an attempt to help improve overall employee retention

• Working on moving into my own storefront that will increase my retail space by 4x the amount (I am currently sharing a 200 sq ft space with my friend that has a home décor business too)

• Teaching classes/workshops on how to bend and wrap wire

• Hired someone to build my own website – status in process

2023 Events: 

So far RainbowJoyByMarjorie has been accepted and will be at the following live pop-up events: 

WELLfest – Cuyahoga Falls 5/13/2023 – Complete 

Bath Art Festival – Bath Ohio 06/10/2023 

Affair on the Square – Medina, OH Public Square 08/13/2023 

Made in Ohio – Hale Farm & Village 09/01 – 09/03/2023 

Summit County Fair Holiday Mart – Tallmadge, OH 11/11 – 11/12/2023 

My artwork is currently showcased for sale at the following retailers: 

Celia’s Boutique (Cuyahoga Falls, OH) 

Don Drumm Studios The Different Drummer (Akron, OH) 

Looking Glass Gifts and Gallery (Cuyahoga Falls, OH) 

River Light Gallery (Peninsula, OH) 

The Bird Store and More (Fairlawn, OH) 

Rubber City Clothing (Akron, OH) 

2023 Goals: 

Establish a big business relationship with purchase order for a minimum of 500 pieces to improve employee retention by enhancing their atmosphere at the workplace! 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Naming the business. I still don’t have a name that I like. I just used the name that Etsy recommended because I couldn’t figure this part out. Everything I wanted was already taken on Etsy, web domains, Ohio Secretary of State site, etc. 

Product photos and videos. This is the most time-consuming and one of the most difficult aspects of my business because in order to show how my work functions, I needed to have them in direct sunlight in a nice appealing setting. They do not function in any form of indoor lighting. 

I was rejected by the first 3 retailers that I solicited to place my work in their shops for sale. They were all in my hometown of Medina. This was very discouraging at the time. I kept trying and was accepted by my first shop -Celia’s Boutique in Cuyahoga Falls. It seemed easier to get accepted at other places after I had some experience with doing it. 

It has been difficult because I quit my job and did not have additional income or immediate family members to help me financially. I have paid for everything myself with little to no income in the first year. 

Rejected for a business loan. 

Figuring out how to transport my VERY awkward product to live pop-up events efficiently without damaging anything. 

Figuring out what shipping supplies to use and sizes for Etsy sales 

I had no experience with how social media platforms worked prior to starting my business in January 2022. I was never on social media for personal use and did not want to be. 

I have not paid for any social media ads at all, so growing my social media pages has been extremely challenging. 

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a wire artist. I create wire art crystal prism chandelier suncatchers. I design and freeform bend and wrap aluminum wire into 2D and 3D sculptures for use as home decor window decorations. Each piece of wire art features high-clarity glass crystal prisms that make rainbows all over your space when placed in direct sunlight. The idea is to create a soothing and uplifting atmosphere and enhance your surroundings. I have never used a stencil or another person’s patterns. I design and create every piece myself. Each piece is engineered in my head. Sometimes I look at a picture of the item I am trying to create and just trace it from my head to my little hand tools. 

I am the proudest of when my idol artist, Don Drumm Studios, accepted my work to sell in their art gallery. I have loved his work since I was a little girl, and have many of his pieces in my home. His work is the inspiration behind my work, so this was surreal when I got the email from them that they were interested in seeing my work in person after I sent them photos. 

My work is unique and all handmade. Nobody else is doing what I am doing. I know this for a fact because I tried finding the product I wanted, and it did not exist, so I created it. I created a new type of minimalist suncatcher that does not exist at all in the market. Everything you see out there is a combination of manufactured metal with raw crystals or colored plastic beads strung to them. They are big and gaudy most of the time, and a lot of the time, are cheaply made. Also, you usually only find only gold metals. My work is all silver color based. 

What do you think about luck?
I was just selected to be on the cast of the next season of The Blox. The Blox is an entrepreneur bootcamp and is a crash course in entrepreneurship that is also filmed as a reality TV show. It is put on by Wes Bergmann who is a reality TV star from MTV. This, to me, was partially luck. I know that I did a nice job answering questions and sending them the information they needed however, there were thousands of business owners that applied for this, and only 65 businesses are actually selected to go on the show. I will be casting for this within the next couple of months. I am not sure yet when it airs. 

I grew up in a family of artists and knew that I should have a good deal of artistic talent, but I never liked painting or drawing. When I started practicing bending and wrapping the wire, it dawned on me that I was good at it, even from the beginning. I could envision beautiful abstract patterns and create them. I believe it was sheer luck that I was exposed to so much creativity in my life. 

My late parents were amazing people. They allowed me to be who I was and never tried to force me to be something I wasn’t. They were supportive growing up when I wanted to try new things, even after giving up on other things. My father worked, and my mother stayed home to raise us. My father set such an outstanding example for me and my sister that it was effortless to exceed in many roles I have played in my working tenure. He taught me how to become an invaluable employee, and this has served me well all my life. I consider myself very lucky to have had such great role models as parents. 

Pricing:

• Range from $20 – $150

Contact Info:

• Website: www.etsy.com/shop/RainbowJoyByMarjorie
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rainbowjoybymarjorie
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Rainbowjoybymarjorie
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rainbowjoybymarjorie
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@rainbowjoybymarjorie 

Image Credits
Marjorie Reynolds
Hale Farm and Village
The Common Ground Warehouse