Meet Victoria Farrell | Co-Founder of Lady Dragonfly Apothecary

We had the good fortune of connecting with Victoria Farrell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Victoria, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
In the beginning, it was never my intention to start a business. Lady Dragonfly Apothecary was a therapeutic hobby I used to alleviate my severe anxiety.

My mom Gryselle started noticing clumps of my hair on the floor and looked for stress-releasing activities we could do together. I had a corporate job at a tech startup which was extremely demanding, candle making calmed the stress I was bringing home from that environment.

The business idea began after I gave many candles away at the office for Christmas. To my surprise, my co-workers were impressed. With the intricate designs and amazing smells of my candles and asked me where they could buy more.

My mom raised me in spirituality, so crystal healing and candle magic were second nature to me. My candles are a physical representation of my love for mindfulness practices that got me through a very hard time in my mental health journey. So my mom and I created Lady Dragonfly to help those going through the same hardships I went through.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
In my previous corporate life, I was a social media specialist, event manager, and public relations professional. The experience I’ve had working in these industries has prepared me to be a skilled brand manager for my business.

I am very excited for this year when I can dedicate myself full-time to my business. With my skill set, I know the ins and out of social selling and network marketing. I am very excited to put all my energy into Lady Dragonfly/

Since I was very young, I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. When I was 16, I made branded jewelry, keychains, and sandals and sold them during the summer. Also, in college, I had an apparel company showcasing some of my designs while working part-time in a photography gallery. I had no idea about social media marketing or product launches, so it went under pretty quickly.

I graduated in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and graphic design. I thought I wanted to be a journalist, but I didn’t feel passionate about it towards the end of my college career.

I found a job as a copywriter for a kitchen appliance eCommerce, which was my first exposure to online business and advertising.

After that experience, I had my own freelance social media agency for a year; unfortunately, I lost all my clients in 2020. In the meantime, I was working on my master’s degree in Public Relations. During this time, I was finding out what I liked and disliked, so I freelanced as a chatbot translator and moonlighted as a barista,

I was exposed to many different positions in the creative industry, helping me gain a well-rounded view of how to market a business. Summer of 2020, I found a job as a graphic designer where I learned about network marketing and the freight forwarding side of eCommerce.

After that experience, I had the opportunity to learn about warehousing and podcast production when I worked for a freight forwarding company in Miami.

After a short while, I was offered a position as a marketing specialist in a tech startup through a contact I made there. This position required all of my skills, graphic design, writing, social media, event marketing, public relations with influencer campaigns, and podcast production. I also learned about streaming and email marketing in this position.

The corporate environment was very demanding and highly stressful. My entire career, I was looking for “the ideal job,” climbing the corporate ladder and becoming the boos woman. Once I actually got an executive position, it was through my therapeutic hobby that I felt joy and a sense of purpose.

I became plagued with imposter syndrome. I thought, “why did you work so much? To make candles? Do you really think you can make this business succeed when you have failed before?”

Things at my job started getting toxic; they were not happy I was building my business on the side. It came to the point that the microaggressions, manipulation, and gaslighting became too much. I was only happy at markets selling candles, and it all became clear. All my experience has prepared me for success. I know how to market e-commerce and the logistics of running a business.

Along the way, I’ve learned sooo much from my work experiences. I learned that “failure” is when you quit and don’t get back up. I have failed multiple times in my businesses. I count those as lessons because I learned what not to do or how o do something better.

I learned to pay attention and listen to those who came before. I only consume wholesome content; I learn so much from podcasts and videos from content creators and business owners with years of experience.

One thing that I want the world to know about me is that I am authentically and unapologetically myself. I

am passionate and 100 percent committed to my brand. I live what I do, I am a mystic candle maker, and it’s exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’d say visiting the Wynwood walls. I am very artsy, so I enjoy the art scene in Wynwood. The Design District has excellent boutiques, and the food trucks are awesome! I love street food! Although I love the sliders and a strawberry milf shake over at Sakes and Burgers, I like the one in Hollywood, but the one on Miami Beach is right on the beach. Speaking of the beach, Lauderdale by the Sea is awesome for a good beer and a walk along the pier. They also have a wide selection of restaurants, live music, and just the best candy store! (I adore their banana ice cream). The classic movie theatre in Sunrise is a lot of fun; if you want to see classic movies like The Rocky Horror Show in a vintage theatre, that is the best place. For fun arcade games, laser tag, and gocarts, Boomers next to Palace Theatre in Boca Raton is really fun. I used to go mini-golfing there, too. My favorite malls are Wellington ton Mall, Aventura Mall, and The Miami International Mall. Wellington and the Miami International Mall have a unique selection of bohemian boutiques, which are very much my style.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to my mom and business partner, Gryselle Farrell, for always keeping me steady and supporting me during our business journey. You are always there for me, no matter what life throws at us. I also want to thank all the women who have supported and believed in us since day one, especially the Herpreneur community. Thank you to the Boutique Hub and Product Boss Podcasts for inspiring me to keep working hard on my business and for sharing valuable content on your shows. They served as amazing resources for a newbie like me!

Website: https://ladydragonfly.us/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dragonfly_apothecary/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/victoria-farrell7/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaWSIMmpJSJMzwyjo8MRK3w

Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/LadyDragonflyCandles

Image Credits
Yody Sanchez https://www.instagram.com/yodysanchez1/ Devin R. Kina https://www.instagram.com/devvvinray/