Jennifer Campbell is the founder and owner of JC Winsem, Inc., an online clothing store for women and girls. “It’s a modest company with a positive message. We want every woman to feel beautiful and good about who they are. We also incorporate eco-friendly and wrinkle-free fabric items. We care about our environment and want to do our part,” Campbell explains. The founder was inspired to venture in this direction because she felt there weren’t any mainstream competitors in the market with the kind of positive message for females that she envisioned. This positive impact is a cornerstone of her business.

Campbell discovered the SBDC at La Verne University through a social media post publicizing its advising and webinars on starting a business: all free of charge and right where she lives. Campbell had the common challenge the SBDC encounters with many clients: where to begin. “I knew there were certain legal issues that had to be addressed, and to be honest I had no idea what to do.”

Solutions

The SBDC set her up to meet one-on-one with Mark Hicks right away. Campbell describes her meetings with Hicks: “One of the most helpful things he did was to give me homework assignments. He said that the first thing I needed to do was write my business plan. And I would do it.” Step by step they got it done, and she expanded her confidence in what she was capable of.

Hicks helped her register a business name and identify the licenses she would need. With the advisor’s help, “it went from just an idea to fully operational and running,” she recounted. 

Campbell next focused on marketing to grow her business. She met with another SBDC advisor, Louise Brewer, who helped Campbell with her website and more. In Campbell’s words, “Louise was amazing, teaching me how to set up my social media accounts and guiding me on the best ways to get noticed and create an audience for my product.”

Results

JC Winsem launched in November 2020 and was generating revenue in the first month. Within three months, Campbell had built awareness of the JC WInsem brand with 15,000 new people on Facebook, plus many more on Instagram and Pinterest.

Campbell expresses her appreciation for the SBDC’s director, Sean Snider, and the advisors who have helped her: “Honestly, I don’t think I could have done it without all of them: Sean, Mark, and Louise. I want to spread the word on these amazing resources. People should know there is help out there for people who are starting out and have a good idea for a business.”