post #11 - flip flops, f-bombs & fierce sales...

if you blinked, you might’ve missed it (don’t worry, kween, i’m not judging - life’s chaotic) 

but last month, i tackled colour friday & for a novice like me it was like trekking the Andes in flip-flops or “thongs,” for my Aussie kweens! 

still weird to me, thongs on your feet? really? 

anyway, i digress

i don’t do black friday! 

here’s the thing: i don’t do black friday! 

& here’s why: 

last year, as a nation, we spent £13.3 billion on Black Friday, but here’s the catch: 
 
1. almost half of shoppers said they rarely used what they bought - (wtaf!) 
2. a third regretted their purchases - (no way, this is v bad) 
3. more than half of us worried about the environmental impact - (mother earth is feeling it big time!) 
 
now imagine if that £13.3 billion went toward supporting wee businesses instead - wee businesses like mine, that: 
 
1. care about the environment - (sustainability is my jam, kween) 
2. will put an average of £0.63 back into the local community - (compared to the big corporates (think amazon) who average at less than £0.05) 

celebrate colour friday 

so instead i decided to join Holly Tucker (female founder of “not on the high street” & “holly & co”) to celebrate colour friday & in the process flip the bird at capitalism (sorry for using the "C" word!) 

the thing is Jeff Bezos does NOT need any more of your money, the Amazon billionaire will be just fine, in the cash department, from now until hell freezes over! 

with that decided i then had to set up all the tech that could make this happen on my kweenie website 

let me tell you, it wasn’t all calm, cute vibes!

fuck this sh*t

i spent a lot of the time with the right side of my brain saying: 

“f*ck this sh*t” 

& the left saying  

“hold on a f*cking minute let me overthink this sh*t” 

i was up to my tits in flows, campaigns, pop-up forms, embedded forms, lists, graphics, segments, scheduled posts, custom liquids (no not homemade moonshine, it’s actually a coding tool – who knew!) & so much more

i second-guessed every email subject line, overanalysing the CTAs ("f*ck yes or f*ck no to this vibe?")

& frantically Googled whether adding profanity would tank my email open rates 

spoiler alert: it didn’t & anyway i said i was always going to be authentic, so why change it now? 

crying babies or alcohol!

well, after a long 3 days (one of which was an all nighter – been a long time since i've pulled one of those (which didn’t involve either crying babies or alcohol!) 

my website updates & automations were good to go: 

retail rebel pop-up & embedded form – check 

retail rebel email flow - check 

kween email campaign - check 

f*cking fabulous graphics - check  

social media schedule: tiktok, instagram, facebook, pinterest - check, check, check & check! 

it all went without a hitch (well maybe one or two but i won’t bore you with that, all things i'll learn from for sure) from the friday to the sunday 

by the monday i was rendered mute (for those who know me, this is HUGE!) & was absof*ckinglutely ready for an epic disco nap! 

again, now i'm looking back at this i'm thinking have i sold what’s left of my soul by having a sale?  

now here’s the tea: some corners of the art world treat sales like a dirty word

less of an “artist”

as if offering a discount somehow cheapens the work, or worse, makes you less of an “artist” to which I say: 

“fuck that!” 

selling art isn’t about playing into some elite, gate-kept fantasy where only the rich get to enjoy it 

it’s about connecting with people who vibe with your work & making it accessible - on your own damn terms 

rebelling against the capitalist machine 

me, kweenie, doing colour friday wasn’t about slapping a “25% off” sticker on everything; it was about celebrating my kweens & offering something extra for those ready to bring some magic to their walls (or their desks - hello, hardback journals) 

 kweenie hardback pop art journals, featuring kweenie painted collage front covers of Rita Hayworth, Marilyn Monroe, Dorothy Dandridge & Audrey Hepburn

& do you know what that sh*t felt empowering AF! 

it felt good to be part of something bigger than kweenie, something that makes a difference in the world & rebelling against the capitalist machine 

a bit like my collection divinity where audrey hepburn, elizabeth taylor, dorothy dandridge & marilyn monroe spell out the iconic lyrics: 

“fuck you, i won’t do what you tell me!” 

kweenie feminist unapologetic pop art original featuring Dorothy Dandridge - "what you"

i've built kweenie on rebellion, resilience & honestly, that feels way more authentic than sticking to some outdated, elitist set of “rules” 

you can still have your coronation

finally, don't worry if you did blink & missed out on colour friday you can still have your coronation & become a kween 

& surprise you get 15% off your 1st kweenie purchase & access to all the latest drops, sneak peeks & backstage goss you can handle! 

so why not snag something fierce, ‘cause life’s too short for boring walls & basic vibes 

& if you need a wee kweenie pep talk to help you decide? 

then slide into my DMs (OMG did i just type that WTAF is happening to me?) - i promise not to ghost you! 

love you, bye 

kx 

PS things i've learned in the world of ecommerce events: 

1. don't leave big events to the last minute, plan better kweenie (you’ve got that mahoosive wall planner for a reason ya fanny!)
2. you're capable of so much more than you think – calm yer tits & trust the process!
3. when wee brands come together you can create something absolutely ridiculously HUGE! 
4. “smiling is my favourite” - yes i did just quote Buddy the Elf, but when all else fails smiling sees you through, even when you haven't slept! 

x