If you’re here, chances are good that somewhere along your entrepreneurial journey you’ve been overwhelmed, exhausted or frustrated. Hell, you might have been all three. And you’ve probably flown by the seat of your pants for much of that time, crossing your fingers that you’re making the right decisions to grow your passion-fueled business into a sustainable brand. I’ve been there myself.
Building a business isn’t for the meek. It takes courage, ambition, and tenacity… and I’m willing to bet that you have each of those in spades. But it also takes patience, wisdom, and strategy. While those assets aren’t as intuitive or accessible for many creatives, they’re the true building blocks of long-term success.
My name is Lela Barker, and I foster emerging creative brands by infusing your passion with the experience and strategic tools needed to evolve passion into a sustainable business. I work with makers and product designers on the move: jewelers, stationers, ceramicists, apparel and accessory designers, candle makers, beauty brands and some of the best damn gourmet food companies on the planet.
I founded my first company, an apothecary brand named Bella Lucce, in 2003. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing at the time, and I made some intensely painful mistakes along the way: the kind that set my confidence back a few steps, the kind with zeros on the end, and the kind whose ripples I felt for years afterward.
But I also enjoyed a degree of success that I could never have imagined when I founded the company as a single mama of two toddlers. The kind that’s reflected in a well-worn passport, the freedom to design your future, and the confidence of knowing that you can achieve absolutely anything you put your mind to.
I launched Lucky Break in 2012 to support my friends, colleagues, and the artisan community by sharing the hard-won lessons gathered on my journey. Today’s makers and creative entrepreneurs are offering so much more than a product- we’re sharing soul and passion and purpose, neatly delivered via meaningful products designed (and often created) with our own hands. But many of us are walking the entrepreneurial path alone, spinning our wheels, burning ourselves out, and missing key opportunities.
Lucky Break is the embodiment of everything I wish I had known when I founded my first company. It’s an opportunity to avoid the pitfalls, frustrations, and resource drains that too often ambush the journey. It’s a chance to get things right the first time or reinvent what’s not working and build a brand with strong architecture at its core and a gorgeous vision to share with the world. I created these products and services because I’m intimately familiar with the kind of work you do, and I know how to make that work more efficient, less painful, and heaps more rewarding.
I invite you to pour yourself a glass of wine (Malbec for me, please) and make yourself at home. I hope that Lucky Break nourishes both your intellect and your heart, empowering you to put more beauty out into the world while creating a life you love. I’ll be cheering you on every step of the way!