Entrepreneur to the Core.
Hi there! I'm Tammy Myers. With nearly 20 years of experience in sales, marketing and ecommerce, I've spent the last 12 years owning a business on Seattle's Eastside. What sets me apart from other consultants is my dynamic background.
Right out of college, I planned to change the world as an elementary teacher. Managing a room full of youngsters takes patience and more patience. A few years later, I positioned myself into corporate delivery operations supporting The Boeing Company. This was a fantastic chapter of managing training schedules for manufacturing certifications in the aerospace industry.
In 2008, I joined Expedia Inc. to work on the lodging and hotel sales team and eventually moved to media campaign management. I wouldn't realize it until later, but this experience proved to be pivotal in my future entrepreneurship.
Making a business in flowers.
In 2013, I left my corporate career after a case of burnout. That following year, I earned a Professional Certification in Marketing at the University of Washington. Midway through the course, I decided to start a small business in flowers.
Working out of my tiny kitchen and juggling the responsibilities of motherhood, I started selling flowers throughout the Greater Seattle area. Weddings, events, holidays, restaurants, pop-ups, workshops, I did it all. Those first couple years were hard, but I managed to stay afloat. In time, I developed a real passion for local delivery. Minimizing product offerings and repetition in services meant higher profits. I had found the sweet spot, but it came at a cost - pure exhaustion!
10+ Years of Immeasurable Skillsets
The first decade of my business was in the floral industry. During that time, I built two brands. My original floral business, First & Bloom always sold flowers to the public. However, Lora Bloom evolved from a start-up mobile app company to the consulting business it is today. People who believe the floral industry is just "playing with flowers," couldn't be more wrong. It's a hard business to be in. The skills I've learned are immeasurable and very transferable.
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In 2018...
Demand for local and sustainable products spiked with the rise of eco-friendly consumers. With online retail lacking a truly online floral marketplace dedicated to sourcing only sustainable florals, I took a massive risk, investing thousands of dollars to build a mobile app known as LORA Bloom. While the app never fully launched, I did develop a prototype marketplace on Shopify which debuted in early 2020 just days before Covid-19 hit the U.S. It definitely wasn't ideal timing.
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All of 2020...
In spite of Covid, I pressed on building the LORA Bloom brand. It wasn't easy but clever marketing and sales strategies, plus having several strong local partnerships, LORA Bloom managed to keep the lights on. That year, I even made the cover of 425 Business Magazine and landed the largest single sale in business history. However by spring of 2021, it became clear LORA Bloom ran out of steam. Then something interesting happened - everyone wanted local products and services!
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2022 was booming...
Shifting my efforts back to First & Bloom, LORA Bloom took a back seat. Cutting out customized services like weddings and events, I focused solely on local floral delivery. Operating at 60% profitability on local delivery alone and plans to grow in 2023, all the hard work was finally paying off. However, I worked the business entirely by myself and it was running me!
With a vision to scale business in the year year, life had other plans for me no one saw coming.
In tragedy, new opportunities can bloom.
Early in January of 2023, I experienced a personal tragedy changing the course of my life forever. My neighbor was killed by a tree on our property. I was the first one on the scene. It destroyed me. Struggling mentally for most of 2023, I lost my passion for selling flowers. PTSD is very real. With professional help and rediscovering the new me, I made the very difficult decision to permanently close First & Bloom. It wasn't easy. My flower business was my identity.
Not wanting to leave the floral industry or the small business community I had spent so long creating, I stumbled on consulting and a new opportunity presented itself.
I love business.
In high school, one of my teachers gave this silly quiz on narrowing down future careers. All of my classmates scored to be nurses, lawyers, police officers. I literally remember one of my suggestions was floral business owner. I thought being a business owner was too far out of reach - I wasn't smart enough for that.
All of my part-time jobs leading up to college graduation and becoming a teacher were retail and even floristry. I was good at it. It never dawned on me maybe I was meant to make a career out of business.
It wasn't until many many years later I found my passion selling flowers and realized how much I loved business! Like, I love learning about businesses and strategizing ways to grow sales, create products and retail loyal customers. Some of my favorite shows are Shark Tank and The Profit.
