Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Holloway.
Hi Lisa, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
PLSH Lyfe was birthed from my love of words and the emotions that they evoke. Growing up, my mother was an avid reader, and as a result, so are my brother and I. So much so, that in 2023 I read 34 books.
My love of words led to my love of greeting cards. As a teenager, I remember spending hours in Hallmark reading every card. Fast forward to my 20s, from Hallmark to Jewel Osco, to Walgreens, I would read them all. However, I never found one card that said what I wanted to say, so instead of purchasing one card, I found myself purchasing 2, sometimes 3 cards. To me cards were more important than gifts, heck they were the gift. I loved to watch the receiver’s body language change when reading the cards.
Life happened, but my love of greeting cards never waned. I would often find myself writing greeting card sayings in a notebook. I even wrote several short stories. Then one day in 2020, I decided to go for it. I asked one of the marketing managers at the company I worked for to create a template for me using the Adobe suite and the rest is history.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I must say that there have been a couple of bumps. The first year I launched the PLSH Lyfe Shop, I went to as many Pop=ups as I could. Consider one hour to set up, 4 hours of the pop-up, and then one more hour to break down. I had no idea how to set up a table in the beginning. If I showed you pictures, it would be laughable. But I learned, and I got better over time. The point is that I never gave up. I tried to make my tables/booths inviting. I wanted my guests (customers to feel as though they were walking into an actual store
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Here at PLSH Lyfe Shop we design and develop greeting cards that evoke emotion. The art and the words are curated by me, Lisa Holloway. Our cards have a voice that is rarely found in the marketplace. It’s a real voice, a voice of today. In addition to our greeting cards, as a result of customer requests we have expanded our design and offering to include wall art and journals. Today, we have over 50 SKUs (items). I am always thinking about the next thing, the words the design.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Every time someone picks up a card to purchase, I am elated. This is my art and soul, it’s a part of me, as a writer and an artist I am always humbly appreciative. It reminds me that I am indeed filling a gap, meeting a need, and providing a voice. Think about it, some people are not great with words, but to find a card that expresses how you feel is amazing. Putting our cards and other offerings in the hands is what makes me happy. Like they really like our products. They are really using their hard-earned money to purchase PLSH Lyfe products. I am humbled every time. Our cards can be found on our website www.plshlyfe.com, at Navy Pier Womens Live Artist Studio, L&A Healing Studio, Mahalia’s, and Faire Wholesale. This year our goal is to be in 5-10 more locations within Chicago, Michigan, and Indiana.
Pricing:
- Greeting Cards Range from $7 – $8
- Journals range $15 – $30
- PLSH Lyfe Art begin at $50
Contact Info:
- Website: www.plshlyfeshop.com
- Instagram: plshlyfe_shop
