Chunks Chats: About Building a Creative Business

Introducing: Chunkonomics. Are we economists? Do we have formal training in this area? No. No, not really. But we have hot takes, and we're giving you our thoughts on the possible recession (is it coming? are we in one...? whats happening? ) We're just a small baby business but we're coming out of January with some big plans and we have to take all factors into account. If you're a small biz owner...

Today Tiffany's chatting with our first EVER guest, Rebecca Schwartz Altholz. Rebecca studied Sustainability Management at Columbia University and now devotes the majority of her time to environmental sustainability education as well as Sustainability Consulting. She's passionate about shifting the mindset around the expectation of perfection that we hold ourselves, others and especially brands to...

In this episode, Tiffany and Christine talk about our experiences working with our Chinese manufacturers. Listen to how Tiffany found her overseas manufacturers and now that her team has expanded, how they approach relationship building and vetting new manufacturers as a small company. Sponsored by Chunks.

Today we are ONE WITH THE UNIVERSE. We gave Chunks a tarot reading, talked about our astrological charts, and Tiffany might have talked about Aliens. Taking a look at our team's charts, we also discussed how we approach the dynamics within our fun lil company. We can't totally remember because we were astral projecting ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

How do we know what's really going on with our manufacturers? Especially when we aren't onsite with them?? Today we're talking about Social Audits. These are the audits used by many companies to better understand how manufacturers' pay and manage their workers. We'll discuss who creates the criteria for audits, how they work, and what they look like for both buyers and suppliers.

One of Tiffany's most frequently asked questions is where she gets her design inspo from. She talks about her general approach of finding inspo, her experience in fashion school and how she puts a collection together. She shares her opinions on what trends and style actually are and has some strong feelings about fashion's role in society.

This is a casual episode where Tiffany and Christine discuss their thoughts after having a couple weeks off for Holidays. They chat about relaxing (and why it's so hard), New Years Resolutions, good habits they want to cultivate and bad habits they want to let go of. They also share their mindsets going back into work at Chunks and looking ahead into 2023. Tiffany and Christine ask themselves, can...

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery...supposedly. How does Chunks deal with the dupes of our products? Is there anything we can do about it? How much does it matter? On this episode, we discuss our history with dupes as individuals (knockoffs, anyone?) and how they have affected our business. This one is a wild ride, you've been warned. 😤

Planning for an entire year can definitely be daunting, so we're talking about how we make our Master Plans at Chunks. Taking the big vision of our company and connecting it to each team member and their work, we talk about the value of planning, even when it doesn't pan out *quite* how you thought it would.

We love our manufacturers and having our products proudly "Made in China," but we wanted to delve into the origins of negative stereotypes about Chinese manufacturing. In this episode, we discuss the nuances that come into play when international trade policies, human rights, industrialization, and consumerism meet.

2021 was a great year for Chunks so, naturally, Tiffany decided to spend a light 100K on a few things to *hopefully* boost the business to the next level -- email marketing, a branding refresh and a business consultant. Did it work or was it a fail? Investing back in your business can be scary but sometimes necessary. Follow along as Tiffany recounts her investments, one by one.

Nobody's perfect--including us! Tiffany and Christine get real about the things the team has discovered on our journey to be as sustainable, ethical, and transparent as possible. While we've learned a lot, there is so much room for improvement, and this episode is about owning our contradictions, being honest about where we are in our journey, and expanding our perspectives.

We LOVE an All Hands Meeting because our small business has a big vision and it's imperative that all our team members are on board. Building a work culture that emphasizes collaboration and creativity relies on transparency at all levels and a safe place for us to dream, and our All Hands meetings are a core part of making this happen. Listen to all the topics we covered in our meeting and how we...

Tiffany's got craft shows on the brain as she starts her 2022 Holiday Tour. Craft shows like Renegade and West Coast Craft are held every season to bring together local makers and artists to offer the most unique and fun shopping experience to thousands of people. Knowing how to get prepared for these shows can be a bit overwhelming so Tiffany, who's been vending at craft shows for 8 years, gives...

Benefits can be a black hole for a lot of leaders and business owners -- they're intentionally complicated to enroll in, it can seem like you need a degree just to understand what your insurance covers, and who even knows what their 401k is invested in?! Christine and Tiffany discuss how tf to make sure your employees know how to use their benefits, and how to center the values of your business in...

Tiffany recently came back from a psilocybin weekend and returned with some wild self discoveries. Listen to Tiffany and Christine discuss their thoughts on self development, what led them to trying ~substances~ to enhance their journey, and what inner knowledge has to do with their outlook on business and career development. Disclaimer: we don't endorse drugs, but like, do what you want.

We've got collaborations on the brain! We're in the middle of doing several at the moment and this has Tiffany and Christine thinking about all the collabs we've done over the years. Brand collaborations come in all shapes and sizes. Tiffany and Christine share their approach when it comes to collabs, what pitfalls to watch out for, and how to maximize the value exchange of partnerships.

Chunks has been on a journey to be an environmentally conscious brand from the beginning, and now we're taking the next step to be Climate Neutral certified! What does that even mean? What is involved? What is greenwashing? What does it mean to be a brand trying to sell a product AND trying to reduce emissions when the majority of emissions come from businesses? Listen to our Operations Director,...

Tiffany recounts her personal journey from her previous business started in 2012 and through the past few years building Chunks. A fashion and accessories designer by trade, Tiffany has been full time in her small businesses for the past ten years. From her astrological destiny (a STELLIUM in Aries), to being Tumblr famous, to growing a business from 1 to 14 employees--she discusses being broke, g...