We had the good fortune of connecting with Alex Blomstrom and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Alex, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, I was sent home from college and finished up the semester virtually, like so many students across the country. With quarantine and an increase of time on my hands, I was searching for a new hobby to pour my time into. I started playing around with the Cricut my brother and I had gotten our mom for Christmas, and I fell in love with the process of creating apparel and bringing concepts for shirts to wear to life. Everything going on in the world was so dark and heavy, so I started creating a few happy and simplistic designs centered around the idea of spreading kindness with the goal to spread some smiles and began selling them to friends and family. I started building a community on Instagram and would post each new creation there. I loved being able to connect with others and spread positivity through my creations. It was at this point that my passion project turned into Alex Blom Creates, and I began to pour all of my time and energy into building the brand. My goal with Alex Blom Creates has always been to spread smiles, one creation at a time!
Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
When I first started Alex Blom Creates, all of the apparel in my store was made-to-order and I would use a Cricut and heat transfer vinyl to complete each order. I’d spend hours sitting on the floor in my parent’s kitchen, meticulously lining up designs onto shirts and using a small heat press to decorate each item. Over the summer of 2020, I decided I would stay home for my junior year of college since classes were virtual and I wanted to see where I could potentially take the business. I was (and still am) head over heels in love with all aspects of what I was doing: making shirts, packaging orders, planning collections, creating content, interacting with my followers, and everything in between. I poured my heart into building the brand and took to social media to document the behind-the-scenes process of it all on my Instagram stories. Each day, I would take my little community with me to the post office, share photos of orders I was creating, and talk about navigating the supply disruptions. I found that there was a lot of value in being authentic on social media and I made it a priority to show up as myself, unapologetically, each day. Through doing so, I have had the pleasure of connecting with people all over the world. Making real, human connections with others through social media has been a very rewarding part of running Alex Blom Creates. As my business grew, I began to shift my focus on how I would be able to scale the operations because I was running out of time in the day to be able to keep up with orders while making everything myself. I gradually started outsourcing the production to small printing and embroidery companies. This was incredibly rewarding for me because I was able to support another small business along the way, and also increase the quality of my products, stepping up from heat transfer vinyl to embroidery and screen printing! The process of transitioning from made-to-order to holding inventory took roughly 8 months, and in August of 2021, I moved back to State College to finish up my last year of college in person, bringing my inventory along with me and leaving the Cricut at home. Holding inventory was a dream come true for me, and I am incredibly proud to have reached this step with the business.
One of the biggest challenges I have faced since starting Alex Blom Creates has been supply chain disruptions. There was a period over the summer of 2021 where stock for most tee shirts was completely unavailable, and there was absolutely nothing I could do to combat the shortages, which was frustrating and stressful. There was one day my manufacturer had to order from upwards of 10 different distributors to fulfill an order because the stock was depleting so quickly. I learned to be more flexible and I started planning out multiple colorways for each design in case the colors were unavailable, and I planned launches out months ahead of time so I could be prepared if and when a color came back in stock.
This past year has been full of many surreal moments running the business. One of my biggest goals for Alex Blom Creates was to build a positive community on Instagram, and I have loved getting to connect with the people that follow along with my small business’ journey. They are truly the sweetest individuals! This spring, I received a DM from a girl that was wearing an embroidered tee from my shop while she was hiking in Montana. She said she ran into another girl who said she had the same shirt from my store, and the two chatted for a few minutes before parting ways. This was so special for me to hear and made my heart absolutely burst with joy. It is so beautiful to me that two people had shared a happy moment over a creation from my store, across the country in a state I had never been to.
Running Alex Blom Creates has been the most fulfilling, rewarding experience of my life. I truly learn something new every day and love being able to connect with so many people through social media. I graduate college in less than a week, and am so grateful to be continuing to run Alex Blom Creates full-time after graduation, as this was a goal I had for myself when I first started the business.
Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I am not sure if this question is framed for any city or not, but I am from Philadelphia so I can give a little itinerary for what I would do there! I am visiting Colorado for the first time this summer and think it might be where I move to within the next year or two.
If my best friend was visiting, I would take them to the sports complex on Broad Street to catch a game, whether it be the Phillies, Sixers, or the Eagles. The atmosphere at the games is always such a blast and I would love for them to experience it. The next day I would take them for a walk through Center City, stopping to take photos at City Hall and Love Park. We would walk to Old City and through the grassy area outside of the Constitution, stopping in the biggest Wawa right down the road. One evening, we would definitely head to the One Liberty Observation Deck to watch the sunset over the city. The views are absolutely unreal! Also on the itinerary would be a walk down Boathouse Row and a visit to the art museum. While we are there, we can climb the Rocky Steps and walk down the parkway, admiring all of the flags lining the street. For dinner we can grab cheesesteaks at a variety of places, but my personal favorite is Dalessandro’s!
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My shoutout is dedicated to my amazing mom! She has supported my small business dreams wholeheartedly from day one, and I never would have made it to where I am today without her endless kindness and encouragement. My mom is the kindest person I know and has inspired me to always pursue my passions. This year, I was able to dedicate a design to her: The Do All Things With Love heart person design. When I was a little girl, my mom would leave my notes in my lunchboxes of stick figure doodles with heart-shaped bodies. This year, I worked with a graphic designer to bring her heart person to life and the Do All Things With Love design was born! The heart person is named Renee, after my mom, who truly embodies the saying. It was really special to be able to dedicate this to her since she had supported my endeavors from the beginning when I was hand-making items in our dining room!
Website: alexblomcreates.com
Instagram: @alexblom.creates (https://www.instagram.com/alexblom.creates/)
Facebook: Alex Blom Creates (https://www.facebook.com/alexblom.creates/)
Other: Tiktok: @alexblom.creates