Maria Von Losch’s first love was drawing, then creative writing. When she was a little girl, she styled her own lookbooks from Fashion Plates and still have them today packed away in a box. She never would have thought it would lead her to opening her own store at age 22, moving onto lifestyle PR, branding and creative content producing – to styling personal clients, magazine editorials, campaigns and herself for her blog – savvynista.com. She also became a published author of two books available on Amazon HERE at the end 0f 2016. You can also spot her on the morning news in San Diego talking all things fashion and style. Read more about the lovely Maria below…

What motivated and inspired you to start your own business?

I wanted to get back to my creative roots while using new technology, such as social media, to reach people I otherwise wouldn’t be able to reach.

Tell us about your business.

To sum it up if I had to, I’m a Digital and Content Creator. Specifically I’m a wardrobe stylist, style expert, lifestyle blogger/YouTuber.

Are you currently running any promos/contests/giveaways that you would like our readers to know about?

Not at the moment but if you follow me on Instagram @savvynista that is where I post giveaways throughout the year.

List awards/certifications/accomplishments.

The standout accomplishments are Vanity Fair International Best Dressed Challenge as Editor’s Pick, styling a few of Hollywood’s young actors, opening my own store at age 22, selling a trendy product business at age 32 after owning it for 3 years, completing this wild challenge of shopping my closet for 365 days straight while blogging about it everyday with outfit photos, publishing Style Savvy: A Guide to Creating a Stylish and Wearable Wardrobe available on Amazon.

Where is your business based?

Southern California, specifically San Diego and Los Angeles.

What were the first few steps you took to get your business up and running?

I started a blog and YouTube channel first. People were catching onto my style tips and outfit inspirations then I was asked to style photoshoots and personal clients. From there it branched off into magazine editorials and morning news style segments.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness of your business and getting new customers?

Social media, more so Instagram and Facebook.

What have been your biggest challenges so far?

There’s really just two now, thank goodness, and they are consistency and being a one woman show most of the time.

How did you overcome these challenges?

I’m still figuring out what works for me to create more consistency with blogging and creating new videos for my YouTube channel.

How do you keep motivated through difficult times?

I’ll do something fun, get outside, visit or call a friend, spend time with my family and watch motivational speakers on YouTube. Being part of a community, whatever it is, helps too.

How do you distinguish yourself from your competitors?

For me I focus on what I know the best, communicate it as much as possible and show my human side aka zany personality. Whenever I stray from “myself” because I see what others are doing and try that, people don’t respond as much.

What is the best advice you have received recently?

There is nobody else like you in the world and this is worth celebrating rather than searching for faults.

What advice would you give to other entrepreneurs?

Have a business plan written out. It doesn’t have to be a formal plan. A basic outline of what you want to accomplish in the first year, second and third. Write out short-term and long-term goals. What’s your end goal for your business and your exit strategy if it grows or doesn’t. Have all these things written out and look at it every month.

What is your favorite business tool or resource?

I like to use Mint app for self-employed, for keeping on a blogging/social media schedule. CoSchedule is great, mailing list/newsletters either Mailchimp or Convertkit (I’m still learning this one). I still love reading articles online from Inc. and Entrepreneur magazine.

What social media outlets do you use? List them below.

Instagram @savvynista
Twitter @mariavonlosch
Facebook www.facebook.com/savvynista
Website www.savvynista.com
Email maria@savvynista.com
Hashtags #savvynista #stylesavvy

What is a good article or book you have read recently?

I wish I can say I recently read a book, but sadly I haven’t. Articles I read daily, that’s a given. It’s usually about style, brands, blogging, social media – topics revolving around my industry. The one interesting thing I’ve read that probably wouldn’t pertain to most women reading this is about the mid-level tiered social influencers. The one’s who have between 50k to 150k followers on Instagram. If they have high engagement (likes and comments) more brands are seeking them for collaborations than the influencers with a huge following.

What are you currently learning about for your business or looking for help with?

I’m currently learning how to branch off into creating online courses and developing a community via Facebook Group. It’s in infancy stage right now, but excited to launch by summer.

What are your goals for the next few months and how are you striving to achieve them?

My main goal is to implement more pre-planning, reaching out to local companies for projects and creating a doable YouTube schedule for my videos.