LuLaRoe Business Start-Up

Ok - so the last month I have been contemplating (as in overtaking my brain obsessing with) becoming a LuLaRoe Consultant and I've been googling and pinteresting (if that's a word?) looking for blog posts and articles to read on the steps to joining LuLaRoe and to get my questions answered but I'm not finding EXACTLY what I'm looking for.... So what do I decide to do? Create my own posts! This is post #1 about my business venture and I plan to document the entire process in case others out there are wondering the same questions as me! 

Ok, so what is LuLaRoe and why am I interested? 

LuLaRoe is a clothing line that is sold by independent consultants. It is a very young company, under 5 years old and is on track to hit $70 million in sales this year because the clothes are that amazing and they have a very successful business model. The sizing ranges to fit all bodies and styles and there are many clothing styles to choose from. One of the things I like about LuLaRoe is the variety of patterns. They only make a set number of items per pattern (only about 200 per size!!) so if myself and my BFF or neighbor are both consultants and place our orders for inventory, chances are we won't get ANY of the same pieces! This allows us to offer more options to our network. I also love that the pieces are flattering for all body shapes and sizes and help make women feel comfortable in their own skin. I love helping others feel confident and feel good about themselves and this is just another way! Plus, I also love that they have kids clothes! My daughter as a pair of LLR leggings and it's her favorite because they are so comfy and I know they will fit her for at least another year or two based on how the sizing works! One of my favorite items is the Julia which I even wore throughout my recent pregnancy and got more compliments than with any other outfits! 

Not only do I like the clothes but I like the business opportunity. I have some experience with marketing both through my career as well as my Younique business and enjoy marketing and networking. I like that it is something that can be done from home in my own time providing additional income for my family for extra money. I also love the idea of growing an online network and meeting other women, making new friendships and learning from others! :)

So I'm interested in joining. Now what do I do? 

This is what I was having a hard time finding the exact steps. I was looking for everything to be spelled out for me so I'm sharing with you! 

1. You need to find a Sponsor. Your Sponsor is someone that will provide you with the documents needed to sign up and give you guidance through the process plus provide you training once you onboard! This person is key to your success so make sure to ask lots of questions and make sure it is someone you are comfortable with and can learn from. (If you don't already have a sponsor I'm happy to chat and discuss the business with you. You can email me at LuLaRoeErinRosario@gmail.com). 

2. One you find a Sponsor, you need to fill out your basic information to start the process of getting into the queue. Once you fill out the basic information you will receive your Consultant ID # to get the process started.  You will receive an email explaining to you what documents you need to fill out and email back to onboarding@lularoe.com.  The documents are:

-Signed independent Consultant Agreement (first and last page only)

-Voided check (see below for more details)

-Initial package (inventory related)

-Consultant ID (provided for you after you give your basic information when signing up

The voided check is for your payments to be set up. There is NO payment or credit card information due at this time. This was a huge area of research for me! I did not want to give payment information right away until the order was actually placed. There will be no credit card information required until you have your onboarding call and they actually place your initial order. This made me feel much more comfortable!

3.  What is the cost? 

The start up cost depends on your initial order. It tends to be between $5,000-$6,000 for 300+ pieces. That scared me away at first but don't let it!! That cost is paying for all those items and you can more than double your profit. For example, my initial order is about $5,200 but if I sell all the inventory it will sell for just over $12,000!!!!  That's more than double my initial investment. I'll take it!

I look at it this way - if I get my order and hate running the business, I will more than make back my investment. The company also offers to buy back items for a 15% restocking fee so you still do not lose out on money. I feel like you never know unless you try something if it's for you so what's to lose?! I always find success with taking risks and it helps me learn and grow so this is just another adventure I'm excited to start!! 

4.  What next? 

Ok, so you made the decision, signed your forms and filled out your first order form...Next you wait for your onboarding call. It can take currently from 6-8 weeks to receive the call. Only a certain amount of people are onboarded each day. During this wait time you can start getting your business and supplies ready for when your shipment comes in so you are ready to get started! (Another post will be coming on this with more details. Stay tuned)! 

5. Onboarding call - when you get this call you will confirm your order over the phone (it can be changed at this point if you want) and give your form of payment. You can pay in any form or multiple forms of payment to get started. 

6. Wait for your order and get ready to have fun!! Stalk UPS because it will be like Christmas morning when that delivery comes!! And start spreading the word! Plan your launch party and more! I have many other ideas and ways for you to prep your business while you wait so feel free to email me to chat if I don't get the blog posts done in time to answer your questions! I love blogging but I'm a busy mama these days! 😊 

I'm excited for my journey and sharing with you! 

~Erin Leigh

LuLaRoeErinRosario@gmail.com 

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The Next Step

So, if you didn't already know how I got this blog started, I will fill you in. ;)  I started this blog because I wanted to motivate other Moms to live a healthy balanced lifestyle through fitness and nutrition after my journey from pregnancy to getting fit.  It was no easy task but I was very determined to do it for myself and when I really started feeling great, I wanted to help others Moms to feel the same way.  After all, carrying a baby for 10 months is no easy task and takes a serious toll on our bodies!  It then moved towards motivating others in general as I received lots of feedback from people that were not Moms trying to lose the baby weight, but those who were just looking to be healthier, more fit or shed some pounds. I now, most recently signed up to be a Beachbody coach, which a few people have been curious about my reasons so why not explain... ;)   

It seemed like signing up to be a Beachbody coach fit me on many levels.  Quite honestly, I have thought about it for years and am surprised that I hadn't signed up already.  First things first, I love their products and have been using them for years - I have done Insanity, Brazil Butt Lift, T25 and now 21 Day Fix. I did Brazil Butt Lift right after both pregnancies which worked out great.  Next, I wanted to start drinking Shakeology which goes hand in hand with their workouts and proven to give better results and you get a discount as a coach. Bonus! Put those two together plus my desire to help motivate others and it seemed like a no brainer.  In addition, as a coach there are tools that help you learn and a network of awesome people that all have the same goal - to be better every day and help others!  Signing up was very self-motivating as well. You should "be a product of the product."  In other words, you can't motivate others if you are not motivating yourself.  It's helping me stay on track for sure! There are free accountability groups that are great to be a part of and there are Coach's groups to teach the ins and outs of the programs and business.  I am definitely still learning but I feel like this is a great step of self motivation minimally, and I hope to help others in the process.

That being said, if you have any questions about signing up with a free membership or as a Beachbody Coach I have learned a few things that may help your decision making. 

1. Some people sign up to be a coach just for the discount - If you like Shakeology, you receive a 25% discount off of the products. So, you can sign up as a coach just to save money on your monthly Shakeology purchases and any program purchases as well.  Many people choose this route because of the savings and they love the Shakeology (it really is amazing).

2. Other's do it to motivate - If you like the products and want to motivate others as well, you can sign up the same way, receive the discounts and have people sign up to have you as a coach. That is when it becomes self-motivating (at least for me).  You can guide people to the right programs for them and help encourage them to stay on track, get them into free accountability groups etc. You don't have to be a fitness pro.to be a coach. You just need to have the desire to help others and want to improve yourself more and more each day.

3.  Some do it as a career - Coaches make a commission off of purchases and as coaches sign up to your team, it becomes a tiered business.

4. If you aren't looking to motivate others, a cost savings or additional income, but are just looking for some direction and guidance towards finding a workout that is a fit for you can sign up with a coach for free (like me ;) ) to help motivate you and keep you on track. 

I am excited about this journey and would love others to join me. That's the point! To help each other live a healthier lifestyle.  If interested or have questions let me know. :)

 

~Erin Leigh

 

My Team Beachbody Page - where you can explore the options of a free membership or sign up as a coach.

 

My Beachbody Coach Page - where you can explore the different products including Shakeology.

 

FitFunLifestyle on Facebook :)

A New Adventure

I'm baacckkk! ;) New season, new adventures right??   In my house, we are always talking about adventures.  We take adventures down the street to check out new construction, adventures down to the basement to explore, traveling adventures and seeing new places. You name it, it's an adventure!  Well, this fall I am off on my new adventure. 

As anyone who has followed my blog knows, I began it to document my post pregnancy steps to a better and healthier and more fit me.  I like to create healthy recipes for my family and share them, try new fitness adventures and help motivate others to do the same, and document some of my favorite family memories (and some over the top parenting moments).  Last winter I stopped blogging and I have learned over the past nine months that motivating others is self motivating for me.  It helps keep me in check and helps me work extra hard on being the best I can, in many areas.  I mean, you can't try to motivate and encourage others to do something you aren't doing right?!  I have not had as much self discipline these past 9 months and I can directly link it to the timing of holidays/trip to Mexico/taking a break from blogging. 

So, here I am...nine months later ending a summer that definitely consisted of a few too many ice cream cones, s'mores and cheese burgers, more drink calories than I can count and putting workouts on the back burner and instead choosing beach trips, park trips, zoo trips, play dates, froyo dates for dinner and all the other fun things that happen with toddlers in the summer.  (I will say, it was a VERY enjoyable summer if you can't tell)! ;) Yes, I ran a few times per week, but just to maintain my fitness level and not to push myself further. But, now I am ready to push ahead.  And what better time than now, with a trip to Aruba in less than 4 months to get ready for!

So, what is my new adventure you might ask?  I am starting with the 21 Day Fix which is a workout by Beachbody and ordered Shakeology for the first time to go along with it!  It just came yesterday so the plan is to start Sunday (I like starting things at the beginning of the week). I am getting my hubby on board too! :) The 21 Day Fix is 30 minute videos once per day paired with portion control to lose weight/reset/tone up.  Shakeology is a meal replacement shake you drink once per day that is supposed to curb cravings, increase energy levels and has several other health benefits! I am excited to see if it increases our energy level because we are always exhausted! I am looking at this as an end of summer jump start for myself! :) I plan to follow it up with another workout once I complete it.

Now is the time for me to get back on track! Is anyone else feeling the same way?  That being said, I would LOVE a few people to join me in doing it to be in a little group and keep each other accountable!  If you are interested in checking it out first you can check out the 21 Day Fix .  It is highly encouraged to purchase Shakeology with it. There are thousands of success stories with this one shake a day meal replacement, but I can't say from experience because I haven't tried it yet. I will let you know after my 30 days of it, but they do recommend better results pairing the workout with the shakes!

So there you have it! I am back! :)

~Erin Leigh

Say "Cheese"

Does anyone else love pictures as much as me?  My kids sometimes will pick up my phone and instead of saying "hello" and pretend to talk to someone, they put it in front of their face and say "cheese" because they are so used to me taking their picture.  I can't help it.  I love documenting their little lives and love looking back at the progression of them changing from newborns to the little toddlers they are now.  Same thing with my husband...it's nice to look back at pictures of when we were first together and see how our relationship has evolved. So many memories made. I love reminiscing! (Although, when looking back, I also am reminded how much older we look now! I blame it on the kids)!  No but really, pictures tell a story and I love them!

This fall I decided it is necessary for us to have family pictures done yearly.  Our last family picture was when Anya was born, so it seemed to make sense to do them in the fall, 1 year later. I have always wanted to do the fall family pictures with the fall foliage and matching outfits! So...we did it!

We had them done by Leah Martin from Leah Martin Photography. She actually did our wedding photos 4 1/2 years ago when she worked for another company and since then, has started her own business.  We loved her as our wedding photographer so I wanted to use her again!  I loved everything about our wedding day and she captured our day so perfectly!  Here are some images from our photobook...

Not only did she get the look everyone wants to see...his face when I walked down the aisle...(And yes, those were tears of joy) ;)

...but she also captured my complete happiness when I saw him :)

Love this...especially my Dad kissing my cheek :)

Love these two with my girls...

 



Some of my favorite humans all together.

Shakin it

One of the funniest moments captured!  The guys were cheering and the girls were shocked because the DJ said, "I think this is the best looking bridal party I have ever seen...and the girls aren't that bad either!" Haha!

Love the reflection photo!

So that was a little walk down memory lane, and another reminder of how much older I look!  Anyways, like I mentioned, this fall we had Leah do our family pictures!  Once again, we were very happy with how they came out! We met at Forest Park on an overcast Sunday.  I was slightly nervous about the weather when I woke up in the morning, but the pictures came out great. It even started to rain at the end (thankfully at the end) so we got a few cute shots in the rain.  Talk about creative! :)
Here are a few...

Yes, Anya is already posing in pictures.



Love candid photos! :)

Love this :)



My little loves!



Another reflection photo :)
 
 

Then it started to rain!




Just playing in some wet leaves...





Jaxon is actually crying in this picture...but it's so sweet.





There you have it...a peek at our fall photo shoot!  I love how our outfits came out too.  Leah had given me color scheme recommendations knowing the colors of the foliage at Forest Park.  Sometimes, although you capture every day moments at home or on the go, it's nice to have someone that has fresh ideas and some experience who can come up with creative shots and give you good quality pictures to have forever. :)  If you like these pictures you should check out her Facebook page to view some of her work. You can also view more of our family photos from the shoot here.  In addition to weddings and family photos she does maternity and newborn pictures and photos for other events as well!    Surprise! She is offering a 20% discount for anyone that uses the code FITFUN2013 now through January 1!  Gift certificates make great Christmas gifts or pictures make great gifts for yourselves!  :)  I am working on a canvas spread for our living room now!

If you are thinking about having photos done or you know someone that is you will NOT be disappointed! It's a great local small businesses to support! :) 

~Erin Leigh

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