Meet Annabel Martinez | Small business owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Annabel Martinez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Annabel, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
A piece if conventional advice i disagree with is “ work smart , not hard “. As a small business owner, hard work is what makes your business thrive. You need to put in the hours ,the research , the trial and error .. the physical work that goes into each order .there’s no smart way around working hard for what Is yours & what you are building a name for .

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
SouthernBel was launched in 2019. It started out as a t shirt business & slowly i added different things to expand my customer base . Now im a one stop shop for custom gifts ! I offer wooden sighs ,t shirts, tumblers , badge reels , pens etc. Basically anything you can think of to be made into a special gift for someone I can most likely make. Getting where I am was easy because I had very supportive family & customers . I did have a few challenges, self doubt being the main one but seeing people become speechless when opening their order speaks volume & that masks all the negativity that runs through my mind about my work . a lesson I’ve learned along the way is , be humble . There is enough room for everyone . even if they do exactly what you do , there’s no reason not to help another small business owner out . I may not know much but the little bit that I do I try to help others that are start their business journey .

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I would start out by taking them to “Another time soda fountain” in downtown Rosenberg . There we would grab a milkshake and head to Houston to take a walk through Herman park ,& after we’d make our way to the hill to listen to some live music. The next day wed grab breakfast at Ritas in Rosenberg and spend our day at traders village .

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?
I can list each of my family members individually. My parents ,Boyfriend , & all 4 of my sisters sisters .. They all show support in their own ways . But the 2 main people Id love to give a shout out to are my dad & boyfriend . All the hours theyve spent listening to ideas , helping with orders or just sitting in my work room keeping me company , makes me realize I have 2 of the most supportive men in my life who want nothing but success for me .

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Facebook: www.facebook.com/SouthernBelCustomCreations

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Image Credits
id like to say thank you to my family & customers for always supporting me & getting southern bel this far . it wouldn’t have been possible without all of you