Meet the Staff: Retail and Sales Consultant, Tenille West
Q: What is your name and role at ArtUs Co?
A: Hey y’all, my name is Tenille West. At ArtUs Co, I work as a Sales Associate, and — more excitingly— as their Retail and Sales Consultant.
Retail and Sales Consultant for ArtUs Co, Tenille West. Photo courtesy of Tenille West.
Q: What goes into your role? How do you go about advising vendors and thinking up / executing strategies?
A: As a retail and sales consultant, my role is to help our vendors build and execute sales + business strategies for scaling their brand at ArtUs Co, in the Austin community, and beyond. My mission is to simply help them grow their business in any way possible.
My responsibilities include: visual merchandising, being up-to-date with the latest market and product trends, studying and monitoring sales statistics and customers’ preferences, devising strategies to promote and sell products to prospective customers, and researching professional and creative opportunities for vendors to expand their businesses.
I use my educational background in business administration, entrepreneurship, and consumer psychology to guide my decisions in innovating and executing solutions for improving a vendor’s brand presence. As a business owner, I can resonate with each vendor's entrepreneurial journey—and the long excessive work hours and back-breaking headaches that come with operating a small business. Building a sustainable business is not an easy task. At times, I find myself being a cheerleader for our vendors who need that little extra boost of motivation to keep pushing through!
Q: Tell me about your favorite part of the job.
A: During a retail consultation, I always ask the vendors, “What are your goals with your brand? What is the “big dream” you’re striving to fulfill? The moment they begin to speak, I position myself to listen and observe the light that ignites brightly within them as they discuss everything they’ve been dreaming about—everything they’re hoping for, working up to, expecting to manifest.
This is my favorite part of the job (besides the employee discount). Observing their passions and the joy that comes from verbally dreaming. (Without being a total cliché) I absolutely love hearing people talk about their wildest dreams and what they’re aspiring to accomplish within their lives. This is what I love the most about my job; this is my driving force to work hard and strive for success within my career at ArtUs Co.
Q: What are you most likely to be doing when you’re not working?
A: If I’m not hanging out at ArtUs Co, you’ll most likely find me in my home studio working on my sustainable designer label, FLORAL SEA.
As a multidisciplinary artist, I build my own style through utilizing a combination of media you would typically find in fashion design and studio art. My work consists of mixed-media illustrations and paintings, embellished art prints, and textile, fashion, and jewelry design.
Through my body of work, I explore the complex cultural narratives ingrained in both my African and Latin heritage while utilizing art and fashion as both the subject and medium. I consider my designs to be creative, unapologetic representations of my self-exploration in understanding my racial identity as a Afro-Latina in the 21st century. I acquire inspiration from the multicultural beauty, afro-street culture, contemporary multimedia art installations, and my wild obsession with flowers.
If I’m not in my studio designing, you’ll most likely find me slouched on my bed binge-watching a trashy reality tv series with my #1 bestie, my cat Potatoe. We’re currently watching season 3 of Netflix’s The Circle.
Q: How did you end up at ArtUs Co?
A: I ask myself that question everyday at work - “How did I get here…hmm?”
Oh, I remember! I just finished the spring semester of my junior year at UT Austin and I needed a summer job. After being self-quarantined for over a year due to the pandemic, I didn’t have any money and I needed cash... like, fast. I launched my designer label in February, and my goal was to find a job that would allow me to work on building my business while making some extra money on the side.
I’d recently signed up as a Patreon member for Almost Real Things (A.R.T.), an art publication based in Austin, Texas. Through the platform, I received an email notification from Natalie, the co-founder of A.R.T., about a job opportunity at ArtUs Co (Big shoutout to my gurl Natalie for connecting me with Josh who later gave me a job. Thanks, sis!).
I wanted to keep my options open, so I responded to the email 2 weeks later during my job search. I honestly didn’t think the position would still be available. I did my research (on Google, lol) and knew that ArtUs Co was too cool of a place to pass up. If a position was still available, then I knew that there was a place for me and I was meant to be there.
Within 3 days, Natalie connects with the executive director and I get a Calendy invite for an in-person interview. And the rest is history!
Q: Do you have a favorite vendor at the moment?
A: Ah, this shouldn’t even be a question! How dare you make me choose!?
Honestly, it’s kind of hard to choose just one item in a store of +30,000 amazing, locally-made products. There’s just way too many, but I do have a top “5” at the moment. The reviews are in and we can call the list “Tenille’s Favorite Things 2021.”
Sage Green Sundries’ Patchwork Oven Mitts and Potholders (the stitch work is I-M-P-E-C-C-A-B-L-E. And, they look absolutely adorable in the kitchen)
Forever Pressed’s Rose Bud Resin Necklaces (flowers are definitely a girl’s best friend and they deserved to be heavily coated in resin and worn around my neck)
White Cloud’s Strawberry Passion and Hills Country Peach Scented Incense Sticks (if you were chillin’ in the same room with Strawberry Shortcake and her bestie Peach Blush, the room would smell exactly like these incense sticks - and I’m absolutely here for it! Artificial strawberries and peaches never smelled SO good.)
Home with Hound’s Knitted Pet Sweaters (like, who says sweaters are just for people!? Get your pet fashionable and warm for the fall/winter season with a cozy, handmade sweater. I’m definitely buying on for my bestie, Potatoe)
Kathy Phantastic’s Meowdy Merchandise (from the magnets to the mugs, I love absolutely everything with that lil cowboy cat. He’s so darn cute!)
You can shop Tenille’s 2021 Favs at an ArtUs Co near you!
Q: What kinds of things do you see yourself doing in the future?
A: I hope to expand my professional career as a multidisciplinary artist, designer, and fashion entrepreneur. I want to further invest into my fashion education and study abroad. I’m hoping to earn my Masters in Fashion Design with a concentration in Textile and Pattern Surface Design and my Ph.D. in Fashion Business Management. The schools that I’m currently looking at are Institut Francais de la Mode in Paris, France and Central Saint Martins - University of Arts in London, England.
My ‘big picture’ dream is to become the first Afro-Latina to own a major fashion house in the U.S as the Founder, CEO, and Head-Designer. As a designer and entrepreneur, my mission is to restyle the fashion + beauty narrative by showcasing a new movement in sustainable and ethical fashion that prioritizes fashion-forward aesthetics and cultural inclusivity at the forefront of design and brand experience. Moreover, I want to utilize both art and fashion as social agents to uplift and empower underrepresented and underserved beauty in today’s fashion scene.