Junior Reese Lynch has her own jewelry business as a high schooler called Reesespeaceandlove. She has been making jewelry her whole but started this business during quarantine. There have been positives and negatives that came out of her experience. 

     From the beginning, Lynch has always had a love for making different kinds of jewelry. She started this new business because she “wanted to find a way to make money over quarantine.” This was also a way to fill her time, as students were in virtual school for a while. Jewelry is a way to get creative and make new things, which is entertaining to people who don’t have a lot going on.

     Wanting to do something like this might require some support back from home. Lynch says, “both of my parents were super helpful throughout the whole thing because they would always try to supply stuff for me.” Starting off a business with little income and having to supply the materials needed could be an issue. With people from your personal life being supportive and ready to help, its easier to get the supplies you need.

     Speaking of income, Lynch mentions the amount the materials cost compared to what she was selling for was about the same. Not overpricing items can result in more people wanting to buy. As she does have different types of jewelry, it will take more materials to buy in the end. 

     The different types of jewelry she puts out include rings, necklaces, and earrings. With rings costing $5, necklaces $7, and each pair of earrings are $8. She says she gets her inspiration from either “Pinterest or keeping an open-mind with seeing the new trends people like.” It can be challenging trying to figure out what people would be interested in based on new trends that occur. 

     Having a business as a teenager involves taking time out of your busy schedule to work on what needs to be done. Lynch brings up that depending on the type of jewelry it can either take up to 5 or 40 minutes. She also needs to come up with new ideas to keep buyers interested.

     With school starting this year, she doesn’t have enough time to be updating her business as much as she did during quarantine. Lynch uses Depop @reeselynch or her Instagram @reesespeaceandlove. She has pictures of all the different jewelry so it’s easy for buyers to know what type of jewelry is sold. With “good quality and trendy accessories, it only had good reviews!” says Lynch. 

     Having a small business as a high schooler can be a way to take up free time and get creative. It also takes time and money to put out items for people to buy/enjoy. supporting small businesses can be a way to spread positivity throughout the school.