A rainy Sunday, a blog Sunday!
Hello, girls, on this gloomy Sunday I decided to come here for a few lines of conversation, may I?
Then let's go 💪🏻!
This week was marked by my trip, girls; after 5 months, I could finally get out a bit and have a change of scenery, I really needed this! This trip had been booked for a long time and I almost couldn't go. As you know, my husband suffered a nasty and difficult-to-recover injury; I really thought he wouldn't be able to accompany me 😔. These last few weeks he did everything possible and impossible to be able to come with me and, even though more debilitated, off we went on this adventure, yes, because it was a great adventure!
I love Istanbul, just as I love Bologna, Madrid or Paris, places where I have already travelled for business, but Istanbul is magical!
Here we go: for about 6 years in a row, we have made so many friends; the energy of that city is contagious, I love it! Nothing hurts there! So, I wanted to take my husband there for him to see our acquaintances and feel that energy of life, of mixing cultures, of styles.
We see people who have had operations on their teeth, hair, nose, buttocks; Istanbul is also very advanced in aesthetics. Istanbul has fashion, it has decor, it has wonderful gastronomy and divine desserts, I love that city!
It wasn't easy, because, with David on crutches and also the city being so old, the streets and alleys full of people, with very steep ups and downs, not to mention stairs — all shops have stairs, either to the 1st floor or to a basement — there aren't many accesses for reduced mobility, but where there's a will there's effort, everything gets resolved!
It ended up being light, I didn't visit everything I wanted, but it was enough; at least it didn't rain, which was already very good!
The shop was in very good hands with Sara and Mel, they did a fantastic job; my children in the back office, which gave us peace and quiet.
We managed to relax a little; for at least 2 years I hadn't been able to feel this confidence to leave the shop with truly responsible people.
I don't want to be ungrateful to anyone and I am, in a way, grateful for everyone who passed through there, but so many people who passed through until now had never been "the ones". It's no secret to anyone that the job market is very difficult, but very difficult indeed, in all areas. I've had the shop for 22 years, where for 20 years we were practically always the same; having to change everything was very, very complicated.
We have to give young people opportunities in the job market, but in a shop like mine, experience and professionalism are very important, as that's what we got used to for 20 years. The lack of that ruins years of work. It is obvious that it is sometimes difficult to work with me, because I can't work with people who just do their hours; I can't work with people who lack common sense and then I have countless flaws, because I'm not used to these modern ways. For me, any customer who enters the shop is sacred; whoever works for me has to pay attention to the physical customer, because they are the reason we have an open door. I am a person who likes almost everyone, but never, in these last two years, have I had someone in the shop that I would say "I can leave feeling calm because my customer will be in good hands". All of them had their value, but none with the love for customer service, with a passion for what they do. For 2 years I felt trapped, suffocated, because I was back in the shop for almost 8 hours, with no time to create content, no time to do things, no time to simply go to the doctor, to the gym, to have lunch with a friend, to see a collection during the day, basic things that any colleague in the profession does... How many times have I made videos or live streams completely exhausted; I work up to 12 hours a day. Did I sell more? No! Was I happy? No! Have you ever thought that for 2 years I couldn't even afford to get the flu, because I had to open and close the shop on time... In the midst of all this, without forgetting that I have a life outside the shop... It was very bad: you get to think that you really are a very bad person, because no one completely pleased me — but because I felt that my shop customer was suffering from it during some moments when I was absent. Online, everything went on as normal; no one notices anything, because as long as they are well served, everything is fine and it never changed, because I was always attentive, with the help of my loved ones, so that nothing would fail — out of sight, out of mind — that was the easiest part to overcome 🥰.
With all this text, I want to say that finally, at this moment, I have someone who truly meets all the requirements to serve my shop customer, who means so much to me and is so valued.
I think Sara and I have a professional chemistry that is noticeable to everyone who visits us in the shop. Sara provides exemplary, very professional service, with great passion for everything she does, she is educated, cheerful, intelligent and has a striking laugh that can infect everyone. I think anyone who is reading this blog and has had the pleasure of meeting her can leave their testimony here. I want to say that there are still good professionals, but I regret to say that they are few in this current generation — that is my sincere opinion and from my own experience!
To conclude, I have a family business, where I work daily with my husband and my children and, then, Sara... This team, at the moment, allows me to be more creative; everyone has been super important: the shop being well managed, the warehouse being well managed, Carla can finally be a normal person, take a few days to travel, can see a collection in the afternoon, can record a video during working hours — and that is so important! Confidence returns, the energy to try new things, to be creative, begins to bear fruit. More customers in the shop, more partnerships, more contacts!
I think that when you do things with love, the results are obvious. Sara never made videos and just look how well she did? Super well, it seemed like she had always done this — she even dances 🤣.
A versatile team, where even my Eduardo Valente has done wrapping in the warehouse — which has nothing to do with what he does 😂. Everyone, absolutely everyone, has been incredible during this more complicated phase I went through.
This week I'm going to introduce you to Mel 🍯, a sweet, young girl, but completely out of current parameters, helpful, polite, calm and intelligent.
Finally a team worthy of me; I hope for a long time, to finally have more emotional stability ❤️.
I don't want to be ungrateful and I can't forget our @Bruno Sousa, who puts up with us every week and, even on Sunday, publishes my blog — thank you, Bruno, you are, without a doubt, also very important to us!
I apologize if I'm being too corny and nostalgic, but this is my blog, where I write with my heart and what's in my soul; if it's not like that, it doesn't make sense to me ♥️
Soon we will give birth 💡 to our baby, who has already brought us tears, arguments, doubts, but so, so much love 🫶.
Thank you to everyone who works with me and puts up with my flaws and qualities; thank you for being there reading the blog, watching the videos or even just observing without speaking up, thank you!
Have a great week everyone and never stop visiting us, whether virtually or in our physical store ♥️
A huge kiss in your hearts 💕
With love
Carla Valente
