Transcript
Speaker: You're listening to the Kick Your Boots Up podcast, where we swap stories of the West. Whether you're just waking up or getting in for the day, come on in and kick your boots up.
Speaker: Hello, everybody, and thanks for listening to the Kick Your Boots Up podcast. I'm your host, Taylor McAdams. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and share. Tell all your friends about this, especially after watching this week's episode, which is a bonus episode here at WISA. You're not going to want to miss out on this next guest that we're about to introduce you, because I'm telling you, she's the real deal. She's a cowgirl through and through in all the ways, and has so much to say. But we're going to take the time to get to know her story. So everyone, meet Shaley Hamm. Hello. Thank you so much for having me. I can't believe I'm finally here.
Speaker: I know, and honestly, I'm honored. Thank you for being here. It's so cool to have, I mean, just your whole resume, your background, everything is so impressive to me, and I feel like I'm kind of low -key fangirling a little bit, so this is awesome. We get to have some girl time while we're here at WISA, but I want to give you the proper introduction that you deserve, because a lot of people that follow you know your story, but those out there that maybe aren't familiar or are new following and don't really know fully, I'm so impressed and inspired that you were a tax accountant.
Speaker: For seven years? Yes, I did taxes for seven years, which is so crazy to think about because that's almost a decade of doing something completely not what I'm doing now. But that's kind of what I went to college for. Instagram wasn't a thing when I was in college until about halfway through.
Speaker: after I graduated influencers weren't a thing until like years later. So I'm really dating myself when I make those comments, but it just, it is what it is. So yeah, I was a tax accountant straight out of college for seven years. Well, that's incredible. And you're not dating yourself cause girl math, you know, we all just add or take away some things. So in our eyes, you're still 17. It's fine.
Speaker: I always feel like I'm 27. I'll never age past 27. No, you won't. I completely agree. I just turned 27 yesterday. So I totally, I'm like, well, thank you. But 27 is the age. I'm like, yeah, no, not any higher. But kind of going back a little bit, I mean, I'm impressed with the number side of the influencing that you have. And it makes sense that you were a tax accountant. I'm sure people trusted you to do their taxes. What's that transition been like for you? Because was it last year you fully quit your job and became an, two years ago?
Speaker: Two years ago now, yes. Yeah, two years ago. You fully became an influencer and I feel like you're shining and rising. I think that was the best move you ever could have made. I couldn't agree more. So the funny thing is my entire seven year career as an accountant, I was also doing West Desperado. It started out not really knowing what that was, but I actually started the same year I started as accounting. So I've been doing this just as long.
Speaker: And so it was just kind of a passion project something to do for fun Get me out of the office mindset and more into like back to the Western world I grew up riding horses and around rodeo and it was kind of like my little Escape that I got to go back to that world while I was working in a high -rise and living in an apartment in the middle of Portland, Oregon and So it really
Speaker: kind of was a natural fall off once I felt comfortable leaving accounting and just like diving headfirst into West Desperado content creation full time because it was something I was still doing in the background the entire time too.
Speaker: And I think that's definitely worth mentioning because there's a lot of girls out there, no offense to anyone out there if this was you, but a lot of girls wake up one day and think, oh, I'm going to be an influencer. They make it look so easy. And you do. I've got to commend you for making it look effortlessly. Like truly the fashion, everything is so effortless. But that goes to show you worked at it for seven years and maybe each year you learned something new. You built on that and you're what's considered an OG influencer now because even though you've risen to the top and you're still one of the top, you're at least an OG that did it before you've been there. You know what works, you know what doesn't.
Speaker: And then I have to say one more thing too, because you're really good about helping others. Like you definitely are like, I'm not just going to be at the top by myself. Like, come on girls, let's get it together. So you've introduced some, some courses. There's a, what is it called about NFR numbers? Um, so I did a NFR wrapped.
Speaker: kind of following Spotify's wrap this year. But for the last two years, I've done just like a recap of looking a little bit more behind the fashion side of the National Finals rodeo with everything I do. And I mean, I've gotten super transparent diving into my numbers of income and my expenses because people think you don't have the expenses that come with it. And so really talking about net income, talking about the business side, which you don't really see a whole lot unless people are specifically business
Speaker: influencers which that's not really common in the western side there's so many different avenues you can do influencing and so trying to bring that to light a little more and help with the education and like you mentioned i did introduce a course this last fall and it was super
Speaker: Incredible the group of girls I had were amazing and it just was so rewarding to be able to share my knowledge and experience and like, like years and years of experience and helping them and guide them. And I'm going to be relaunching that here in the next month and so I'm building that like wait list and it's crazy to see the back end numbers of people that are getting more interested into that too.
Speaker: That is invaluable. That's stuff that you're able to share with them. That's spoken like a true queen. Way to go. Thank you. Hats off to you if I was wearing one, because that's how the industry is going to continue to grow. And I think something that's cool about you is you did have the Western background. You had the cowgirl spirit. Your mom and sister both travel on the road. And so you kind of understand the cowgirl way of life a little bit better.
Speaker: So I commend you for sharing that away. But tell us a little bit about your family and what it's like being an influencer and getting to go. I think your journey started as like you were getting to be the companion pass right along, but you keep doing it. So tell us about that. Exactly. My mom has been professional barrel racing for my entire life. I mean, we always joke that like all of us kids, I have two siblings that we were like born on the back of a horse.
Speaker: So I've been riding since, I mean, I could ride on my own. And so I grew up like in the backseat of our truck, call into rodeos, and I'd have the other little rodeo kids that I'd get to hang out with at each one. You know, everyone had their kids with them. So that was like your friend group.
Speaker: Um, and now my sister has followed in her steps and they travel together. Um, so yeah, I'm kind of the companion past person and I get to, you know, show a little bit behind the scenes. I still will help with their horses. I've helped my mom at some pretty cool rodeos, like helping take care of her horses or cleaning. Um, my sister helped her when she made the NFR and like exercised her horses. I was 2013.
Speaker: 2016, I was a few years off and I've gone to Calgary Stampede a couple times so just some of these really cool rodeos that I get to experience even though I'm not competing but I get to see that more of like the behind the scenes contestant side of things which I think is a different perspective that not a lot of people get to really see when they're introduced to rodeo.
Speaker: Oh, I couldn't agree more. I mean, truly, just getting to watch from your perspective, you're able to take us to places that some girls sitting at home might not ever even get to go to. Dream rodeos, iconic rodeos, like you mentioned. So I've got to ask you then, just for fundies, what was your most memorable experience getting to travel with your mom and sister? Because that's part of it, family, growing and getting to make memories together.
Speaker: Yeah, it's hard to narrow it down to one, especially with the two of them. Obviously with my mom, the NFR, that was just so amazing to get to see her race on that stage, essentially. And she, she actually won round one. And so like right out of the gate, it was like, she was there for a reason her first time, like,
Speaker: no real endorsements. She's trained all of her own horses. So it's really been cool to see how she's just so dedicated and so passionate about that. And then with my sister, she has an incredible horse that's actually out of my mom's NFR horse. They have been breeding their own. She made it to the Ellensburg finals.
Speaker: It was two years ago, so not this last summer. Big deal. That's huge. That was with most of the girls that qualified for the NFR in 2022. And that was her rookie year. So it's really incredible to see she's right behind there. She's dedicated to it. And she's a nurse full time. So that's just like...
Speaker: Her thing that she's hobby. Horses are her hobby. Same with my mom. She has another job too. So it's been fun to go see those truly iconic moments in their story of barrel racing.
Speaker: You, no wonder you're a naturally born boss babe because you come from a bloodline of boss babes that just, oh wow, do it all. How do you balance, you do so much. All the imaginary or literal hats that you wear, how do you balance it all? I know you'll post like, oh I'm in my office getting caught up on things. But how do you do it all?
Speaker: I'm not gonna lie it can be a struggle some days um I think going back to the fact that I was doing this while I was doing accounting as well I had to be very strategic with my time not only answering emails but like very
Speaker: tactical in the way I executed photo shoots or was able to go to Wesa or travel for work, all the different things. So I think starting that way really helped me get into that right mindset. And I was working a professional job, so I was really structured that way. So I was able to take those skills and bring them to my self -employment career, essentially. But as I've been growing, it gets harder.
Speaker: and becoming your own boss you get a little bit lenient where before I only had these certain hours where I could do things and now I'm like I have all day and all week and then at the end of the week I'm like wow I did not check off nearly enough things on my to -do list. I'm hoping to bring on some help this year like part -time but throughout the year and at some of the bigger events like NFR I've also had in person and
Speaker: social media behind the scenes help, which just saves a lot of energy and time for myself, especially at events when I need to be there in person. I can't be on my phone posting while I'm sitting here with you talking on the podcast. Please do. It's okay. We don't mind. I'm just working. I don't even have to look.
Speaker: No, I love that so much. And I have so many questions. I know we've got to keep moving for time, but I do have one more follow -up because I think this is fun and shows your personality. You're not afraid to be dressed up here today with full -on makeup, but then when you're off, you're off. You have no makeup. So how do you share with the world the behind -the -scenes stuff that really isn't that beautiful? How do you go about that? Have the confidence to do it? All of it.
Speaker: I'll admit, there was a barrier for me to get to that point. I used to never want to show my face if I didn't have makeup on or if I did, I'd put a big heavy filter on. You just start to really connect with your audience that they're starting to trust you more. The more vulnerable you are and the more unfiltered
Speaker: real -life situations you can show them like they actually like that because more likely they're not they're going through the exact same thing or a similar thing and so now I mean my also be in my pajamas my hair will just be it like in a clip and I'm like oh I'm in the office today and like five years ago I would have been like no way would I show that
Speaker: but now, I don't know, I've just been able to kind of embrace my true, authentic self. That sounds so cliche, but that's really what it's kind of about. No, it is, and you do such a good job at the top of doing that, because even at NFR, I think the rock and roll denim party, I was like, I don't really feel good, my, I don't, yeah, it's just all the things, right? Women, we talk about gaining weight, all this stuff, and one of the influencers, I don't even remember now who it was, was like, that's what this is. Fashion this time, like right now, fashion is all about being confident in yourself and being who you are, and I think you're a perfect example.
Speaker: of that. So thank you for literally from the top being the best. But we do have to move on. I do want to be able to tell everyone about WISA a little bit and more so from your perspective our audience is pretty familiar with what we do here and what everything's happened. That it's not open to the public so this is a great opportunity for you to share with the public but tell us your perspective of WISA and what you get to go around doing and then especially more so the WISA stylize all that stuff.
Speaker: Yeah, so I've been coming to Dallas Market, specifically WISA, but I've come to a couple non -Western markets as well since 2018. And I've always been invited by Dallas Market Center. They have this program called the Dallas Style Eyes. And essentially what we do is go around and we pick our favorite products of all of market, like six to eight different products, just things that really stand out, Western and non -Western, because we know how well those worlds are marrying each other, especially in today's fashion scene.
Speaker: And so I just get to kind of scope out trends, find cool products, find unique brands. Obviously, we're up here where a lot of the bigger brands have their showrooms. But if you go right downstairs, you might come across this individual maker that's doing something really awesome. And so it's fun to highlight those up and comers or just smaller mom and pop businesses.
Speaker: Yeah and it's cool to see it from your perspective too because I didn't even know that that was a thing until you started posting about it and that's like I think cool for the general consumer all your followers to see like behind the scenes and I want to say like you don't get paid by the brands to put those forward you know like I do want people to know that like genuinely this is your opinion and there's several other girls that go around and do the same thing and I know for you specifically last year I think it was in January we had our dresses our contour dresses made a debut and and you were like yes I'm all about
Speaker: about this, and so I do appreciate you giving the love to that, and really just sharing to the world, because then now the dresses are out, and that's kind of how Visa works. You see them months in advance. Yeah, I love that story that it kind of goes with. So a lot of what I'll be showing when I'm at these markets, they won't be coming out until fall or winter, or when I'm here in the summer, not until spring, summer of the next year. So it's kind of fun to see the whole product showing to retailers, and then watch it launch to the public.
Speaker: especially for your perspective of getting to see all the brands. You know, you're Justin, I see Justin in the day -to -day, but for you, yeah, you literally from top to bottom, you're like, oh, I didn't know it took that long to get a hat, or, you know, all the fun stuff behind that. What do you think is your best piece of advice for someone if they're gonna come to WISA? Because, you know, there's a lot of people out there that own boutiques or stores that maybe don't think that they get to come to WISA, but they do, you can, you register. But what's your best piece of advice to, like, survive the long days, the discomfort on your feet, all that stuff?
Speaker: Um, definitely take breaks to eat. I feel like that's a big thing. You can get so wrapped up in going from one showroom to the next that you're like, I haven't sat down and ate and everywhere is serving booze from open to closed too. So you have to be really careful with that. So make sure you're drinking water and eating, but also just come with.
Speaker: an open mind, essentially, especially if you're coming as a buyer, don't try to stick to a super strict schedule for yourself. Obviously, you might have appointments at certain showrooms, so make those, but try to check out some of these brands that you aren't familiar with. Pop into showrooms or booths that you have never heard of before because I had the cutest conversation with this old man in August and he made a hair dryer that looked
Speaker: like a pistol and I'm like, that is the coolest thing. He's like, oh yeah, I made one for Miranda Lambert. And she was like the first one and he's like doing all this cool stuff with just unique product that you don't really see. And so that's my biggest piece of advice is like, don't just stick to like these big brand names, but definitely check them out, but don't be afraid to explore around some of the smaller ones too. And I will say, I did know that and agree with that because even, I actually think you did do it as a recap from either August or January, but you showed these,
Speaker: quilt looking jackets. I don't even know how to explain them. And they were so cute, but if I would have seen them, I probably would have been like, okay, that's cute and moved on. But you wearing it, putting it on, that just showed all the different things that you can do with it. There was kids, all this stuff. So I've got to ask before we move on to our next segment, how do you style outfits? How do you find pieces? Like when you're here, you're planning for NFR, you're planning for your year, spring, fall, all of it. You have photo shoots, all this stuff. How do you plan that? How do you like mentally keep a note of what you're looking for?
Speaker: I definitely keep notes in my phone. I try to jot down some of the color stories I'm seeing, maybe prints, patterns that I'm seeing on repetition for boots. I've already seen a couple different designs that are similar across a couple different boot brands.
Speaker: So it's fun to see like if there's similarities or if you see something totally different But I definitely keep notes and keep track and take a lot of pictures a lot of videos So then when the season comes out, everything's launching I can refer back to be like, okay So what are we actually gonna be seeing, you know hit the shelves in the next month or two?
Speaker: that's true because it all changes it really does if something doesn't do well maybe it doesn't actually make it you know just kind of like writing a story or something so that's very cool well Shailie thank you for sharing your time with us and your knowledge you're a huge wealth of it all but we gotta have some fun now I feel like you get to do business all day you gotta have some fun we're gonna play a game and the game is called love it or leave it and
Speaker: And for those of you out there, how it's going to work is I'm going to say a few things and I'm going to ask her if she loves it or wants to leave it in 2023. So without further ado, we're going to get started. Okay. Okay. So love it or leave it in 2023. Okay. And this is no, this is just general. There's nothing personal or anything. So everyone out there, I'm not targeting you. Don't worry. Okay. The first thing is fringe. Love it or leave it. Love it. Iconic, right? Yeah. Classic. Yeah. It'll never go out of style. I agree. Neon colors.
Speaker: I'm gonna leave it. Okay. Yeah, I'm gonna leave it. I've never, I'm a more neutral girl myself. You are, yeah. Yeah, definitely. The pastel here is probably the color pop that you, yeah, yeah, I agree. White boots. I'm gonna say love it. Okay. I think they can still have their moment. Still going. Yeah. All right, we'll do that. Sequins.
Speaker: leave it. They took over like all year last year with Taylor Swift's tour and so it's like I'm sorry in July I'm not going to be wearing a sequin jumpsuit. I feel that maybe in afar that might be like the time definitely. What about suede? Anything suede? Love it. Okay. Another classic. It is timeless. I agree. Skinny jeans. This is kind of a personal hit at me. I'm curious to know. I have to leave it.
Speaker: I'm gonna go shopping after this. You can still wear some narrow straight leg jeans tucked into boots because I know a lot of people like the skinny jeans to tuck into boots so they can show off their boots. That's right. But you can still find some narrow straight legs that look good. But we're wanting more like wide leg, boyfriends. What is it grandpa I think is the term? Dad. I've seen dad jeans, mom jeans. I don't know what the difference between those two are. Probably the word honestly.
Speaker: I completely agree. What about Coastal Cowgirl? Like that whole vibe. I did love that, but I think I loved it in 2023, so I'm gonna leave it in 2023. Yeah, I agree with you there. Knee -high boots. Any brand, and they don't have to be Western. Oh, people are gonna come for me on this one. I'm gonna say leave it. That's okay, no shade. No shade. I'm genuinely curious about this one too. Pink.
Speaker: I'm not a pink girl, so I'm going to leave it. Barbie pink at this moment. Yeah, and Barbie, I think it was great seeing the Barbie pink last year with the Barbie movie, but I got worn out on it pretty bad. I agree. But we're not pink girls. I know, and we're not pink girls. Maybe pink girls out there are doing it. Yeah, or more of a pastel, or like different plays on pink, maybe, softer. Yeah, there you go. Not so in your face. Different hues. Yeah. Yes, yes. OK, the middle part.
Speaker: Middle part, love it. Love it. Okay. Yeah. Good. Okay. So what about the side part then? So last year I actually went from a side part that I've had like my whole life to a middle part and I was talking with my girlfriends this morning. I was like, looking back at like, I don't even know that girl anymore with the side part. So was that Justin Bieber? So I still love it. Well, that's good. Yeah, I know. I agree. I know. Someone just told me the other day that the side part's making a comeback and I'm like, well, good thing. I just trained my hair to be a middle part. Right. That was not a long enough trend, apparently.
Speaker: Okay, final one here to end it out, bows. Love it. Big time love it. They're gonna be big this year, all forms. Hair bows, wild rag bows, neckties, bows. I agree, like the Ralph Lauren type. Oh yeah, that's gonna be big.
Speaker: Well, Shaylee, this has been so much fun. Thank you for being here. Good luck with everything you do at WISA. And if you have any questions, you guys can reach out to Shaylee's Instagram. All of her platforms are at West Desperado. She's amazing. She takes the time to answer most of the DMs. So if you have genuine questions about becoming an influencer or something I didn't ask, please reach out to her. She's the real deal.
Speaker: As always, like, subscribe, tell your friends about this, and stay tuned for more. Season two is coming real soon. The new season's gonna be epic. We have a lot in store for you, so hold your hat down tight and kick your boots up. Thank you guys so much. Thank you.
Speaker: Thanks for joining us on Kick Your Boots Up. I'm your host, Taylor McAdams, and we can't wait to share the next story of the West. Until then, feel free to like, subscribe, and leave us a review. Follow us on social media at Just In Boots to keep up with our next episode, and we'll see you the next time.
