BY
Adrienne Tan

The UrbanWire Social Media Manager

Hype Issue #59

Published on

August 28, 2024

Tucked away on the third level of Golden Landmark Shopping Centre, a small mall near Bugis MRT station, sits a little store adorned with ribbons, flowers, and a bright neon sign that reads ‘Cerisé Bagels’. While modest upon first glance, a few steps into the store reveals racks and shelves containing years’ worth of hard work and creativity.

The first accessory posted on Cerisé Bagels’ Instagram in October 2022. Photo taken from @cerisebagels on Instagram.

If you are a lover of the coquette aesthetic, especially when it comes to jewellery, chances are you may have come across Cerisé Bagels. With a Telegram channel subscriber count of over 7,400 (as of mid-August 2024), this small business has grown into an accessory haven since its launch almost two years ago.

“I decided to start an accessory business as I loved to make beaded accessories for myself and the people around me,” 19-year-old Chloe, the brains behind the operation, explained. “Hence, I decided to start selling and putting my creations online since it’s something I love doing.”

Going by @cerisebagels on various social media platforms, Chloe took an unconventional route by choosing not to start on Instagram or TikTok, the go-to choices for most modern entrepreneurs. Instead, she decided on instant messaging platform Telegram, launching a public channel where she released photos and descriptions of her creations. Since then, her drops have been mainly scheduled on her Telegram channel.

A post on Cerisé Bagels’ Telegram channel, featuring one of her bracelets from June 2024. Photo taken from Cerisé Bagels on Telegram.

“I feel like Telegram provides a platform for me to connect with my customers more personally, and it’s a more efficient way of communicating with customers as notifications are directly delivered to them, unlike Instagram which is more algorithm-based,” she said, before adding that she later tapped into Instagram and TikTok for more engagement. 

What stood out to me was the diverse concepts and themes of her product releases when I first joined her channel last year.

Her releases, known as “drops”, are carried out every week from Friday to Sunday, and include bracelets, necklaces and even phone charms inspired by almost every theme imaginable. Her drops have featured widely popular Sanrio and Sonny Angels characters, songs by popular artists like Laufey and Taylor Swift, and even charms inspired by Vivienne Westwood.

“Our Laufey bracelet collection blew up on TikTok which allowed us to grow significantly on all our platforms,” Chloe noted. “Our Taylor Swift & K-Pop collections are also popular amongst our customers and we frequently get requests to bring them back!”

I realised then that she had already gotten her first taste of success. She was able to experiment with her customers’ likes well enough for them to request for restocks. Attracting new customers and retaining current ones would require her to identify what is popular amongst her audience.

A pair of magnetic bracelets inspired by K-pop boy band ENHYPEN. Photo taken from  Cerisé Bagels on Telegram.

“I believe that in order to connect with my audience, it is important to stay on top of trend cycles,” Chloe said. “I realised that there was a gap in the consistent availability of accessories inspired by popular themes —  they’re only usually available when there’s a concert.”

Her trendjacking has indeed paid off, as her brick-and-mortar store in Golden Landmark Shopping Centre opened its doors on June 1, 2024. 

The store features her jewellery collections, a selection of charms for customers to make their own accessories from and, more recently, consignment slots for other sellers to use. In the eyes of others, the store could simply be a physical space to expand operations. But for Chloe, it signifies something much more – the achievement of a goal she set in the early days of founding her business.

“As I’ve recently finished my A-levels in 2023, I decided to go forward with the plan to open a physical space in June 2024,” she said, explaining that a physical store was more beneficial especially now that she has a regular customer base. She also expressed her intention to expand to new and bigger stores in future as Cerisé Bagels grows.

Cerise Bagels’ store in Golden Landmark Shopping Centre. Photo by Adrienne Tan.

With frequent online drops, the demand to keep creating while staying on top of orders, and now a physical store added to the mix, there has been a fair share of challenges for the business. Chloe also mentioned that the sharp increase in demand means that Cerisé Bagels has had to limit the orders they accept to maintain their product quality.

“I think that it is important to have an organised headspace so that you are able to fully put in effort into your business,” the fresh junior college graduate advised. “Running your own business is a 24/7 thing and hence it is important to ensure that you’re able to balance your daily life commitments (school, etc.) and different aspects of running a business.”

Chloe explains the need to manage her time wisely as managing a business takes up a lot of time, every single day. Photo by Adrienne Tan.

Chloe also urges young and aspiring business owners to be aware of what their work is worth. Fortunately, it is a concept she is well-versed in as she has been able to keep most of her hand-made products under $20. 

“I think that in the creative industry, it is common for younger people such as students to not be adequately compensated for their efforts,” she pointed out, explaining that simply increasing the prices of the products may not be practical in the long run. While brands may face issues such as higher material costs and more recently in Singapore, increased postage rates, it has been shown that increasing prices can put a brand at a competitive disadvantage and may discourage buyers.  

“It’s important to review your processes and try to streamline them to balance out the amount of labour you put into something,” Chloe said. 

Finally, she shares a word of advice: 

“It is also important to know when something is not working and do your best to adapt and change, instead of just sticking with it.”