Meet Cortney Casillas | Customized Gifts Business Owner, College Student, and Mother

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cortney Casillas and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cortney, what are you inspired by?
Back in the fall of 2019, I left my corporate job to pursue degrees in Nursing and Business Administration. It was quite the risk, but I felt like I wasn’t being challenged at my job and I knew I was capable of more growth and opportunity. I got one semester in, and then the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Shortly after lockdown and things going remote for my college classes, my husband and I finally fell pregnant after nearly four years of a fertility battle! Here’s the kicker — we were pregnant with TWINS! I knew it would be difficult but I attempted to keep going with my Nursing degree. I was able to finish all of my core classes while I was pregnant, but due to having a high risk pregnancy and constant doctors visits and monitoring of our growing babies made it nearly impossible to follow through with my clinicals. So my husband and I decided to let nursing take the back seat and go ahead and pursue the Business Degree. I have always loved the business setting and have thrived in corporate environments. So, with two newborn twins, a boy and a girl, I dove into the depths of twin motherhood and investing in our family’s future by pursuing this degree. I learned a lot about myself and my strength in these trying years. I knew I wanted to stay home with our little miracle babies for as long as I could, and since I was working on a degree, I decided to try bringing some income into our home at the same time. That is where C3 Customized Gifts was born. I have always loved creating and being a part of bringing someone’s ideas into reality, That passion, along with what I have learned in pursuing my degree, ended up being the perfect ingredients to start my own small business. Being able to include my babies in my crafting and make money that allows me to stay home with them and watch them grow so much right before my eyes has been the most amazing experience I have ever been a part of. I am so grateful for my customers that make it possible for me to be with me kids. I wouldn’t trade this for anything. Being a full time mom of twins, a home-maker, managing a business, and pursing a degree keeps life incredibly busy. I am working long before the sun, and many nights I am still working until 1:00 am (thank you coffee!), but knowing that I get to be there to teach my two toddlers and watch them hit every single milestone is more that enough for me to wake up and hit the ground running day in and day out.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
What I do is in a pretty saturated market, I’m not going to lie. Customized gifts are everywhere, and there is room for all of us in the market. Most of all, I just want people to know that when they purchase from C3 Customized Gifts, what they are receiving when that package is delivered on their doorstep is from start to finish a one-momma-operation and that when I’m packing those orders, I am a full face of smile because it’s one more step in a marathon that allows me to be home with my twins. I want them to know that I put a lot of detail and care into the gift itself, down to the packaging. I want them to know that when they tell me their stories of why they’re purchasing hand-made beanies in the middle of summer and that their teenage daughter has cancer, that I am discounting their order and I am putting my heart (and tears) into creating a piece of comfort for them. I know you can go to any store and buy from a big corporation. But what I truly offer is a piece of my heart in every piece that comes out of my home.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Ohhhh, how I wish I had good answers to this question but I don’t! My life is busy from the time I wake up to the time I go to sleep. I’m still in school, running a business and a household, and trying to manage two year old twins all day. From doctors visits for them, to taking orders to the post office to mail out, to exams and finals and homework, to managing our household finances and keeping everything moving smoothly, I don’t really have much down time to do much else!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My husband has always been my biggest fan and number one supporter. It was difficult to let go of a stable corporate job with great benefits. My husband encouraged me that I should chase the things that I am passionate about and said “Why not now?! Do it now while we don’t have any kids.” HAHA well played universe! 😛 And once we got pregnant and had to make changes to our plans, he still encouraged me to continue on with college and then again to start a business. His support and encouragement gave me the courage to take risk and to really hustle. It taught me that I am capable of anything I set my mind to and that I can do anything, I just have to choose to do it. And as I walk the stage next month and collect my degree in Business, I know he will be in the stands with our two babies cheering me on as my biggest fan there too.

Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/C3CustomizedGifts

Image Credits
All my own photos.