Running Scented Pages Workshop taught me that creativity is only half of building a business; the other half is data. To keep our project sustainable, I had to learn how to calculate costs, margins, and conversion rates.

I built detailed spreadsheets tracking every expense: bottles, essential oils, alcohol, packaging, shipping materials, and market booth fees. I learned to calculate the cost of goods sold and set prices that balanced accessibility for young customers with the need to maintain a healthy margin.

When we launched our Shopify store, I used analytics to track where visitors came from— Instagram, TikTok, or direct links—and how many views turned into purchases. I discovered that reels with personal storytelling had a higher conversion rate than purely aesthetic videos, guiding us to adjust our content strategy.

At markets, I tracked unit sales and noted customer demographics, learning which scents were popular with different age groups. These data points informed our product development decisions, like focusing on the Pride and Prejudice floral blend and creating smaller “discovery sizes” for first-time buyers.

Through this process, I realized that numbers are not just cold data; they tell the story of how well your ideas connect with people. Using business analytics helped me make informed decisions and test our creative concepts with real-world validation, a skill I am excited to further develop in business school.

For me, learning to use data transformed entrepreneurship from an abstract dream into a measurable, scalable reality.