GRC Project Spotlight: Awe Inspired's Journey into Spiritual Wellness
By: {Albert Hsu} and {Rohan Ray}
From: {UCLA}
Introduction: Awe Inspired
Awe Inspired, a jewelry company located in West Hollywood, California, co-founded by Jill Johnson and Max Johnson in 2018, has established itself as a beacon of empowerment, spiritual wellness, and philanthropy. With a mission to channel the divine feminine and promote self-discovery, Awe Inspired has donated over $700,000 to various charities, reflecting its commitment to making a tangible impact on the community.
The company, initially recognized for its unique jewelry, recently embarked on an ambitious project to extend its influence into the spiritual wellness space through the launch of its meditation service at its brick-and-mortar location, Awe Sanctuary. This is where their partnership with us, GRC @ UCLA, comes into play as Awe Inspired sought to refine their spiritual class initiative to merge their brand's narrative with transformative wellness experiences.
Project Scope
The project's objective was to support Awe Inspired in successfully launching a transformative spiritual wellness program and expanding the company’s efforts to promote spirituality. With this in mind, the team of GRC consultants at UCLA developed a comprehensive approach to assist the company in achieving its goals. Starting with a thorough market evaluation, trend analysis, examination of competitor landscapes, and identification of potential opportunities, the team meticulously defined the company’s target audience, pricing strategy, and other crucial parameters. Employing a holistic and strategic methodology, the project sought to position Awe Inspired as a leader in spiritual wellness. This involved seamlessly integrating their jewelry with a transformative program designed for individuals seeking a connection to their awe-inspiring selves.
Project Findings and Actions Taken: Awe Sanctuary Initiative
Step 1: Competitive Analysis
The first step for the team was to conduct a detailed competitive analysis focusing on local meditation centers and their offerings, including identifying key features and strategies that set these centers apart, such as unique class offerings, pricing structures, and the overall customer experience. Despite the saturation of the spirituality market in the West Hollywood area, the UCLA GRC team successfully identified Awe Inspired’s distinctive qualities as a jewelry retailer, setting it apart from other brands and companies in the industry. Awe Inspired's dual engagement in jewelry and spiritual wellness programs has the potential to create unique experiences for its customer base. This analysis provided insights into market gaps and opportunities for Awe Sanctuary to differentiate itself and offer value-added services.
Step 2: Instructor Search and Evaluation
The team’s next task was to analyze the market space to identify the crucial role of instructors in the success of meditation and spiritual wellness programs. As such, the team of consultants developed a criteria-based evaluation system to assess instructor qualifications, engagement level, brand fit, and uniqueness. This methodical approach helped curate a list of instructors whose profiles aligned with Awe Sanctuary's mission and values, ensuring they could attract and retain a dedicated customer base.
Step 3: Financial Break-Even Analysis
Following market and instructor research, the team proceeded to assess the financial trajectory of Awe Sanctuary by constructing two distinct models (simple and advanced) to find the point of profitability. The simple model provided a baseline projection, while the advanced model incorporated a higher degree of variability. It utilized estimation modeling, assigning randomized values to the number of participants per class, reflecting the common fluctuations in attendance for meditation services. Specifically, the advanced model generated a randomized vector with values ranging from 9 to 15 for the first month's classes, 11 to 17 for the second, 13 to 19 for the third, and 15 to 20 for the fourth, providing a more nuanced view of potential revenues. Both models indicated that Awe Inspired was on course to reach profitability by the fourth month, as illustrated in the graphs below.
To further refine the financial analysis, the team developed a dynamic model that focused more heavily on Awe Sanctuary's cost structure, pricing strategy, and anticipated revenue streams. This tool additionally incorporated adjustable sliders for parameters such as class size, frequency, and instructor costs. This allowed for financial experimentation to pinpoint the break-even point under various market conditions, enabling Awe Inspired to use the model to provide them with long-term insights. The insights found from this model were instrumental in equipping Awe Inspired with the necessary data to make well-informed decisions for launching and expanding their spiritual wellness program.
[Below are the graphs representing the total profit over time for both the simple and advanced models, showcasing Awe Inspired's journey toward profitability.]
By following these steps, the team laid the foundation for Awe Sanctuary's successful market entry, ensuring alignment with customer expectations and financial sustainability.
Conclusion:
The collaboration between Awe Inspired and the GRC @ UCLA enabled decisions that allowed for the successful launch of the Awe Sanctuary. Embracing the comprehensive advice and strategic insights provided, Awe Inspired implemented key recommendations that significantly shaped their spiritual wellness services.
One of the most impactful actions taken was the incorporation of instructors from the team's recommended list, whose expertise and alignment with the brand's ethos were instrumental in establishing the program's credibility and appeal. These instructors brought a wealth of knowledge and a fresh perspective to Awe Sanctuary, helping to curate an array of spiritual and meditative services that resonated with the community. Currently, Awe Sanctuary thrives as a beacon of spiritual wellness, its success a testament to the value of informed guidance and meticulous planning. The tangible outcomes of UCLA GRC’s partnership underscore the efficacy of data findings and the importance of combining analytical rigor with practical implementation.
Through reflecting on this project, we as part of the GRC @ UCLA’s project team have gained an invaluable, real-world understanding of the intricate processes behind launching and marketing a successful product. The opportunity to work directly with an organization committed to community well-being has been both enlightening and fulfilling. This hands-on experience has honed our skills in conducting targeted surveys, developing sophisticated financial analysis models, and navigating the myriad of challenges that arise when bringing a new product to market.
The journey with Awe Inspired has been more than just an academic exercise; it has been a journey of impact, learning, and community engagement. It stands as a proud example of the symbiotic relationship between academia and industry, and the profound experiences that such partnerships can offer to students who are poised to become the next generation of leaders and change-makers.
