"I JUST wanted to stay true to my passion," begins Elvira Nisha Edick, her voice gentle but resolute. Looking at me from the other side of the screen for our Zoom meeting, the 24-year-old smiles before adding: "But I did honour my parents' wishes for me to enrol in a science degree. But thereafter, it was about pursuing my real passion!"
The soft-spoken Kadazan woman says because it was challenging to find a job, she decided to find something she could do to help generate some form of income. And that's when she decided to start a jewellery business.
Asked about her routine, Elvira shares that she spends the best part of her mornings doing inventory checks, product styling and social media marketing. Meanwhile, the afternoons provide the best natural lighting, so she uses this period for photo shoots before spending the rest of the day searching for new designs and planning her next collection launch. Evenings are spent on making jewellery until the wee hours.
Elvira has spent almost her entire life in mountainous Penampang, Sabah. Located some 10km away from Kota Kinabalu, it's usually a 15-minute drive away on normal days. However, when traffic is heavy, it could take up to half an hour to drive to her hometown.
When it rains heavily, the town sometimes gets flooded, but Elvira assures me that the water level only rises to the height of her ankles. The talented entrepreneur doesn't really spend much time away from Penampang; the only time she did was when she moved to Labuan for a two-year matriculation course.
"I've always been a science student," she elaborates, before adding that she was in the science stream since Form Four. "Then I went into science matriculation and studied science at university." It was a degree in food science and nutrition at Universiti Malaysia Sabah, to be exact. Quite unrelated to what she's doing now.
She laughs at my surprise. "When did your creative side emerge?" I ask, perplexed and intrigued at the same time. It seems that even when she was pursuing her primary and secondary education at St. Francis Convent, an all-girls school, Elvira hadn't shown any inclination towards artistic endeavours.
"I started with doing make-up for Instagram in 2017," she recalls, her expression thoughtful. Adding, she says: "I experimented with colourful make-up with the intention of becoming a YouTuber. I'm not very good in drawing or painting, but make-up was something I could do. It was just a different form of art (for me)."
She managed to amass 1,000 followers at one point, but eventually had to stop doing the make-up videos due to an allergic reaction to the products. "I developed severe acne and had to undergo treatment," she confides, adding that she eventually deleted her YouTube account.
"I really enjoyed the spell though. I didn't realise that I could be artistic," she muses, before exclaiming with a smile: "I guess that was the starting point for my artistic side to be unleashed."
CREATION IN MOTION
"Making jewellery allows me to be creative and express myself. I get to play with different materials, combining different beads and stones," continues the young Kadazan, her eyes lighting up with enthusiasm.
Adding, she says passionately: "Jewellery is more than just a fashion accessory. Every piece tells a story. For example, pearl chokers remind me of my late grandmother. (So) I made a pearl choker in memory of her."
What do you find satisfying about making jewellery? I couldn't help asking the young designer.
She pauses briefly before replying with a smile: "Making my customers happy. I get many requests for custom-made jewellery. The most satisfying feeling is when they tell me that they love my jewellery and look forward to buying more from me. Many customers ask for different and unique designs, and these designs cannot be found on my Instagram."
She tells me just how grateful she is for those customers who keep returning to her with new orders. Some are regulars and always look forward to Elvira's new collection launches. "I want my brand to be affordable and I generally focus on dainty pieces and styles," she shares.
In many ways, the jewellery Elvira makes is a reflection of her personality — dainty, minimalistic, no-fuss and feminine. "I like to create jewellery that speak to me," she confides, somewhat mysteriously, before confessing with a chuckle: "At first, I didn't know what I was doing and spent a lot of money just experimenting."
She experimented with different materials to find out what worked for her and what didn't. She eventually discovered stainless steel with Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) coating, which is costly but makes her jewellery resistant to tarnish. It's able to withstand water and moisture.
IN THE ZONE
"I watch movies to get inspiration. In fact, I like the older films," admits Elvira, grinning broadly before rattling off the names of movies which I've never even heard of. Then she stops for a second.
"Clueless," she says slowly.
My eyes widen at the mention of a movie released before she was even born.
She laughs at my surprise — again. Eyes dancing, she adds that the more contemporary drama series Bridgerton season 1, set during the Regency era in England, has also been the most inspiring for her. "I love vintage-style jewellery!" she proclaims, passionately.
If there's any regrets in life so far for this enterprising young woman, it's the fact that she hadn't pursued this path earlier. Shares Elvira: "I should have started this during my undergraduate days. But I couldn't. My parents, both civil servants, were not exactly supportive of me getting into business while I was still at university. They told me I should focus on studying and finding a job in the field I was studying. They said it'd be difficult to find a decent job making jewellery."
An only child, she followed their wishes. But on hindsight, she wishes that she had just gone for it and pursued her calling. Confides Elvira: "As much as I excelled in my studies, I was miserable. It wasn't the course of my choice; it was what my parents told me to study and I didn't want to disappoint them. I'd always wanted to go into business. In fact, since I was 18, I've been saving money for the capital that I'd need to set up my own business one day."
Voice laced with conviction, she adds: "If I'd started my business during my university days, I think I would have achieved a bigger platform and established my brand amongst my peers. I would have reached out to my university classmates."
She'd toyed with the idea of setting up her own business after her internship ended in July last year. While working as an intern, Elvira did wonder whether she could delve into something related to crafts or design.
It was sometime in September that she thought about going into business for herself, and this came to fruition in the following month. She'd already completed her degree at this point, but the subsequent job hunt was challenging for a fresh graduate like her. The idea of going into business started to gain momentum.
"What problems do I want to solve?" she asked herself. It circled back to her desire for high quality jewellery with unique designs.
ENE Craft was borne, bearing the initials of her name. Setting up business was one thing, selling her products was something else. She signed up as a vendor for the Jesselton Artisan Market in January this year, but secretly doubted that she could sell anything.
To her astonishment, every piece of jewellery was sold out. Even her mother, who was there to support her in her stall, was surprised to learn that there was a demand for her daughter's jewellery.
The positive response at the artisan market spurred her on to focus on growing her business. With custom-made jewellery, Elvira works within her client's budget. However, if the client doesn't have a specific budget in mind, she'd use only the highest quality materials to make one-of-a-kind pieces for them.
STAYING THE COURSE
Expression thoughtful, Elvira tells me about a particular quote that she came across in Robert Kiyosaki's book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad. "It says, 'People who avoid failure also avoid success.' That has been my life's motto for the longest time," confesses Elvira, adding: "I tell myself this every day. This keeps me moving forward despite the difficulties I face."
Her biggest challenge at the moment, she confides, is gaining new customers and building trust and rapport with them. Shares Elvira: "There's a lot of competition and I'm fairly new in this business. The jewellery market is competitive with many jewellers based in Sabah."
Despite that, Elvira nurtures a dream of opening a retail store in Kota Kinabalu. At the moment, she operates her business solely online, which is cost-effective and reaches a wide audience. However, this does not allow customers to see her creations in person.
Asked what her biggest milestone to date is, Elvira smiles softly before replying: "It's having my parents change their views about my jewellery business. They were so against the idea at the beginning, but are now so supportive."
Even her parents' colleagues have asked her to design and custom-make jewellery for them, she says proudly. "Initially, my mother didn't believe that anyone would buy custom-made jewellery. She thought that people would buy only gold jewellery and nothing else. Now she regularly promotes my business on her own social media accounts," says Elvira, beaming proudly.
It's certainly not been a bad turn of events for this young entrepreneur, who has discovered what it means to stay true to herself and her passion.
Elvira can be reached on www.instagram.com/enecrafts.my.
