People of Northwest Arkansas
The People of Northwest Arkansas is an award winning podcast celebrating the power of storytelling by providing a platform for individuals living in Northwest Arkansas to share their unique and inspiring life experiences. We believe that every person has a story worth telling, and through our podcast, we aim to amplify these voices through thoughtful interviews and engaging storytelling.
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People of Northwest Arkansas
Love, Community, and Innovation: Ashley Bell's Journey with Rhea Lana’s of NWA
Ashley Bell shares her inspiring journey of returning to Northwest Arkansas to start Rhea Lana’s, a children's consignment event that empowers families while promoting sustainability. This episode highlights the personal and professional challenges she overcame while creating a thriving business model that connects the community and supports local parents.
Join us to learn more about Rhea Lana’s and to get involved in the next event!
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Danielle, what is your favorite thing about your kids, about?
Speaker 2:my kids yeah, your kids oh, I guess that they always keep me on my toes, they keep and they, they just, they breathe new life into everything. Right, because as adults we get, get a little jaded and I feel like they make me be present.
Speaker 1:I would agree with that. I think that my kids are so funny sometimes and they entertain me at every second oh, Liam is a jokester.
Speaker 2:Your son is like Hilarious Makes me crack up and Ardelia just side eyes him.
Speaker 1:Oh, she side eyes him all the time. She's given him so much hard time. Well, today we have a guest in that is all about families and kids and all of the things that help us as parents. We have Ashley Bell of Rialanas of Northwest Arkansas. And fun fact about Rialanas of Northwest Arkansas. And fun fact about Rihalanas of Northwest Arkansas it is the first Rihalanas franchise, so it started and I'll have her tell you a little bit more about it.
Speaker 2:I did not realize that.
Speaker 1:Right, isn't that awesome.
Speaker 2:Yes, the very first franchise, so the first time we've had a guest that's married another guest.
Speaker 1:Yes, oh yeah, oh, my goodness. Well, she wasn't Ashley Bell when we had Jeff on the show, yet that's right, but now she is.
Speaker 3:So that's really nice, I know. It's kind of fun to hear you introduce me as that. Congratulations. I've only been married three weeks.
Speaker 1:I know and I already changed you in my phone too, you did. It's already Ashley.
Speaker 3:Bell, I don't even know if I've changed myself in my phone.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm on top of that immediately, but we're really excited to have her here and she'll tell us just a little bit more about Rialanas and how much it means to this community here in Northwest Arkansas and a little bit about our journey. So why don't we start first? The question we ask all of our guests is how did you get to Northwest Arkansas?
Speaker 3:Oh well, so yes, I'm Ashley Bell. I started the Rialanas of Northwest Arkansas event here, and I actually came to Northwest Arkansas at eight years old. My dad was in the military for 20 years and of all the places that he had lived all over the world, fayetteville was their favorite. So my dad retired from the military to Fayetteville, arkansas, when I was eight years old, and so I'm a native.
Speaker 2:All right, your dad was on to something I've actually heard a lot of people say that they've been a lot of places all over and that they love this area.
Speaker 3:That's right.
Speaker 2:Which makes me feel better. Maybe I just saved myself. Don't go back to Texas ever. You're not allowed. I love it. Yes, you're basically native eight years old, so most of your memories are here, correct.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so did you go to Fayetteville High? I did.
Speaker 3:So I grew up in Fayetteville, went to Root and then Woodland Junior High, fayetteville High School, I went away for college, I went to Vanderbilt University and then the University of Colorado, and so I was gone for about 10 years and then I decided to come back here to raise my children and their family.
Speaker 1:Awesome. What brought you back to Northwest Arkansas?
Speaker 3:Well, so I had my first two children out in Colorado and I had a trip home for Thanksgiving to visit family. And I had a newborn and a one and a half year old. I had one that was nursing and one that was potty training, and the trip that should have taken 11 hours took 17. Because every time we had to stop to potty train or stop to breastfeed, all of a sudden that trip was 17 hours and I was like you know what. I'm never doing that again.
Speaker 2:We need to figure out how to get closer. You know what? We're never getting there, we're just going to live here.
Speaker 3:I know In Kansas, somewhere in the middle of Kansas, we're just going to stop.
Speaker 2:We're going to settle here now.
Speaker 3:Yeah. So we decided it and we just we were like let's just try it. If we hate it, we can always go back to Colorado. And then as soon as I got back, I mean it was just this felt like home and I forgot how amazing it was and it had gotten even better in the 10 years I was gone.
Speaker 1:That's really awesome. So you're just like your dad of all the places. Right. You've lived. Fayetteville is home.
Speaker 4:Yeah for sure. Northwest Arkansas Back to fayetteville is home. Yeah for sure. Northwest back to fayetteville again.
Speaker 1:That's right so you've lived in multiple places in northwest arkansas and back in fayetteville I feel like that trip could be like a mini series on it on television.
Speaker 2:Oh girl, all the odd things that would happen at truck stops my whole life could for sure be a mini series there is no doubt my mom just ran wild with how you could really elaborate on every stop of the things that happen like an action movie, sorry. Anyway, this is. I swear I have ADHD. I'm like already thinking of a mini series from your life.
Speaker 1:Listen, she is all here for that. I just don't know. The wheels are turning.
Speaker 2:So you came back here with two little ones, and then what happened after that?
Speaker 3:Right. So actually, while I was in college in Boulder, my older sister, rialana Reiner, had started her very first what she called a children's clothing exchange, and she actually got the idea from. So my childhood, growing up in Fayetteville, one of my mom's best friends, ann Sloan, had a little children's clothing exchange in her living room. For those of you guys that are native, like Northwest Arkansas natives, Fayetteville natives it was behind the Dillon's Grocery Store and that is no longer there now, but it was, like you know, a very iconic place. Growing up in East Fayetteville, her little house was right behind Dillon's Grocery Store and she used to have this little children's clothing exchange in her living room and she used the same white string tags that we still for those of you all who've been to a real, honest event we use these little white string tags and she would use those little white string tags and we still use those today. And my mom took me to her living room and so back in the day, guest jeans were a huge deal. So guest jeans, swatch watches, benetton, like that was the thing. But my family could not afford any of that and so we went and I bought my first pair of guest jeans in Ann Sloan's living room and I thought it was such a big deal that I could afford a pair of guest jeans.
Speaker 3:And so Rihanna kind of got that idea when her husband actually had been an engineer for Phillips Petroleum. He also went to Vanderbilt, was an engineer. He decided to leave that and go into full-time ministry with Student Mobilization, which is another now national college ministry that's founded out of Arkansas, out of Fayetteville actually, and so he's now the executive director of that. But he switched from being an engineer into full-time ministry. So they went from engineering budget to ministry budget. Rialana had three small kids and was like how can I afford to dress three small kids in cute clothes on a ministry budget?
Speaker 3:And they grow so quickly out of all of them, Right, Because every season they need an entirely new wardrobe, I know. And so she had started in her living room when I was in college and it went from that tiny little event in her living room to then it took over her living room and her kids bedrooms and then it took over her kids bedrooms and the garage and the driveway, so it kept like expanding in their house. And at that time consignment events all over the country were using handwritten index cards and Dave, because he was an engineer, was like, oh, we should put barcodes on all these items and we should have a scanner and we should put this online. And no one in the country had done that before. So he started doing that for her on the side and it kept growing.
Speaker 3:And so then when I moved back home so this is now like eight years later I moved back home, I have my two kids and went to one of Rihanna's events in Conway, because at that time she just had her Conway event and had it grown to where they were like renting out doctor's offices and renting out small stores and that kind of thing, and I went and visited and was like, oh my God, I mean like I'd heard about it when I was in college, but from a distance I couldn't even really picture what she was talking about. And so I went and visited her event in Conway and was like this is the coolest thing ever. I mean, this is amazing. And they had it all automated at that point. So I told her I was like you really should go do this in Northwest Arkansas.
Speaker 3:Once I moved home I realized, man, this community has so many families with young kids that could really benefit from something like this, and so, at any rate, I was like you should do this in Northwest Arkansas. It's so incredible. There are so many families that would really love this. It would really be a blessing and serve families. And at the time her kids were up to their eyeballs in competitive soccer and she was like, well, I mean you could do it, Do you want?
Speaker 1:to do it.
Speaker 3:My naive self was like well, sure, I mean, how big of a deal can it be, how hard can it be right?
Speaker 1:Hey, you've been doing it for a while now.
Speaker 3:Yes, and that was 18 years ago.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's amazing, ashley, that's so fun.
Speaker 3:That's kind of how I ended up back home and then how kind of this whole thing started 18 years ago.
Speaker 1:So you were the first. So Northwest Arkansas was the first franchise, and then she started franchising Rialanas across the country. How many franchises are there now?
Speaker 3:So initially I wasn't even a franchise. Initially I was just like the sister who was like gonna try this too. And then when this Northwest Arkansas event exploded like it did, then she you know, a few years later her kids go to college she's like maybe I should think about franchising this. Because of the success of the Northwest Arkansas event, she actually decided to start franchising them and so now we actually have 117 franchises in 26 states.
Speaker 2:Wow, that's incredible. Yeah, that is incredible From two sisters. Is it just you two?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so it's really my sister who founded it, and then I started doing it here, and then, yeah, and now we are 117 franchises all over the country.
Speaker 1:And she has a brother also, and that will be something important to talk about later when we talk about, jeff, that's right, all right. So, just as we're talking about Rialanas and how you've brought this to Northwest Arkansas, what have been kind of some of the challenges of owning a small business and what have been kind of like from a personal perspective and then maybe even from a business one?
Speaker 3:Sure, well, maybe even to kind of sharing briefly, like what Rialanas is, because that comes right, oh yeah, let's tell I was like some people may have no idea.
Speaker 1:They're like what is this thing you're talking about? If they follow me, they know what it is. But yes, let's tell our listeners. Let's assume someone doesn't know. Have any idea.
Speaker 3:Yes, so what Rialanas is is a children's consignment event. It's an opportunity for families to resell their gently used children's clothing, shoes, toys, baby equipment, furniture. And then we have families, thousands of families, that come in and shop those items for just a fraction of the retail price. And what's crazy about how this event in Northwest Arkansas has grown over the past 18 years? You know our first event we had 88 consignors, 7,000 items. It was very small in this tiny little space and over the past 18 years our event here has actually grown to about 2,500 families selling items and 240,000 items.
Speaker 3:So it has just grown so exponentially and it's now one of the top three largest children's consignment events in the nation. And there are hundreds and hundreds that are mom and pop, that are franchises, but out of probably close to 700 consignment events in the country, this is one of the largest three in the entire country, right here in Northwest Arkansas. Wow, and so it's been this, I mean, and really it really is because of this incredible community. I mean, I think one of the things about this community is that I think families really love and support each other. Families really like to support local small businesses. I have loved being a small business owner in this community.
Speaker 2:And it's not just clothes, right, because I think I've bought a couple chairs, danielle, help me yeah right, I've bought chairs for my office, right? I mean, you can find furniture, as we were going to say. There's all kinds of different things, not just clothes and then do the families tag them and price them themselves.
Speaker 3:Right. So what happens is they will go onto our website. So now everything is automated and literally when our first Rihalana's event started across the country, everyone was writing handwritten index cards for every item. So Rialana has really revolutionized the entire industry. Because when Dave and Rialana started doing that and it was kind of like Dave's brainchild of automating everything and Rialana had a website before Gap and I mean I remember when I was in college I was like Dave created Rialanacom. I mean we didn't even really know what the internet was yet.
Speaker 3:And my sister had a website with her name on it, you know, and it was like Gap didn't even have a website and Abercrombie didn't even have a website, but my sister did. So, yeah, so families actually just go onto our website, they enter their items, they price their items, and then we print out their barcoded labels and then it makes. And so we've really been in terms of technology. Rihanna's really has led the entire consignment industry For sure.
Speaker 2:So they enter the items. You have to send a picture. I'm just curious from like this is great to do. Do you have to take a picture?
Speaker 3:You don't have to mess with any of that.
Speaker 2:Is it like when you sell on Facebook more? I know it's different, but like where you have to say the brand, the color, how worn. It is like all of that, very like detailed.
Speaker 3:So you basically are filling out the information that would be on a price tag.
Speaker 3:So let's say it is a red dress from baby gap, you might enter in red baby gap dress four dollars and whether or not you want it to go half price at the end, and so you just so you just type in how much you'll go down, right well, type in, okay, so you can say how much you'll go down, right Well, whether or not you want it to go half price. But the nice thing is you don't have to mess with taking a picture. You're not having to download stuff. You're literally just typing it into a list and then we print off your labels for you, and then we just put those stickers on there and everything is so consistent that it makes it very easy for the shopper. Every price tag is hanging in the same place and looks the same, and so it's very easy.
Speaker 2:I am your target person because I have just sold in garage sales before and I and I hate doing that because you would like this and the organization is top notch, Just so that I don't have to deal with selling it because I don't want to do that.
Speaker 3:Well, the other blessing is you blessing is that you're not having to meet up with strangers. I mean, that's another thing with selling things online is you're not having to meet up with strangers You're not having to meet up with if you're wanting to sell 30 different items.
Speaker 2:I know my husband does not like that Right.
Speaker 3:You also don't have to have 30 different meetups, right, and so you drop your things off in one place, we sell it all for you in a nine day period, and then we email your check to you on the last day.
Speaker 2:It's super easy. I'm going to do it. I have such a high turnover with clothes in my house and shoes, and so I just feel like my kids are going so fast. I can't keep up.
Speaker 1:You could even be a VIP consigner. We're VIP consignors. That sounds super.
Speaker 2:What does that?
Speaker 1:mean that means somebody else puts all of your items into the database for you and takes it to the store for you, okay, and then you just collect a check. Oh, I like that. It's wonderful, our gal, she comes to our house, picks the stuff up and she takes it and it's like oh did you get a check in two weeks and then I get a check I was thinking about how there is a trend towards re-wearing fashion.
Speaker 2:Even like princess kate, you know like we'll re-wear to make a statement like the same dress and it's supposed to be sustainable, just better for the environment and not so wasteful, right? Like you don't need to wear. Wear something once and then like not wear it again because you don't want to be like as adults, but like kids don't care as much. However, I think that it's important to you know those clothes aren't. If they're gently used and it's a good item, why not? Then the kids don't have to just keep buying new stuff.
Speaker 3:Well, thrifting has become so. All of my kids now are in high school and college. They were a little bitty when I started doing this, but now they're high school and college and thrifting is very trendy for high school and college kids.
Speaker 2:It really is. You can find some jewels, you never know. I have friends who have found couture, high fashion things, but you have to do it. I think a lot.
Speaker 3:We definitely get those at Rialana's all the time.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, it is the most fun treasure hunt. Are you going to show me where those are?
Speaker 3:You know, like I mean last event, like we had a steal on a pair of Golden Goose shoes. I mean those retail for $800. Yeah, I mean we had some for like 50 bucks.
Speaker 2:You have Golden.
Speaker 3:Goose. Yes, oh girl, I mean it is incredible.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you do, we'll shop together.
Speaker 3:And we do have a teen section. Actually, speaking of that with my teenagers, thrifting is that we do have a huge teen section as well. So we go newborn all the way through teen. Now we don't consign adults, so this is not really an opportunity for moms and grandmas to keen out their closets.
Speaker 1:Even though they do, even though they do we really try to keep it?
Speaker 3:really just Please stop doing that.
Speaker 2:My daughter would have so much fun with this, because she's about to be 11 and she loves a good find.
Speaker 3:Oh, she would love it yeah, she would totally love it. And the brands we should go. We should take our gift, yeah, and honestly, that's another one of the things that makes this event so popular is because of just the people that live in Northwest Arkansas. We have Because of just the people that live in Northwest Arkansas. We have very high-end things at our event. So a lot of times we will have people come and shop from all over Arkansas and Missouri and Oklahoma. They love to come and shop Rilonas of Northwest Arkansas just because our consignors are selling such high-end items. So we definitely have shoppers drive in from five or six hours away to come shop the events.
Speaker 1:We could talk about this forever. There's this one. So, just so that our listeners know, I used to work with Ashley and do her marketing, so I know a lot of information about Rialonis. I no longer work with her but I still support her. She's still one of my dearest friends. We are still friends and her. I already changed her name on my phone to Ashley Bell and so.
Speaker 1:But one of the cool things about it is seeing all those shoppers and having been on that side of her business and working with the marketing side and getting to see all the items that were coming in and showcasing the items.
Speaker 1:And then also seeing the shoppers and getting to talk to them and the consignors and getting to talk to them and just hearing about how much this business just really truly gives back to this community. And I think that sometimes you know some people just they, they, just it's just a great opportunity. So for the consignors it's a great opportunity to make money and you hear from consignors saying that they are using the money that they make from their sales to help pay for vacations or help pay for their kids soccer cleats or their dance you know competition to learn to like see what they can make, how they can make a little extra, yeah, and then sometimes at the same time, those parents are like, well, I'm selling so that I can buy the next wardrobe for my kids and it's just, it's such a great sustainable business model for this community and so it's's really neat seeing how much it helps families and then those that come in and are shopping.
Speaker 1:it's really great, I know. For me it is really. I don't think I've really shopped many other places besides Rialana's, and the majority of my kids' clothes are from Rialana's, and it's really been something that has really been important in my family, and so it's really cool. Having you here this morning, not just because you're my friend, but because of what you do for this community is really great. And also what's exciting is when this episode airs. It's airing right before a sale, the first sale of 2025. So how exciting is that. And it's in your favorite location.
Speaker 3:Yes, we're favorite location yes, super exciting.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Well and I wanted to add on to what you were saying is one of the things that shoppers can feel so good about when they come and shop at Rialanas is one thing that's really unique is that when you are shopping at Rialanas, the money that you're spending is going back into the pockets of hundreds, if not thousands, of families in this community, so you're helping so many people when you choose to shop there, because that money is allowing other families to pay for their summer vacation, pay for summer camp, buy their kids Christmas, so you can feel really good about that. And then also, as a consigner, not only are you getting some money back, but then at the end you can choose to donate the items that don't sell, and we have about 20 different nonprofits in this community that benefit from those donated items. They get to come and shop for free at the end and foster families get to come and shop for free as well.
Speaker 1:That's like the night when you're like, oh my gosh, so beautiful. It is emotional, but I think that's great. And what is it, ashley, that keeps you moving forward? Like why? Why do you keep doing this now that your kids are in high school and college? You could easily step away, like why keep doing it?
Speaker 3:You know it's, it's an enormous amount of work. I mean, it's one of those things where it's a good thing we don't give birth to teenagers, right. And when I started doing this 18 years ago it was a little bitty and it wasn't that big of a deal, and now it's. You know, it's kind of like I feel like I've sort of given birth to a monster. It's turned into this huge beast but and it is an enormous amount of work but now we have this incredible team of people who work together to make it run like a machine. And I think for me, the thing that I've loved the most about getting to be involved in Real On is seeing I'll be shopping at Target or at Nuke's or at Chewy's and someone will come up to me and introduce themselves to me and say thank you so much for what you're doing for this community. Thank you that this. I mean kind of like what you were just saying, that I had a single mom come up to me at one point and say I've never shopped anywhere else for my son.
Speaker 3:And it's because of Rihanna's that I'm able to live on a single mom budget without it being stressful. And I think we've had groups of women who have come together and they've basically sold all their clothes to help a friend who was struggling with cancer. They took all their money that they made to help a friend financially, and so just I think having people stop me in the community and tell me how much it has helped their family is that thing. When I want to stop or I want to give up or I'm exhausted, I think that it is that thing that has really kept me going.
Speaker 1:That's really awesome. That's really cool. All right, let's talk about Ashley the person. Yes, so, ashley, what is your favorite thing about yourself?
Speaker 3:Oh, I'm just throwing. I don't know if anyone has ever asked me that before. Probably that I'm resilient.
Speaker 1:Nice, I like that.
Speaker 2:That's so true too, I want to know how you met Jeffff oh, look at her, she's going for it, just going right in. Yeah, come on, let's talk. He was our guest. He was a surgeon. For those that don't remember or haven't listened to his episode, he's a well, he's the head of trauma at northwest and he's also a pilot and he flies, not at northwest washington regional oh my god.
Speaker 3:And he does love washington regional. It's an awesome hospital. Not at northwest washington regional, oh my gosh. And he does love washington regional. It's an awesome hospital, I'm sorry washington regional.
Speaker 2:We got you. Look, I'm not from around here so I get things. You can edit that out maybe. But I do love what he does because he he takes organs that have been donated. He takes them, you know, he flies them harvest to go yeah, harvest, whatever. I know I was like how do I say that without sounding no, donated? I'm just being. He takes them, you know he flies them to go, yeah, harvest, whatever. I know I was like how do I say that without sounding weird no, donate it.
Speaker 1:I'm just being dramatic right now.
Speaker 2:And then I don't know if you guys were dating when we recorded with him, but I certainly want to know now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, she's the reason we got him onto the show. Yeah, yeah, so. So now it's her turn, so yeah. Tell our listeners how you and Jeff Bell met.
Speaker 3:So this is when she was talking about my brother earlier. So Jeff and I we've been dating about two years, but how we originally met is both of us grew up in Fayetteville at the same church and he was actually one of my older brother's best friends. He was always my older brother's smart friend, he was the super smart friend, and they had a lawn mowing business together and they were actually also in a Christian rock band together. That used to in the 80s, and the funny thing about that story is that none of them knew how to play instruments when they decided to form a band, except for the drummer. I know, and really I mean I think that's actually kind of you talking about that. That's actually an interesting part of my story with Rialanas too, was that?
Speaker 3:Rialanas, for me personally, is how I was able to support myself as a single mom, and so, kind of going back a little bit to my story, about 15 years ago, I went through a really difficult divorce and at the time I had four kids that were eight and under, and so they were eight, six, three and a few months old and I was scared out of my mind first person in any generation of my family to go through a divorce and at the time I think I had been doing real honest for about four years and it really had always just been a ministry to the community and community service and but at that point I was like I mean I'd been a stay at home mom.
Speaker 3:I mean originally I went to Vanderbilt and wanted to go to law school. So originally I was super driven, very high overachiever, went to Vanderbilt, wanted to go to law school. Then I'd made the decision that I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom and raise my kids. And so at that point I had been a stay-at-home mom since my children were born and all of a sudden I'm staring divorce, single mom, zero child support in the face and scared out of my mind of how I was going to support myself. And at that point I was like, well, maybe there's the potential to turn this community service into a business. And so that's really what happened was me trying to figure out how I can make this thing that really is a community service for families in this community that I really love into.
Speaker 3:Is there also a way for me to continue being a stay-at-home mom? Because I was homeschooling my kids at the time and I didn't want to give that up. And so trying to figure out how can I continue being a stay-at-home mom, homeschool my kids and maybe turn this thing into a business. And so during those early years I literally had my kids at home all day, 6.45 AMm you could set a clock by putting my kids in bedtime at 7.30 at night and then I would work from like 7.30 until 1 or 2 am and wake up and do it all over again the next for about two years just to try to figure out how to support myself and four kids financially and my business really.
Speaker 3:That is when my business really grew exponentially and really when I look at the things that I've loved about my business so much, I mean I'm a people person. If you're familiar with the Enneagram, I'm an Enneagram seven, wing eight. I love, love, love people. I love everything about fun and people. But then that eight side of me really had to kick in and figure out how can I support my kids on my own financially, and and real on is really gave me an opportunity to do that.
Speaker 1:So, jeff, so Jeff yeah, so that was taking it back to Jeff, taking it back to Jeff, so yeah, the back to Jeff and the fun things.
Speaker 3:So yeah, about two years ago he sent me a text out of the blue. I hadn't seen or talked to him in about eight years. And he sent me a text out of the blue and was like, is this still Ashley Rogers? And I was like what? Who in the world knows me as Ashley Rogers? I mean, that was my high school, yeah.
Speaker 2:You're like we're going way, way back.
Speaker 3:I know, and I didn't even have his contact info in my phone or anything.
Speaker 3:Wait, you said text, yeah, he sent me a text and he had like, and he had heard what you said text. Yeah, he sent me a text, okay, and he had like kind of heard through the grapevine that I was single and and so he sent me a text and we had probably a 20 minute conversation and in the course of the conversation he told me that he had started flying after his divorce 10 years ago. And I was like Well, hey, if you're ever interested, I'd love to take you to dinner and take you flying over Fayetteville and you know, she's like oh, definitely.
Speaker 2:And again, I'm an Enneagram seven, so I'm all about working like that and like not getting probably much fun, Right, I mean, stay home mom. I mean I am one and work on the side so that not single though that's I don't. Look the moms that do it all themselves. I don't know how. My mom was one of them too, and I just feel like it's the hardest working group of women and I'm just you know I wish the world supported in lifting up, lifted up moms more than they do.
Speaker 3:And that's my like soapbox, I think for the moment
Speaker 2:is that moms and single moms like we should lift. Lift them up more than we do as a society. Don't you think?
Speaker 1:yes, I love your passion right now like a single mom.
Speaker 2:I was raised by a single mom who worked for herself, and I I don't personally know that, but I grew up with it, and so I know that you put yourself in your business above everything. So I love to hear a success story and that you've built this incredible business and found love, and so I'm sure that having him come into your life sounds like the perfect time.
Speaker 3:It's been a dream.
Speaker 2:You needed a break from all the serious stuff that you had been.
Speaker 3:And I mean the reality is that you have no idea, Danielle. Yeah, the reality is that, like all moms and all parents are working super hard, we're all up against our own hard things and yeah. So Jeff sent me a text and that Enneagram, seven side of me was, you know, at first I was like I don't know, you know, just because he had the history of being my brother's friend. But then I was like, but I really want to go fly in his airplane.
Speaker 2:Do you know what Enneagram he is? He's an eight.
Speaker 3:Okay, so I'm a seven wing eight and he's an eight wing seven, and it is like the craziest, easiest, most compatible combination. Our great couple.
Speaker 2:So did you like build in a friendship, or were you guys kind of just no, I said I think we hit it off pretty fast.
Speaker 3:Well, it took me a while to figure out, because he was really holding his cards to his chest. It took me a while to figure out if he was really interested in me, okay, but then he sort of kept pursuing and kept calling and so I've told you you know, he's crazy smart. I mentioned to him, maybe three days in, that I was leading this book club in my neighborhood and so that day in between doing seven or 11 surgeries, he read the entire book. Oh my gosh, I mean I had read one chapter that week. So he did 11 surgeries that day, read the entire book of my book club, and is sending me all of these like engaging questions about chapters of my book for this discussion that I'm leading in my neighborhood. That's totally a woman's book, right?
Speaker 1:And so.
Speaker 3:I mean, and that really, and then he would you know we'd go out on dates and he's so intelligent and emotionally intelligent.
Speaker 2:Was it a romantic book? No, ok, that would have been he's invested.
Speaker 3:It was like a Jenny. It was like a Jenny Allen, like super, like he's invested and way to go. He totally like.
Speaker 1:He totally won my heart with that and, yeah, I can't wait for him to listen to this he played.
Speaker 3:He played all of his cards, right, because I went on a lot of other like dates and I mean I'd go on one date and be like nope, nope, red flag, red flag, red. What was a red flag? I want to.
Speaker 2:Oh, I heard some that I have. One that my mom gave me was eating crumbs off the table. What Like? After the bread, she said she went on a date like a few months ago and he, like, like, went with his finger like to get the crumbs and ate them and she was like I'm out, I am out. My mom has a whole book.
Speaker 2:I've told her she needs to publish it of her dating because, yeah, she's been single for a while now and yeah, she has some good stories, some I can't share, but yeah one time she brought me on a date you on it when I was little. Yeah, the guy sweat so much like he had to leave, like sweat through everything. I know I think he was nervous. I went ahead and gave you some red flags sweat. He was so nervous he had to like pat his head and stuff.
Speaker 1:Poor guy my mom and I were like 100 visualized I think she brought me.
Speaker 2:She's testing those men like I don't know, like 10 or 11 or something. Oh my god, I have so many too. This could be a whole different. It could be a whole other show, yeah. So okay, do you have one you can share I?
Speaker 3:probably have to be careful because a lot of them I live in this community but I know I mean but I will tell you that like I can pick out someone who's bipolar from across the room oh. Oh yeah, I mean there were a couple of dates that I went on that I was like, oh, he's bipolar, I'm out.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, she just snorted. I love these like little dating things are funny. Ok, so you guys, you dated for how long? Two years, two years. Got married just recently. We just got married, so you're newlywed in the honeymoon phase. So what does the future hold for you personally, professionally? What is on the horizon? What are you excited about?
Speaker 3:So what's coming up really soon is our next Rialanas event, so I'd love for people to come and check that out If they need kids items. We'll have children's items for newborn through teen and that is coming up February 20th through the 22nd is our huge, exciting presale. You can get free passes and tickets to that and then we'll actually be open to the public February 23rd through March 1st and that's gonna be in Tawny Town. It's a huge warehouse that's right across the street from Sonic in Tawny Town, used to be the Oop Store years ago, and that's an awesome building. It's this massive 80,000 square foot building, so people will love shopping that event.
Speaker 1:And it's a great location because it's so centralized for everyone in Northwest Arkansas, exactly For the most part, I would say. I mean, I think it is at least. Yeah, it's right in the middle, which is nice for everybody. How many events do you guys have per year?
Speaker 3:So we have four events a year. We typically will have one in February, one in May, one in September and one in November. So they're kind of seasonal. So there's like a spring event, a summer event, a back to school event and a holiday event, that's awesome.
Speaker 2:Yes, it's very exciting. No, I was curious what about personally? Are you guys planning any trips together?
Speaker 3:Did you go on a honeymoon? I gotta keep you on your toes well so actually we just went on.
Speaker 3:So we actually eloped with our children in cabo, which I'd never been there before. It was incredible. So we just went to cabo three weeks ago. That was sort of our big trip. We went with our seven children. I have four kids, jeff has three, so we took just our kids with us to get married and then we just bought a house. I've spent the last two weeks moving, so that's kind of our big thing for the foreseeable future is trying to get settled in a new house.
Speaker 1:That's amazing. We should definitely link the blog that her photographer wrote about their story. Yeah is really, he did it.
Speaker 3:I was like crying, I was crying, I had no good job miles I had no idea he was gonna do that.
Speaker 3:It's beautiful and his photography is like fine art. His, his words are like fine art. I mean his words were so beautiful and so generous and gracious and my friend Amanda Reed helped us plan the whole weekend. She is an incredible wedding planner in town and she recommended Miles to me and he and Jared I mean he and Jared came, you guys, they came with us for the weekend and I mean they made our trip so fun because we went and rode ATVs and we did a boat ride and seriously, the two of them made the trip so fun for our kids that they all now call them Cousin Miles and Cousin Jared. I mean they are as fun as their photography is beautiful and we just had the. I mean they're like they are invited on every family trip from now on.
Speaker 1:I mean, they were so fun. Capturing all the moments that's so sweet. We just decided to do that.
Speaker 3:since we weren't taking any inviting any family or friends to our wedding, we decided to bring photographers.
Speaker 2:That sounds like the perfect way to do it that we can share it with people.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but it was just really important. Blending families is so complex that we really just felt like we wanted to make it all about our children and consider them, and so we asked them whether they would rather have a wedding here or go on a trip and get married. Just us, and that's what they all voted on, and it ended up so much more amazing and so much more beautiful than I even hoped and dreamed it could be. It was absolutely incredible. I wouldn't change a thing.
Speaker 2:She's radiating in the studio.
Speaker 1:Our kids are important to her. Sun-kissed skin Chef is important. Yes, oh, so sweet. I love you. So we'll definitely link that blog so people can read a little bit more about it.
Speaker 3:It is so beautiful.
Speaker 1:And so where else can people find you Like? Where can they find you on social media and learn more about Rihalana?
Speaker 3:Wonderful. So on Instagram it's Rihalanas of NWA. I had to look at Danielle to make sure I'm like is that right to say NWA or Northwest Arkansas? And then I'm on Instagram. They can find me at Leah Ashley Bell. I just changed my name on there. On Facebook, we are Rihalanas of Northwest Arkansas on there so people can come check out all about the event. It's going to be super fun. It's definitely a great place to find just amazing deals on children's and teens items.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
Speaker 3:Thank you, thank you all so much for having me. It was so fun.
Speaker 2:Hey, thanks so much for listening today. If you liked what you heard, please consider subscribing to the podcast so you never miss an episode. You can also follow us on Instagram at people of NWA.
Speaker 4:Thanks so much of northwest arkansas with the two daniels produced by me, brock short of brock entertainment. Please rate, review and like us on any podcast platform where you listen for more information about today's guests and the show. Please check the show notes. Thanks for listening you.