Meet Lisa Papple | Owner of Tessa May Greeting Cards & a Senior Dog Rescuer

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

Hi Lisa, how does your business help the community?
My business helps people stay in touch and communicate with the power of a handwritten greeting card. Cards have the power to make someone smile, feel loved, and to feel important. I started my greeting card business because I was taught the importance of helping others and giving back. You never know when someone needs a simple card of encouragement to make their day better. It’s a great way to stay in touch, especially during this last year.

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?
I think what sets my business apart from others is because I started my greeting card business because of my love of dogs. I now rescue senior dogs and I turn them into greeting cards so that their stories can be told. I worked very hard to build my business from the ground up.

I had a vision of where my business would be someday but I the real world took over and I needed to work full time to take care of myself. So for the first 6 years of my business I only worked on selling Tessa May part time. I slowly started building my accounts. After my Dad passed away I knew I needed to give it 100% or it was never going to grow.
So I took a huge risk and quit my full time job, put my whole apartment in storage, and hit the road travelling the states. I started going door to door to build my accounts and within 18 months I had 248 new accounts selling my greeting cards. I made sure I never gave up and I finally landed a big corporate account called Daiso Japan and I have about 80 of their stores selling my product.
It has been an amazing journey with lots of determination, hard work, tears, rejection and perseverance.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Southern California has so many great places to visit. When I have friends come to visit we always make sure to visit the beach, downtown la to go shopping, Disneyland and of course to eat at a few of our favorite places. I live in Costa Mesa and there are a ton of great restaurants and bars near me for happy hour. One of my favorite local Mexican restaurants is Mi Casa or if you love Cuban food you can’t go wrong with Habana.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My dad was my inspiration for starting my greeting card company. I learned the power of a handwritten card as a little girl. My dad would leave me notes throughout my life. He always knew when I needed a little encouragement or a simple I love you. I had always known I was such lucky girl to have such an incredible man as my dad. Sadly, he passed away unexpectedly in August of 2013. He was my #1 fan when I got this crazy idea to start a greeting card company. My dad taught me to go after my dreams, work hard and to never give up. Thank you to my friends, family and customers that have been so supportive while building my business, it means so much to me and has helped me allow my business to evolve.
Show someone you care today and send them a handwritten card. I promise you’ will put a smile on their face.

Website: Tessamay.com

Instagram: @Tessamaygreetingcards

Facebook: Tessa May Greeting Cards