Living “Perfectly Imperfect:” Sunshine & Salty Secrets

If you ever scroll through any social media site, you’ve probably seen, or listened to, or enjoyed reading about, the women of Sunshine & Salty Secrets. Amanda Patrick, Elizabeth Ferraro, Keri Smith and Nicole Queen all live in Myrtle Beach, are married with children and have busy, successful careers. Amanda is a realtor, with Coldwell Banker Chicora Advantage; Elizabeth is the office manager of Rivertown Property Inspections; Keri is a mortgage lender with Revolution Mortgage, and Nicole is an account executive with WMBF News. How they do it all – and (mostly) do it well, is the theme of this new, trendy and fun Grand Strand group.

Started a year ago, founding member, Amanda Patrick said the group has evolved into much more than its original intent. “We all live in Myrtle Beach and work in the sales or real estate industry. Through lots of research, we discovered how we reach potential customers is changing. Traditional marketing is still relevant, but people want more.” So, the four original members came together with the common denominator of trying to maintain some sort of work/life balance while promoting their businesses and having fun along the way.

Now in their second year, the group has become hugely popular with women in our community. “We’ve made a connection with women because we’re all trying to do everything – we’re perfectly imperfect,” Amanda told me thoughtfully while explaining their tagline, “perfectly imperfect.” Log on to Sunshine & Salty Secrets, and you might find a unique restaurant to try or a fun boutique or even a new way to celebrate your child’s birthday.

Last year they planned to do an elegant and beautiful Valentine’s Day video, and on the day of the shoot, found out they were all very much not in a Valentine’s Day mood. “We were all just a hot mess,” laughed Elizabeth Ferraro, the other founding member of the group. “I had an illness in my family, and the others all had something chaotic going on in their lives. Sometimes Valentine’s Day is not this big show of romance and flowers. Sometimes we all just want to go home and get in bed.” This honest portrayal of their lives is one of the reasons we have come to love (and relate to) the women of Sunshine & Salty Secrets.

“We want to empower women,” continued Elizabeth, while holding her two week old baby girl. (Yes, this woman came to an interview two weeks after giving birth!) “And showcase women living real life. We love to ask our audience questions and one of my favorites was, ‘How does it feel to take off your makeup? Do you feel any less powerful?’ Most of us do feel much more powerful when our hair is freshly done and we’re all made up.”“Myrtle Beach is such a great area,” Amanda interjected as the conversation continued. “We’re one of the fastest growing cities in the United States – this is an amazing place! We want to be the go-to guide for things to see and do in our area. Because we live here, sometimes we forget how much there is to offer within an hour’s drive of Myrtle Beach. We want to give you an out-of-the-box way to look at planning your weekend activities.”

“And our audience helps us find new ideas, too,” Elizabeth told me. “I was looking for something fun to do with my husband for his birthday, something off the beaten path and unusual. I asked for ideas and wow, did I get some good ones! We ended up going to the Library Restaurant where you can reserve a special table in the wine cellar. I knew of The Library, of course, but I never knew you could reserve a special table. It was wonderful.”In this new decade, Sunshine & Salty Secrets is becoming a way to encourage and empower women. “We’ve changed and evolved so much in the past year and are responding to what our audience wants. We’re real women living lives that are perfectly imperfect. Women choose to follow us for their own reasons – we’ve asked what they want to see – and responded to their needs.”

As we finished our conversation, Amanda said, “With women, it’s sometimes difficult to find your niche; good, drama-free friendships, the best clothing, and ways to make the most of family time. We want to help provide a base for helping each other and helping the community. While Myrtle Beach has grown, it still retains that small town feel. People here come together to help each other. That’s what Sunshine & Salty Secrets is all about.”

Follow Sunshine & Salty Secretson Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube and on their website,www.sunshineandsaltysecrets.com.And, after you’ve laughed and learned with your four new friends – get in touch by emailing sunnysaltysecrets@gmail.com.