Proof To Product

Today on the 99th Episode of Proof to Product I’m joined by our friend and Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni, Emily Asher. Emily is an artist, calligrapher and the owner of Emily Rose Ink, a boutique wedding stationery studio based in Chicago. Emily started designing wedding stationery as a side hustle while working as a high school English teacher, but since taking the leap to make it her livelihood, her wedding stationery has been featured in countless publications and blogs, including Vogue, Martha Stewart, Style Me Pretty, and Oh So Beautiful Paper.   Early on in her business journey, Emily made the decision to intentionally narrow her focus, from art prints and greeting cards, to custom wedding stationery. Although this felt like a risk at first, this allowed Emily to perfect her design aesthetic, grow customer relationships, and solidify her business foundation. As a result, Emily's wedding stationery business took off and her designs made celebrity status. Seriously... She just did Hillary Swank’s invites!   O

Lately, I’ve had lots of feedback and questions from our audience regarding the struggles of marketing strategy. It can be so hard to know where to direct your time and energy with so many social and marketing channels available now, and that’s why I’m really excited for you to hear this week’s episode with Lindsey Morando, the Director of Marketing for Hello Bar. Lindsey has more than fifteen years of experience in business development and marketing that spans multiple industries including health & wellness, SaaS, lifestyle, and hospitality. No matter which industry she is focusing on though, Lindsey prides herself on the creation and implementation of engaging grassroots and online marketing tactics that convert fans into paying, happy customers. When Lindsey is not moving the marketing needle for businesses, she is a marketing professor at the San Diego Fashion Institute and the author of It's Just the Beginning, Break Up, Get Up & Walk Away.   Today, on Episode 98, Lindsay is sharing a ton of gre

Welcome back to another episode of Proof to Product! Today’s guest is Ilana Griffo, an illustrator, designer, author, and Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni! Like so many of you fellow entrepreneurs, Ilana built her business from the ground up. She began by launching her own stationery line, moved into designing her own product lines, signed major licensing deals with nationally recognized brands like Pier 1, Homegoods, and Michaels, and just published her first book, Mind Your Business. The key to Ilana’s success? She points to the way her business is always transitioning, pivoting to get to where she wants to go!   On today’s episode, Ilana and I sit down to talk about her career journey and the lessons she learned along the way. She talks about how she got her start in the stationery industry, why she decided to hire a licensing agent, and how that has freed her up to do more creative work. We also talk about pushing yourself to create for fun, fighting for your value, and rethinking failure. Ilana shares some exam

Hey Friends, it’s Tuesday! Which means we’re back with another episode of Proof to Product, and this week I’m sitting down for a very fun interview with former PTP guest, Julie Richardson. You may remember Julie from Episode 20, where she shared her startup story and told us how she built her Etsy shop, Julie Ann Art, into a successful wholesale enterprise. If you haven’t heard her story, it’s definitely worth heading back for a listen!   For some background- Julie founded Julie Ann Art shop in 2008 and quickly gained the attention of the internet with her combination of raw illustrations and irreverent wit. Her brand brought a refreshing take to stationery, and with features in People, Bored Panda, Refinery and more, her side hustle hobby grew into a national lifestyle brand.   In 2019, Julie Ann Art rebranded as Unblushing to better represent the strong-willed, unapologetic voice that is quintessential to her stationery and gift brand. On today’s episode, Julie and I dive into this recent rebranding experie

Hey friends! This week on Proof to Product I’m sitting down with Amy Tan, founder of the creative lifestyle company, Amy Tangerine. I’m really excited to have Amy on the show, because not only is she a creative entrepreneur that designs online content as well as fun, tangible products like t-shirts and craft supplies, she also teaches workshops around the world, makes YouTube videos, consults with awesome brands and wrote the book, Craft a Life You Love. Amy believes everyone has a story to tell, and her mission is to inspire women everywhere to feel joy and confidence by infusing creativity, fun, and intention into the everyday.   On today’s episode, Amy shares how she got her start as an entrepreneur and how her business has evolved over time. She gives advice for curating an authentic and organic social media presence, and the best way to approach contracts and collaboration. We also talk about her favorite mediums, how she connects with her audience and how she decides which partnerships and collaboration

This week we have a great episode in store for you - one that will definitely resonate with any of you who are hustling through a day job to fund your dream job. Emily Marks, once a forensic accountant, took the leap and left a stable job to pursue her passion. She is now the businesswoman behind Carina Paper Co., a stationery company inspired by her Italian heritage and from her heart as a new mom, wife, daughter, and friend.   On today's episode, Emily gives us all the details on how she turned her side hustle into a full-time gig. She tells us the reason she left her job with a major accounting firm and how her former role actually helps her in business now. We talk about the importance of strategic planning, project management, and how being in a state of discomfort provides space for personal growth. Finally, we talk about the danger of overthinking things and why sometimes, you just have to go for it.     ON TODAY’S EPISODE: Emily’s pivot from accounting to stationery Her business launch timeline Plann

Hey Friends! I can’t wait for you to hear this week’s episode with entrepreneur extraordinaire, Mary Phan. Mary owns a multi-faceted business which includes — Very Mary Inspired and The Sketchbook Series, illustration courses for designers and event planners. Mary is also a TSBC Alumni and just recently published her first book, The Artful Sketch, a gorgeous how-to sketchbook for beginners and experts alike.   Mary has always been drawn to the arts. After beginning her career as an interior designer, dabbling in fashion and staging model homes, she launched Very Merry Events in 2008. Mary enjoyed creating memorable experiences filled with atmosphere and feeling, but she became known for the beautiful, custom illustrations that were an indispensable part of her design process. In 2013, Mary took that love of illustration to the next level, launching The Sketchbook Series to help other event planners and designers master creative drawing.   Today Mary tells us all about her entrepreneurial journey, and how she

My guest today is Paul Jarvis, entrepreneur and author of the book Company of One: Why Staying small is the next big thing for business.  I read this book over the winter break and so much of what Paul talks about resonated with me.  We live in a world where we’re conditioned as entrepreneurs to strive for more — more revenue, more products, more customers, more followers, more visibility and notoriety. While it’s true striving for bigger isn’t always better, I know many of us still struggle with the big question - How do we grow strong, profitable businesses but in a way that feels good and sustainable?     In his book Company of One and during today’s interview, Paul challenges us to explore a different way of thinking about business. During this episode, Paul and I discuss the contrarian view that business growth isn’t always good, and isn’t always required. We also talk about being a solopreneur, why that doesn’t necessarily mean your working alone, and why we need to know our “enough.” If you’re trying t

Today we’re back with Part 2 of our NY Now and National Stationery Show recap!   As you may have heard, NSS which was previously held in May, moved to February this year to co-locate with NY Now. 39 of our Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni were exhibiting at the two shows and one of the main questions I had for them was -- how have the shows merging affected you?   It was interesting to see the different responses.   If you listen to Part 1 of this series, you’ll hear the that the NSS exhibitors mentioned specific pros and cons of the shows co-locating.  But, when I asked the NY Now exhibitors about the effects, they didn’t notice much of a difference.   Many of our NY Now exhibitors have been exhibiting at NY Now for several shows, doing both the summer and winter show.  Most used to also do the National Stationery Show when t was in May -- so three large NY shows a year. In these interviews you’ll also hear how they are branching out to other shows, and they’ll talk about the difference in these shows and why they

Hey Friends! I just got back from NY Now and the National Stationery Show in New York where more than 39 Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni and speakers exhibited this year. It was an incredible trip, for everyone from first timers to seasoned pros, and I’m so excited to share the highlights with you on the Podcast this week!   This year is the first time that these two shows have run at the same time.  The National Stationery Show has typically been held in May, but moved for February to co-locate with NY Now.  The move of NSS caused a bit of a stir within our industry, and our Tradeshow Bootcamp community and the move of the show is one of the topics we’re addressing on the episodes this week.   We had alumni exhibiting at both NY Now and the National Stationery show, so we decided to break up this week’s episode into two parts.   On Part 1, airing today,  we revisit the best parts of the National Stationery Show with Cecily Moore of The Paper Curator, Jenna Puente of Paper Wilderness, Rosanna Kvernmo of Iron Curtai

My guest this week is Viola Sutanto and she’s here to tell us how she made the leap from solopreneur to serial creative entrepreneur, and how she successfully runs multiple product-based businesses. I first met Viola in 2008 or 2009 when she owned the brand Chewing the Cud, a letterpress greeting card company that also sold reusable fabric gift wrap, which distributed to more than 1000 stores nationwide.   Since then Viola has founded MAIKA, a stylish and sustainable soft goods brand inspired by delightful trade and everyday living, and co-founded LimeLoop, a recently launched full-circle shipper packaging company. What impresses me most about Viola, in addition to her superhuman ability to run multiple businesses is how she manages to maintain the same core values across all three companies- although unique in their offerings, each represents a desire to create sustainable, well designed, products that solve problems for their customers.   On today’s episode, Viola and I talk about transitioning from one bus

Today is Part 2 of a two-part interview with Rachael Hetzel of Pistachio Press, and Briana Feola of Brainstorm. On Part 1, which was Episode 89, we talked about freedom versus stability, keeping up with the Joneses and overcoming FOMO. If you missed it, I’d recommend heading back to listen to that one first because today we dive into the details of communication, team dynamics, and client and customer relationships, and much more!     On Part 2, Rachael and Briana share their thoughts on why bigger doesn’t always mean better, knowing your why and communicating your company’s core values so that you’re attracting the right type of clients, customers, and team members. We also talk about not being afraid to revise your business vision, focusing on projects that align with your ethos and hiring for an overall skill set rather than specific ability.     Rachael and Briana have been on the podcast before to share their startup stories. Rachael Hetzel is the owner of Pistachio Press, a boutique letterpress printing

This week I’m sitting down for a special two-part interview with two incredible entrepreneurs - Rachael Hetzel of Pistachio Press and Briana Feola of Brainstorm. Both have been on the podcast before to share their startup stories and I’m really excited to have them both back to shine a spotlight on what it means to keep things small and intentional as business owners and still grow in revenue and creativity.   Rachael Hetzel is the owner of Pistachio Press, a boutique letterpress printing and design studio based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 2007, Pistachio Press produces a wholesale line of sweet and slightly snarky stationery products that are sold nationally and internationally. Pistachio Press also creates social invitations, business stationery, and prints commercially for a variety of clients. If you want to hear Rachael’s start-up story, head back to check out Episode 11.   Briana Feola is the co-owner of Brainstorm, a print shop and collaborative design studio working from a historic mill in Dover,

Zoë Scharf is the Co-Founder and Chief Brand Officer at Greetabl, a totally unique gifting service that makes it fun and easy to send creative personal gifts. You might remember Zoë from Episode 50 where she shared her start-up story. If you want to hear more about how Greetabl started and the process of seeking angel investors, I recommend checking out that episode. Today we’re shifting gears though and geeking out on marketing strategies, tactics and how Zoe and the greetabl team make customer experience a top priority.   On this episode, Zoe gets granular telling us how Greetabl uses segmenting to add value to their customer experience. She talks about email sequences, sales funnels through Facebook ads and why Greetable is choosing to optimize select marketing channels rather than spreading themselves thin. We also talk about discovering and engaging with new audiences and even drop in a few trade secrets. ON TODAY’S EPISODE: The importance of genuine interaction with customers Why Greetabl isn’t afrai

Natasha Case is the CEO of Coolhaus, a Los Angeles based ice cream company specializing in unique, sweet-meet-savory flavors. This is Part 2 of her interview. If you missed Part 1 which was Episode 86, I recommend you head back and listen to that one first.   In Part 2 of her interview, Natasha talks about her approach to scaling, how she tackled grocery and scoop shops at the same time, and how she continues to entwine the three arms of the business to support each other. We talked about how she balances deadlines and creativity, the importance of thinking outside the box, and how Natasha’s perspective of leadership and management has changed over the years. Natasha also shared the importance of building new relationships and innovating ideas that keep Coolhaus on top of its game as zealous expansion continues.   Here’s the background scoop on Coolhaus in case you missed it earlier-  Natasha first began exploring the concept of “Farchitecture” – or, Food + Architecture – in her graduate architecture program.

Natasha Case is the CEO of Coolhaus, a Los Angeles based ice cream company specializing in unique, sweet-meet-savory flavors. The inspiration for Coolhaus started when Natasha was exploring the concept of “Farchitecture” – or, Food + Architecture – in her graduate architecture program. She began baking cookies, making ice cream, and combining them into “cool houses”. In 2009 she met co-founder Freya Estreller, and together they staged Coolhaus’ unforgettable launch in a refurbished postal van at the famous Coachella Valley Music Festival.   In less than ten years, Coolhaus has snowballed into a nationwide company. They now distribute to 6,000+ grocery stores ranging from Whole Foods to Safeway to Publix markets with 30 SKU’s including hand-crafted ice cream sandwiches, artisan pints, and chocolate-dipped bars.   Natasha has been named Forbes 30 Under 30 for food and beverage and Zagat's 30 Under 30 in New York City. She is also the co-host of the Start to Sale podcast, where she invites the brightest entrepre

Happy New Year, friends!  On this episode Katie Hunt is sharing the three phases of business that every business goes through - often multiple times.   These three phases include: growth, maintenance and streamlining phase. Growth is when we're adding new products, services, systems.  We're in building and expansion mode. One misconception about the growth phase is that its reserved for the early years of business.  But, in reality, the growth phase can happen in the beginning, middle and even the end of our business life cycle. Maintenance is when we take a look at everything we've been building during the growth phase and we realize we need to stop adding 'new' and instead optimize what we've already created.  This could include diving deeper into a specific product category or giving a team member additional responsibilities. Maintaining and optimizing our existing products, services and internal processes is a really important step, but often overlooked. Streamlining is where we clear the clutter from our

As we head into the holidays, the Proof to Product team and I will be taking a break. While we’re gone, I want to encourage you to go back and listen to some of this year’s most popular episodes.  I’ve included links to our top 5 episodes at the bottom of our show notes here so you can find them quickly & easily.   But all in all, we covered a lot of ground in 2018 talking about business finances, licensing opportunities, marketing strategies, selling wholesale, finding manufacturers, exhibiting at shows and the ups and downs of running a business.   Our guests were vulnerable, I was vulnerable. In fact, there were a few episodes I was nervous to air — it felt too raw - but we did it anyway!  Because that’s what this show is about… sharing our struggles, successes, and strategies so that all of us can continue to grow our businesses in a way that feels good to us.   I’m really proud of how Proof to Product has grown and I’m overwhelmed (in a good way) when I receive messages from all of you or read the re

Jennifer Morgan is the brains behind A Fresh Bunch, a creative licensing agency where designers and clients collaborate and create something big together. Jenny began her journey into creative licensing in 2002 when she founded Hen and Barley Press, her own successful wholesale stationery business focused on personalized stationery goods.   Jennifer soon realized just how much of her time was spent on everything in her business except design, and discovered many other creative people in the industry were burnt out just like her. Inspired by the opportunity to bring designers and clients together, Jenny founded A Fresh Bunch in 2010.   On today’s episode, Jenny shares how she shifted away from wholesale manufacturing and into creative licensing. She talks about misconceptions that artists have about licensing and provides overview of how licensing works, who it is for, and how a licensing agency, like A Fresh Bunch can help artists diversify their revenue streams.   ON TODAY’S EPISODE: How Jenny pivoted her b

Danni Hong is a designer, business owner, and lover of all things paper. She started oh, hello friend in 2008 and has been hustling ever since at craft shows and trade shows worldwide! Her ultimate goal thru her business is to convey joy thru oh hello friend products and brighten someone's day.   Danni attended Tradeshow Bootcamp’s Paper Camp prior to exhibiting at her first wholesale show, but she has a lot of experience exhibiting at craft shows near and far which she talks about in today’s episode.  We also talked about Danni’s journey of scaling up and scaling down. She shares her experiences exhibiting at craft shows near and far. She also talked about her experience opening a brick and mortar shop and how she decided which products to carry in her store.  Danni also discussed what it was like operating three different arms of her business.   ON TODAY’S EPISODE: The types of products oh, hello friend offers The steps she took after opening her Etsy shop to grow her business Danni’s experience with craft