Business Journal: a place to celebrate wins & reflect - 34th Edition

Owning my own business means getting to prioritize personal things and this month sure had a lot of them! October’s highlights included celebrating my birthday at the Brand New Conference in Austin, Texas, co-hosting another Sunnyside Chats, and attending three weddings.

The Big Wins

• Celebrated my birthday by attending the Brand New Conference in Austin, Texas. I handed out my custom-designed, Austin, Texas stickers and left feeling inspired (and excited that next year’s conference will be in Chicago).

• Co-hosted Sunnyside Chats with Leigh of Indigo & Violet Studio. (I am still subbing for co-founder Andi Mints while she's on maternity leave.) I got some great ideas from fellow business owners as we shared different business challenges and brainstormed solutions. Save the date: SSC’s Holiday Party will be November 30th from 5-7pm.

General Updates + Accomplishments:

• Celebrated at three weddings! I was in my best-friend-since-kindergarten, Michelle’s wedding in Indianapolis and also attended the weddings of two of my college roommates in Chicago and St. Charles, Illinois this month.

• Finished more inventory work and continued to optimize products on Faire, including adding buttons, keychains, and magnets. I am currently working on stocking up the most popular stickers before holiday shopping gets in full swing.

• Got positive feedback from a Chicago-based wholesale client. Jackeline from Souvenir City Chicago shared that her “customers frequently say they are the coolest and cutest stickers they've been able to find.”

• Reflected on Q3 and learned that the wholesale side of my business saw more than a 440% increase when comparing to Q3 of 2021. Design services were down almost 27%, so I hope to increase my focus and availability for branding work in the months to come.

• Applied to The Source Grow Grant after lots of reminders from the Women’s Business Development Center. The Cook County Small Business Source Grow Grant provides $10,000 grants to small businesses, coupled with advising and coaching services, to foster their recovery and resiliency from the pandemic, scale their operations and thrive in Cook County. While I’m still not back to my pre-Covid revenue, additional funding would allow me to continue to grow more quickly.

• Developed a new referral program to grow wholesale even more. You can learn how you can earn some happy mail, free online courses, or even a 1:1 consulting session with me through referring shops here.

• Added two greeting cards to the greeting card line. One “new” card is a recent remake of the popular Funky Type “Happy Birthday” (which was initially sketched out in 2014 as a part of one of my earliest passion projects) and another longtime-favorite, the “Hello There” Succulent card. They are now available via Faire and the Lettering Works shop.

October was once again filled with many personal things. I still have availability for new projects before the end of the year. Specifically I am looking for passionate and creative individuals who would like to take advantage of new flexible payment plans and trade opportunities that I am building out. Reach out to learn more.

In November, I’m looking forward to getting some more design work on my calendar, stocking up retailers for the busy shopping season, and co-hosting the last Sunnyside Chats of 2022.

Thank you for being here, for supporting me, and for following along with my entrepreneurial journey.

PS - Have a project you’d like to chat about? Grab your free 20-minute project consultation + ensure your project gets on my calendar in 2022. Bring on all the logos, branded merchandise, + brand identity projects… let’s make some beautiful + impactful things together.