Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Collin Ferguson, co-founder, and CEO of Where y'Art Works, located in New Orleans, LA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Where Y'Art Works is a full-service art consulting company that connects organizations and individuals with local artists who create work for and about the communities they serve.
Tell us about yourself
My business partner and I started Where y'Art Works because we are both artists and saw a need to better support artists in New Orleans. We also feel that local artists are the most valuable renewable resource and that as New Orleans is growing, it is vital to make sure that artists are a part of the growth in our area.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Last December, Where y'Art Works celebrated its 9th Anniversary! Originally started as an online marketplace for local artists to sell their work in 2014, my business partner, Cat Todd, and I grew the team from two to a team of six incredible women. We are thrilled to report that for the first time in 9 years, sales for 2022 totaled more than $1 Million Dollars! We are happy to communicate that more than half of that ($655,000, to be exact) has been recirculated back into the hands of local artists, printers, framers, and installers. We are beyond grateful to the amazing community of people who believe in the power of local art. Onward and Upward!
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
During COVID, it was hard to foresee whether our business would be able to survive and whether we would be able to pay our staff. Luckily, we were able to keep many artists, framers, printers, and artwork installers in the business, even though most of their other avenues for selling their art and services were closed because of the commercial projects we placed local art in. We developed Where y'Art Works to be able to impact creatives and keep dollars in local cultural economies, and the fact that we were able to do that when the whole world seemed to shut down is a testament to the platform we have built to support and sustain local art communities. That was a hard time to be a business owner.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Find a great business partner. Times get tough, and having a partner that is complementary to your skill set has been a big part of our success.
- Only start a business that you are passionate about. It is not easy, but loving what you do is the ultimate payoff, even before you get to a successful place.
- Don't be afraid to pivot. We started as an only online marketplace, and today, more than 90% of our business is commercial art consulting. We never realized that having a robust roster of artists would have more opportunities than just selling artwork online.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://whereyartworks.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WhereyArtWorks/
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/whereyartcollin/
https://www.instagram.com/whereyartworks/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/whereyartworks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/where-y-art-works/
Photograph by: Greg Miles
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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