Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Alexandra Harper, Founder of Women of Culture, located in Brooklyn, NY, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Women of Culture is an inclusive, intergenerational membership-based community designed to connect, empower and inspire women through meaningful engagement with the arts. We create art-based experiences for women with creative souls who want to live more art-full, socially connected, and culture-filled lives.
Originally founded in NYC, we have expanded to Boston, LA and Miami and offer cultural concierge and art-full trip planning services in all four cities, as well as gender-inclusive Art-full discovery walks designed for tourists and small/corporate groups in NYC.
Tell us about yourself
After years of pursuing a big corporate career in New York City, I felt like I had shut down all of my creative juices. I was lost, lonely, and out of place, stifled by the corporate environment that was helping me pay the bills.
Becoming more connected to the arts helped me discover a new-found love for New York. It gave me a sense of purpose for enduring some of the hardships that life in the big city can present. After doing some extensive soul-searching, I realized that I was missing the female camaraderie I had felt during my time at an all-girls boarding school and that my dream was to help others avoid and combat some of the feelings of loneliness I had experienced throughout my life. I wanted to find a way to contribute to creating a better, more connected, and artful world where the contributions of both women and artists are celebrated.
The arts are an essential part of the human experience. They make us human, as no other species can create something from nothing the way humans can. They had always been a source of solace and inspiration for me. I wanted to share this love and passion for the arts with other women and promote the importance of the arts in society as a whole.
This desire to bring more art, culture and connection to my own life and to others keeps me motivated and working hard every day to create experiences that help my members connect more deeply with themselves, the arts, and the world around them.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My biggest accomplishment is having even started in the first place. It is incredibly hard to start something from nothing and dream of a better future than what exists today, but that's what both entrepreneurs and artists do. I have always been a bit of a shy and self-conscious person, so getting out of my own way in order to have the courage to put my passion out into the world is something I am very proud of.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Similarly, having the courage to stick by your product or service and believe in its value and necessity in the world can be difficult.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Connect deeply with your why, surround yourself with people who support and believe in you, and delegate the things which do not energize and excite you.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.womenofculture.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/womenofculturenyc
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womenofculturenyc/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/women-of-culture/
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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