Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in arts but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Manderley Swain, Co-Founder of Zenderley, located in Oak Ridge, TN, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We make art, primarily in watercolor and acrylics. Our subject matter ranges from the whimsical to the macabre, exploring our world and how we relate to it through the lens of folklore and horror. We also offer creative coaching and therapeutic art sessions to people struggling to believe in and embrace their innate creativity. Our customers are typically people ready to engage in self-exploration and to seek to find themselves reflected in our art or their own.
Tell us about yourself
In 2020, we closed our ten-year sewing business and set out to make the world a better place through our own exploration of art and creativity. We believe that everyone is creative and that art heals. Every time someone tells us that our work inspired or comforted them, it's a sign to us to keep going, keep making art, and keep offering a supportive and encouraging environment for people to embrace all the creative energy they have within them.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
There isn't just one. Watching the light in our customers' faces as they begin to realize their own creative spark or when someone finds kinship with a piece of our art, it feels like a million bucks. Every single time.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
The hardest thing for us is that we have to be our own everything--promoter, writer, accountant, secretary, PR person, and more--all while still trying to carve out time for both inspiration and making art. And we try to balance family time with all of that too. It's an intense challenge.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Don't give up--it's worth it all! Dream big, then dream bigger. Look for balance--don't sacrifice your life while trying to make a living!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.zenderley.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Zenderley/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zenderley/
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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