What is your name?

What is your business name? My official business name that I have my LLC under is Claudine Hellmuth Creative LLC. But that’s really in the background for legal and paperwork stuff.

What is your website URL? I have a couple that I lead to the same place. Claudinehellmuth.com then also collageartist.com I did the collageartist.com because my name is long and it’s hard for people to remember how to spell it!

When did you start your business? I have been a full time artist since 2001 but I started building my by business in 1997 when I graduated with my BFA degree. It took a few years so I did web design as my day job while I worked on building my art business.

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose? I always knew I wanted to be an artist from the time I was a little toddler playing with finger paints on the kitchen floor. So there wasn’t really a decision to be made – I always knew I wanted to create my artwork full time. So the decisions were more “how” could I make it work.

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself? Sleeping in and taking naps!

What turned out to be harder than you thought? Speaking of naps and sleeping in… I think the biggest surprise or adjustment for me has been my day to day schedule. Even 10 years later I still feel guilty about not keeping a 9am-5pm schedule. I work best from about Noon onwards and despite knowing that as long as I get the work done it doesn’t matter what hours I am up – I still feel like I *should* be working “regular” work hours. It’s one of my never-ending nags from my inner critic!

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then? That the same fears that are still with me today now 10 years later. Will I be able to keep this business going? Will I still get clients and people to come to my workshops? Even after 10 years those fears don’t go away. I have learned it’s part of owning your own business.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ? I am a designer member of CHA and I listen to a ton of business practice type tele seminars. I devour business type ebooks. [I loved yours Crissy, on blogging!]

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? I am not one to talk on that front! I have no sense of balance. If I have a big project and it needs to get done I work all out on it 18 hour days until it’s done. Then I crash out. I love my work so it’s hard to stop sometimes!

What have been some of your best business successes? My biggest moment so far was being a guest on the Martha Stewart Show. That was very exciting for me. I also think simply having a thriving art business after 10 years (and through a pretty rough recession) is a pretty big success too! I can pat myself on the back for that!

What are you planning to do with your business in the future? I am working on expanding the illustration and licensing parts of my business. I have a gift product line by Demdaco that is coming out in Winter 2012 and some more items for the craft industry, embroidery etc. So I am hoping to keep going with that direction!

What is your name? Megan Green

What is your business? Stinkybomb Soap

When did you start your business? Started tinkering around the summer of 2008, opened our Etsy shop, www.stinkybomb.etsy.com in September 2008

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose? I have always wanted to run my own business, it’s a very romanticized concept for me. Stinkybomb was something I truly stumbled onto. I started the concept to fill a silly, sarcastic curiosity. The feedback I received gave me the confidence to pursue it further.

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself? Meeting other small business owners and crafters. I am inspired by some many brilliant and creative individuals around me. I also enjoy that my children can grow up knowing that you can define and create your own reality, as long as you pay your dues, work really hard and love what you do.

What turned out to be harder than you thought? Staying home with two children while running the entire show.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then? That birth control isn’t 100% effective. That and that you have to let go of some control once and a while.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ? I belong to the Columbus Crafty Cotillion, The Couchfire Collective and The Handmade Soap Makers Guild.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? A friend once told me: “When you find yourself getting angry at the kids because you are trying to work. It’s time to walk away from your work” Sometimes easier said than done.

What have been some of your best business successes? Sounds cheesy but customer feedback. I love it when people tell me how much someone enjoyed getting our soap for a present. Also, being able to donate a small percentage of our grenade sales to wounded soldiers.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future? We intend to launch more state soaps over the next year. So look for all 50 states to show up soon. Soap making classes and private parties are something we are starting to tip our toes in and has me currently very excited.

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Note from Crissy: I met Megan in 2009 when my friends from Handmade Detroit and I took a road trip to meet up with the crafty ladies of Columbus. She is effing hilarious and makes a very high quality product. I am telling you to go buy something from her. You won’t regret it!

What is your name? Rachel Walsh

What is your business? balanced Crafts

When did you start your business? About 2 years ago

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose? I have always wanted to own my own business, or rather work for myself as opposed to someone else. I chose jewellery because that is my passion.

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself? The freedom to work when I want, how I want.

What turned out to be harder than you thought? Promoting.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then? This is a lot harder than you think it might be.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ? I am on several Etsy street teams, but no business groups in particular.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? To avoid burnout, I make sure to take breaks from my business. Actual breaks. No internet.

What have been some of your best business successes? I believe I started becoming more successful when I started creating what I was truly passionate about, as opposed to what I thought would sell.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future? My plan is simply to grow. I am constantly trying to come up with new ideas, new ways of doing what I already do. The problem is usually time.

Rachel Johnson

What is your business?

Swap-bot.com

When did you start your business?

My husband and I created Swap-bot in the summer of 2005 after participating is some fun online swaps. My husband is a computer programmer and I am a graphic designer. We built the entire site from scratch and have continued to improve it over the last five years.

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose?

My husband and I love making websites together and Swap-bot was just one of our many little projects. We ran it on the side for a long while, but people really seemed to dig it and it kept growing. So, eventually we decided to start taking the management of the site seriously and actually built our own small business around it. I love arts and crafts and meeting new people on the internet, so the Swap-bot community is a great fit for me. I also studied Arts Management in grad school at the University of Oregon, which has helped me with the business side of things.

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself?

I am not good at sticking to a strict schedule. I get a lot of work done, but my working style is very disorganized. I like being able to work on the things I want to work on when I want to work on them, and not feeling guilty for walking away from my computer when neccessary. I also love having ownership over something and growing it from the ground up.

What turned out to be harder than you thought?

Well, as the only site Admin of Swap-bot I get WAY more email than I ever thought was possible and I feel perpetually behind on answering it. Email is always a source of guilt for me, but I try to be at peace with the chaos.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then?

Working for free never pays.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ?

I go to Etsy Labs Craft Nights here in Brooklyn quite often, which I consider a form of networking and skill sharing. Etsy is an amazing business which really supports its community. I am also a reporter for CraftCritique.com which keeps me up to date on the latest things happening in the craft world. And, I’m a member of UnanimousCraft.com and I just joined The Creative Empire community.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life?

That is hard because the email never stops coming in, but even so, I really have to take some time off each night to be with my husband. We definitely watch our fair share of television! I also insist on taking time out each day for exercise. It keeps me sane and I hope that it counteracts all of the time I spend sitting in front of the computer. I do work on Swap-bot on the weekends, but usually only for a few hours per day. I don’t think I have gone a day in years when I haven’t checked in on Swap-bot!

What have been some of your best business successes?

Turning a profit (making more from our site advertising than it costs to run the site) was/is a big deal. We still do not make a large amount of money on Swap-bot, but I am proud that we do not carry any debt.

Another huge success is our awesome Swap-bot community. There are some amazing members of our site who have been with us for years and help us in a lot of ways. They answer questions from other members in the forums and let me know when they notice problems. It feels great to be running something that people enjoy.

It was also a thrill to host an Etsy Craft Night last February! It was such a great time and I felt honored to be “connected” to Etsy in that way.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future?

We hope to keep growing our community and improving the site. Since we are such a small team (just me and my husband) major site overhauls take way longer than we would like. We want to add a lot more functionality to the site and make it easy to connect your Swap-bot activity to other social networking sites. We also hope to add a site store and a photo gallery sooner rather than later!

I plan to continue running Swap-bot indefinitely! I love working for myself and the Swap-bot community.

What turned out to be harder than you thought? Franchising is difficult as there are growth challenges we face every day. As one of the fastest growing restaurant chains, we’re grateful for the support we’ve received from the people of Phoenix and the state of Arizona. But, like in any other business, we’ve had our share of growing pains. The recent economic downturn has been tough for all of us, but I remind myself every day of the sacrifices and challenges my parents endured to start this business. Certainly our challenges today are no greater than those, and I’m so proud of how far we’ve come as a result of their perseverance. It’s a pleasure to work with my sisters to devise solutions to the challenges we face in our quest to carry on my father’s legacy.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then? I wish I had known how the demand for chicken wings would increase over time! Talk about being a trend setter! When my family first introduced spicy chicken wings in their restaurant, they were one of the cheapest cuts of the bird. Because of the low demand, they were able to keep costs relatively low. Now that wings have become so popular, the cost has gone up considerably. But, we work very hard to improve efficiencies so that we can keep our prices low for our customers.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc)? I’ve only been in this position for a little over a year so, at the moment, all of my networking activities are centered on building and maintaining relationships with our franchisees, suppliers and vendors. I do plan to pursue more formal networking opportunities to help increase awareness of our brand.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? I’m fortunate to be able to have a business that I share with my family, so that in itself affords me an opportunity to enjoy both at the same time. But, it’s sometimes challenging to find that balance, especially when you have a passion for both.

What have been some of your best business successes? I started out scrubbing pots and pans in my parents’ restaurant at about 3 years old. Today, I’m the CEO. It’s been very rewarding to build this business with my family over a lifetime, starting from such a young age. The decision to franchise was a difficult one for our family – to let go of something that was so personal for all of us. But now we’re at 24 locations and counting – it’s been a true American success story.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future? The current economy makes it a little tough to plan for the future, but we must continue to look forward rather than behind us. Once the country is out of the woods economically, I would love to begin aggressively pursuing a plan for expansion that would take Native New Yorker into other states.

What is your business name? Wheat Photography

What is your website URL? www.wheatphotography.com and www.wheatphoto.com

When did you start your business? 10 years ago in my home – I’ve had a physical studio space for 3 years.

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose? Photography has been a hobby of mine forever – I love seeing the world through my lense and couldn’t think of a better way to make a living.  I love the quote “If you find something you love you’ll never work a day in your life”

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself? Having creative control over my brand and business decisions.

What turned out to be harder than you thought? EVERYTHING!  Just kidding – kind of.  You have never had a meaner boss than when you work for yourself.  Running a successful photography business is about 10% photography and 90% everything else.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then? Buy the best, most expensive equipment right off the bat.  If you don’t do it right from the beginning you’ll buy everything twice!

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ? I’m on the forum www.ilovephotography.com – the professional page side of the forum.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? No, please let me know if you have any suggestions.

What have been some of your best business successes? Hiring my sister-in-law who’s organized, task-oriented personality rounds out my creative, “big picture” thinking.  Also – stretching myself creatively and doing the projects that scare me a little.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future? We plan to fill out our commercial photography sector and do lots more in this realm!

What is your business name? JAVA & Co.

What is your website URL? www.javaandco.com

When did you start your business? January 2008

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose? I have combined experience from NYC and Las Vegas in the food, beverage, restaurant and hospitality industry.  Moving to Illinois, I began to desperately miss the business, the challenges, the food and the people.  JAVA & Co. allows me to bring past work, life experiences, talents and passion for food and blend all of this into a new specialty food venture – JAVA & Co.

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself? Flexibility and the freedom of creativity.  The freedom to be creative is priceless – pairing that with good business is so rewarding.

Business is slowly building right now.  I like that I can forward my calls to voicemail, have a cup of coffee, take my boxers for a walk, garden and then return to the day of work.  At the end of the day, my customers are my priority, but with effective time management, it’s a win-win for everyone.

And yet, always remembering – if it happens or doesn’t happen it’s because of the person looking back at you in the mirror.

What turned out to be harder than you thought? The Time Factor.  Taking it slow, keeping up with the details and finding the time to DO everything that needs to be done.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then? I wish I knew how willingly fellow colleagues and entrepreneurs were at the ‘ready’ to help.  I would have utilized them more in the beginning vs. trying to research and do everything on my own.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc)? (1) As a new start-up specialty food business, JAVA & Co. has been accepted into NASFT’s (National Association Specialty Food Trade) member candidate program.  This is a well-rounded, prestigious program to be a part of.  NASFT and many of its’ members are leaders in the specialty food industry.

(2) I have an open-door policy for colleagues and new business owners and I’m always open to sharing, networking with and mentoring specialty food start-ups.  For example, locally, there is a small batch fudge company that was transitioning from retail into wholesale production.  I was able to offer assistance in packaging suppliers, labeling, market suggestions, etc.  JAVA & Co. has been there and done that.  Why re-create the wheel?  I’ll share with companies the course JAVA & Co. took through start-up.  If there is anything they can take away or apply to their business – wonderful!  Entrepreneurial networking has been truly invaluable for me and I hope to extend the same courtesy and shared information to others.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? Good question.  I do work a lot.   We have a home office and some of my best work comes at 10:30 p.m. at night.  My husband helps keep me balanced.  It’s a daily battle to master the business to personal life balance and as business increases, I imagine it to become only more challenging.  Some days it is necessary to remind myself of the purpose and my personal measure of success, ”I’m in business to have a better personal life”, vs. “I’m in business to be in business.”

What have been some of your best business successes? (1) Making a specialty food product that my guests love as much as I do and that I am proud of – to this day.  I love it.  I really love it.  (2) The invaluable new relationships that have developed with fellow entrepreneurs.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future? Controlled growth.  As sales increase, our goal is to build a ‘satellite’ wholesale kitchen on the west coast.  This will allow us to oversee and monitor quality control while being true to our vision (handmade and hand bottled) and expanding our client base.

Consumer markets have been a wonderful launching pad for JAVA & Co.  A kitchen based on the west coast will increase our west coast consumer market branding, allow for convenient west coast distributorship and give us the ability to add hand-picked customer service and hospitality driven staff to JAVA & Co on the west coast.  RECAP:  Increased bottle production.  Increased consumer exposure.  West Coast distributorship.  Staying true to the foundation and vision of JAVA & Co. specialty food – handmade, hand packaged – one product at a time.

What is your business name? Pink Parchment Soaps

What is your website URL? www.PinkParchmentSoaps.Etsy.com

When did you start your business? 2007

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose? We decided to start a business because we became addicted to making soap. We also love to experiment with new colors, scents, and formulas – all of which cost money. So, after several years of positive feedback from family and friends,  the only way to keep experimenting was to start selling!

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself?
Working your own hours and making products that you love!

What turned out to be harder than you thought?
Product pricing and keeping focused on a product line! (we’re still working on that)

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then?
Who would turn out to be our favorite and most consistent suppliers. There are so many suppliers out there its hard to narrow your choices down.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ?
We take classes and go to functions at the Small Business Administration.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life? Actually because both of my daughters help with the soap making, it balances it self. We now spend a lot more time talking and having fun!

What have been some of your best business successes?
Having customers who love our soap and come back for more!

What are you planning to do with your business in the future?
We hope to continue to grow and add expand our product line.

What is your business name?
Compai

What is your website URL?
www.Compai.com

When did you start your business?
2001

Why did you decide to start your business & why did you choose the type of business you chose?
We started our business in Italy after finishing fashion school because we felt disillusioned with the fashion industry. We did not want to begin designing for multi-national companies like many of our classmates. After little research it was clear that most brands simply put twists on the current trends, exploit young creatives and offshore production, and usurp the earths’ resources will little or no sense of responsibility. We wanted to work in the industry—but with our own rules. This meant that we wanted to think independently, think green and to design with our own heads.

Our business has changed immensely since it’s inception—it started as a line of accessories, than it turned into an eco-boutique and small, recycled clothing line, tucked into the historical center of Florence, Italy. Than we started making books… and now, we are doing all kinds of things…

What is your favorite thing about being in business for yourself?
So many things!: Freedom to manage our own schedules, working with no bra on, having every single one of our ideas taken seriously, choosing who our co-workers are, being able to work on different things each day…(one day we are accounting, the next day designing, then it’s blogging and flickring and myspacing, the day after that we’re doing a photoshoot for some local newspaper, and then going to cut up t-shirts for a birthday party! Truly—never a dull moment!

What turned out to be harder than you thought?
Making a living wage, while trying to encourage our company’s growth, is our greatest challenge. Paying for health insurance or not having it at all—also really really really sucks.

Looking back, what is one thing you know now, but wish you knew back then?
CONTRACTS CONTRACTS CONTRACTS—even with friends.

Do you participate in any business groups (mentoring, networking, etc) ?
Currently we seek biz advice from the SCORE office (Counselors to America’s Small Business) they are a free service that has helped us enormously in creating our business plan and organizing the structure of our business.

As a business owner, it can be easy to work all the time – do you have any tips for balancing your business and your personal life?
Ummm…great question. It’s been 6 years and that’s still a tough one. I guess the best answer that we can give at the moment is that, if you love your job, it doesn’t feel like work. (just to give you an idea…it’s 4AM right now… ?)

What have been some of your best business successes?
In March, we will have over 100,000 books on the market. We were featured in a five-page spread in Glamour Italy, we were on the Today Show and in Italian Vogue. Schools and rehabilitation centers have been using our books and our designs to create recycled fashions and sell them to generate revenue for their communities.

What are you planning to do with your business in the future?
Our full fledged eco clothing line is finally coming out in 2008. Our new book “99 Ways to Cut, Sew, Tie and Rock your Scarf” hits shelves in March 2008. “Poseur”, a teen novel series by Rachel Maude comes in Jan. 1st, and Compai has contributed how-to projects for this series—the first novel to ever come with sewing patterns. We have teaching seminars and trade fairs scheduled…and we have several business partnerships in the works with kickass companies like Janome Sewing Machines and Zazzle.com. We knock on wood as we say that, hopefully, in a year or so, we can actually quit our day jobs!