We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vicky Wallace a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Vicky thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s talk about innovation. What’s the most innovative thing you’ve done in your career?

The most innovative thing that I’ve done in my career was to completely change industries during Covid.

For most of my childhood and adult life up until the pandemic, my life revolved around my music career. I’m a classically trained pianist and self-taught guitarist. In my early twenties, I started songwriting and releasing albums which lead to many miles of touring across the United States.

My music allowed me to open for Gregory Alan Isakov, Amanda Shires, Eliza Gilkyson, and Brent Cobb as a solo artist and Emmylou Harris and Ben Rector as The Home Fires duo. In 2019, my album Steady Heart reached #52 on the Americana Music Association Album Chart and #4 on the European Chart while the single, “The Reckoning”, rose to #34 Americana Singles Chart. The video for “The Reckoning” was nominated for Video of the Year as well as Americana Artist of the Year and Album of the Year for Steady Heart by the Midwest Country Music Association.

When the pandemic arrived, I had a year’s worth of shows and festivals booked and within weeks, all of them were canceled. I had never been through a devastating job loss like that before and to be honest, I was a little lost. What could I possibly do next?

During the pandemic, we prepped our home for sale and I wound up doing most of the work. I’ve always loved working in a yard. I think it’s because I grew up on a farm in rural Wisconsin and was my Dad’s helper after school and on the weekends. I learned how to grow plants from him.

I redid our landscaping at our house and found that I enjoyed it immensely. Neighbors would stop by and ask for me to visit their yard for some ideas on how to improve their curb appeal. After a few conversations, a little spark of an idea began. It seemed to me that people really care about their curb appeal and as a plant person, I really care about how a home presents to guests.

I took that spark and launched a brand new business called Curbside Curator where I improve landscaping, design small projects, install seasonal planters and help create the exterior that makes a client happy to call it their home.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Many people know me from my music and sometimes I am recognized when I consult at a client’s home. Imagine their surprise to see a person that they have seen on stage singing at the Lake Harriet Bandshell and now they are complaining to me about their yard! I feel equal parts lucky to have been able to have had a music career for as long as I did in Minneapolis and now thriving as a small business owner. I feel like my story is a testament that this is a great city to live in.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

My first year in business was in 2021 and by the end of 2022, I had tripled my business from the year prior. In 2023, I surpassed what I did in 2022 in October. I’m incredibly thankful to have such a rapidly growing business and the reason that it is growing so quickly is because of word of mouth. I do not spend any money on advertising. All of my clients come from referrals from homeowners that have worked with me. Many of my projects, especially holiday planters, speak for themselves. Neighbors are out walking, see a planter their neighbor has and then I’ll get a message asking for my services.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I think the lesson that I’ve had to unlearn this year is that you can’t have regrets. I worked very hard on my music career and it never grew as quickly or dynamically as Curbside Curator. Earlier this year, I kept thinking that I should have left music and pursued a different, perhaps pandemic-proof career earlier than I did. Then, I heard someone say that if you start taking out chapters of your life because of regrets, the story doesn’t make sense. That specific thought carried me away from regretting my prior career and lifted me into feeling grateful for where I’m at.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://curbsidecuratormn.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/curbsidecuratormn/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CurbsideCurator/

Image Credits
Headshot by Meghan Doll