We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Amanda Freed a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Amanda, thanks for joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
Despite having worked the 9-5 grind in the field of dentistry for nearly a decade before deciding to take the leap, choosing to become an entrepreneur seemed very natural to me. Initially it was a desire for more freedom that inspired me to pursue my passions. My husband and I first joined the west Hawaii Woodturner’s Club, and after discovering the joys of turning we found ourselves immersed in the vibrant Farmers’ and Artisans’ market communities in our home town of Kona, enjoying a better quality of life as we were able to spend more time together. Wood turning slowly morphed into fine woodcraft using laser machines, and with a massive amount of perseverance and hard work, a dedicated partner, and support from friends and family, the venture has evolved from a part time hobby into a full time business. Especially during the pandemic, there were major fluctuations with income, but we were lucky enough to find a couple of great local organizations who dedicated their efforts to helping local artists through those times. Organizing and balancing life between making product is always a struggle, but the final product is worth it; nothing is more satisfying than making something with your own hands and receiving the value for it from a happy customer. Putting every ounce of energy into something that started as a dream has payed off; Freedform Hawaii opened it’s first brick and mortar shop on April 9th, and can still be found at two to three farmers and artisans markets a week.
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.
Amanda was born and raised on the Big Island of Hawaii, and pulls inspiration from the natural beauty of her island home, she is the owner of a small business specializing in laser cut and engraved Koa and other exotic hardwoods. The Koa wood items made by FreedForm Hawaii are created from reclaimed Koa scrap, rescued from local milling operations in the form of off-cuts that are too small to be considered viable, and often go to waste; hand-milled pieces of blanks are prepared in their woodshop, then turned into unique and beautiful items showcasing the natural beauty in functional art.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
I wish I knew mare about setting up a business from scratch; There are so many facets in making sure you have a solid foundation. We thankfully have some great organizations here on the Big Island like SBDC (Small Business Development Center) that have given us some great connections and advice. When it came to bookkeeping and taxes there were some hard lessons and I’m still learning.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
The supply chain issues that happened following the pandemic nearly froze the business, just as our feet were back under us. Plywood to build infrastructure and product was ridiculously expensive. In that same time frame USPS also discontinued their flat-rate game board boxes that we used to ship veneer plywood. We scrambled to locate as many boxes as we could and figured out a way to continue shipping the material we needed without breaking the bank. For a time we were really struggling, but prices finally came down and we found different suppliers, learned to adjust, ultimately saving money in the long run.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.freedformhawaii.com
- Instagram: @freedformhawaii
- Facebook: freedformhawaii
- Other: freedform808.etsy.com
Image Credits
Summit Portraits (Amanda’s profile pic)