Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nancy Hill. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Nancy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

Well, I had a regular job for many years. At the time I loved the work, I was good at it, so it was very rewarding. I got into letterpress several years before leaving my old job. That gave me the time/opportunity to evaluate what I was getting out of each. It did not take me long to realize that printing was much more gratifying and I enjoyed planning and producing handmade work that is unique. I would not change a thing. There was and is continued risk in owning and managing a small business today but, it is worth it!

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

15 years ago a friend and I decided that we wanted to combine our love of paper and typography and find a little printing press to play with. Instead, we found a print shop for sale. So we bought it. After a couple of years of trying work our ‘real’ jobs and get into the printing business, I decided to quit and strike out on my own as a letterpress printer. It has been pretty up and down financially – but it has always been fun and challenging. In the past 10 years, my shop has changed location 3 times (that’s a lot of heavy metal to move around), I have bought and sold multiple presses, and worked hard to develop a sustainable business model. Things were going along quite well – and then the ‘great pause’ happened. Luckily I have added a couple of part-time printers and helpers that have made it possible for Hazel & Violet to survive and continue to move forward. I’ve been super lucky in the friends I have made and the customers that have kept me in business.

We do a lot of different things at H&V – We print greeting cards, stationery, coasters, and art prints. We have a retail portion of our shop that attracts customers that are checking out Grand Avenue. We have a custom Wedding Invitation business that has really helped us stay afloat during hard times. We offer private printing instruction and group workshops that are great fun for everyone involved. But, the part of our business that is really the most rewarding is our community involvement… from working with our Historic Grand Ave partners to being open on First and Third Friday nights for the art walks. On these Friday nights we have a couple of posters all set up to print on our flat bed press at the front of the shop. We help people print their own free posters to take with them. We all have a great time and it is an experience that people remember and talk about for years. We never get tired of hearing how much folks loved it. Can’t beat that.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Well, there have been many times. I think that is really a lot of what owning your own business in a creative market is all about. You have to be ready for anything. Covid was something new though… My first concern was that my business is all about person-to-person conversations and weddings. Well, weddings were just gone. I decided that I would have to focus on making sales another way. I immediately revived a 10-years-dead Etsy site and started talking about it on Social Media. I was lucky because I could come to the shop, lock the doors and continue to print products. I quickly realized that 100% of my business was likely to be local so I said that I would hand-deliver every order in the greater Phoenix area. Yikes… I would drive around for hours doing masked porch drops. It really kept us alive for over a year. Folks seemed to appreciate the effort – so it was pretty gratifying.

: Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Our goal has remained consistent – to do good work, to continue to be creative and move forward, and to contribute to our community.

Contact Info:

• Website: WWW.HazelandViolet.com
• Instagram: hazelandviolet
• Facebook: hazelandviolet
• Linkedin: nancyhill
• Twitter: hazelandviolet
• Youtube: hazelandvioletink
• Yelp: hazelandviolet
• Other: TikTok: hazelandviolet Etsy: hazelandvioletink PUG: hazelandviolet

Image Credits
the shot of me alone is by Cat Slye. All others are by me.