We recently connected with Melissa Groven and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Melissa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s go back in time a bit – can you share a story of a time when you learned an important lesson during your education?

I attended a small private college in North Dakota, called Jamestown College. I studied Elementary Education in college with the hopes of being a 3rd grade teacher. My two favorite classes in college were Elementary Art (LOVED this) and Children’s Literature. Carolgene had us do all sorts of hands on art projects in class, which I just loved. I also learned in Elementary Art class from my beloved professor, Carolgene, that art is about the process, not the product. Art is beneficial for the process of creating, and I loved dabbling in the various mediums we looked at in that class. I would say now that it’s about the process & the product. The process of creating for me is beneficial because that’s what I was created to do. There is something almost magical when you get lost in making something with your hands.

I hope that my making and creating inspires others to try their creative hand at new things. I hope they see what I make and carve out an hour or two to take time to do some paper crafting or play with water colors or sew something pretty. I have experienced the benefits of being creative and getting messy with paint.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started my business, Melissa Anne Company, in 2013 when my four kids were just little. I mean, so little. My youngest was just a year old. I am so grateful for my children and the opportunity I have to stay home with them. I love being a mom, and at the same time, I was starting to feel like I didn’t really know who I was outside of my role as a mother. There were some parts of me that didn’t feel alive. I had some difficult personal things going on at the time and decided to start making bags and pillows and signs to sell. Creativity and making things with my hands have always been a stress reliever for me. So, in a way, making and being creative was really a balm. Having my own business gave me something that was just my own to focus on too.
I started and grew my business by traveling to local craft shows to sell my items. It took time to find high quality shows that were a good fit, but it was definitely worth the effort. I met some really fabulous people that I still stay in touch with today. I later opened an online shop while continuing to travel to craft shows.

My products and style have definitely evolved over the years, I now love making and selling small wood home décor, the perfect pieces for your tiered tray or a pop of color for your work desk. My painted, seasonal décor pieces also make excellent, unique gifts for a friend or your mom. Or teacher or basically anyone who enjoys cute, high quality, and unique home décor. Customers have said that they appreciate my attention to detail and the uniqueness of my designs. (I’m a 4 on the enneagram, so being unique is pretty important to me.)

I’m known for my color combinations, the simplicity of my pieces, and the encouraging and affirming reminders that we all need to hear. When I started, I to wanted to put words on signs that I had never seen before. I was so over the cliché signs that I was seeing everywhere else.
I love using letter stamps on my pieces (stamping one letter at a time), so people can recognize my work because of the hand-stamped inspirational messages. I have a bit of a whimsical quirkiness in my style, as well.

I now pretty much exclusively sell online, which has allowed me the flexibility that I need with my kids and family. Today and most days you will most likely find me in my basement craft studio with a little MacGyver on in the background while I paint all the things and maybe add a little bit of pom pom trim. My work table is hardly ever cleaned off. I like to think of it as ideas in different stages of completion all over my table. I also love working outside in my garage in the summer Minnesota months cutting and sanding wood. Because of power tools. And sunshine.

One thing that I’m probably most proud of in my business is that I kept going. The business didn’t grow super fast, and I most certainly wasn’t an overnight success. It took grit and determination and trying and failing and basically just continuing to show up.
I also pride myself on making unique pieces that I haven’t seen before. It’s such a thrill to be able to bring an idea to life that isn’t just a copy of someone else’s work. I love how one follower described my pieces as ‘small flairs of happiness.’

I feel like my 8 years ago self wouldn’t even believe how far this little business has come. God has used this business to provide for our family and grow and stretch me in so many ways. I am truly so incredibly grateful for what a gift this business is to me.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

Authenticity is super duper important to me, so that translates into everything I do. Including social media. That doesn’t mean I share everything from my life there, but it does mean that I show up in what feels like an authentic way to those that choose to follow me. I also have to remind myself even now (after a lot of years into this gig) that people are looking for connection on the social platforms, not perfection. My favorite way to connect with people is through stories on Instagram. I don’t even really know if I have a strategy, per say, on stories, I just know that they are still pretty fun for me. I share about my daily life, my hair, how I almost fell asleep at a basketball game and usually humor, because laughing is pretty fun. One of my favorite memories from Insta stories is when the bomb squad came to my house and I was giving the play by play on IG stories. (No it had nothing to do with my business, but it was real life and very entertaining.) LOTS of messages from people from that saying that they were just waiting on the edge of their seats for the next update, and how my stories that day were better than TV. Yeah, it was pretty entertaining. (It’s saved as a highlight on my Instagram profile, so grab some popcorn and go binge it if you want.) I do share about business stuff too on social media.
How does sharing about real life in Instagram stories relate to business? I know that I, personally love to buy from small business where I feel like I know the seller, usually from social media. So, I know that the personal connection matters in business.
Another way that my social media following has grown has been through connecting with other makers and small shops. It’s been so fun to share with my followers the other amazing makers that I’ve been able to connect with and really become friends with. There are so many other supportive women makers and small business owners in my circle that I can now truly call friends, even though we’ve never met in person. Well, not yet anyway.
Regular breaks from social media are pretty essential for me to keep my sanity and to keep going in business and all that it entails.
Oh and some advice for those who have smaller followings on social media would be to focus on the customers or followers that you DO have. They are there for a reason. Give them a reason to stay and treat them like gold.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

One day, my dad came to visit me shortly after I started my business. We went to the third stall of our garage together and he was using the skill saw and drill and helping me with some things. I was watching and learning. Those were basically the only two power tools that I knew how to use at that point. I learned slowly as I had the time (I still had four small kiddos and a household to run), and I definitely enjoyed the challenge of learning something knew. I eventually borrowed a neighbor’s chop saw, then bought a used one off of Facebook Marketplace. I slowly learned and practiced and managed to keep all of my fingers. Power tools are no joke, and it’s definitely good to have a healthy fear and respect for them. I have added a new sliding miter saw, belt sander, disc sander, and scroll saw to the power tool lineup. I enjoy cutting wood in my garage, well, especially in the summer here in northern Minnesota when the sun is shining and all feels right with the world. It is especially fun for me to try and figure out how to use the smallest scraps of wood that are lying around. The creativity can really let loose then.
Cutting and sanding the wood in my garage is really just the first step in the manufacturing process of my products. Then comes painting, more sanding (why is there so much sanding?), stamping, gluing and making sure that it’s just right. The very best part for me is the designing and making of a new product. It’s the best feeling to make something that I’ve never seen before, to know that I’m putting something out into the world that is unique and one of a kind. The fact that people want to buy something I’ve created is still not lost on me. It’s pretty amazing actually. And I am so grateful.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/MelissaAnneCompany
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaannecompany/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaannecompany/