We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Aimee Robles. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Aimee below.

Aimee, appreciate you joining us today. We’ve all been there before where things are tight financially and we start asking ourselves in the small/simple joys like a cup of coffee is worth it. Have you had an experience like this and if so how did you think about this sort of spending?

I am a very small business; I am a sole proprietor LLC, and it is only me at this time. In the beginning and even now I have been lucky enough to find a Facebook group that is all about reusing and repurposing items. My business is based on creativity and being able to reach out to a group that always has the most random items is a blessing. When I come up with the class projects for the month I just begin reaching out to the group and there is always someone who has what I need. For example, my last class in April needed bubble wrap and someone in the group had been saying up a bunch to give away and I lucked out. Also, another way I have been saving money is buying the items I know I will use pretty much every class in bulk. I usually have a max of 10 kids per class so buying in bulk and saving leftovers for the next class helps a lot too.

Aimee, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

So, I started working for local government straight out of high school. I worked in the Parks and Recreation department between two cities until 2022. I loved what I did but I did feel that I wanted to give more to the community than what I was limited to by working with the city. I specifically worked with the Childcare department that entire time and I knew I wanted to direct my business to the kids. I loved art growing up and remembered doing arts and crafts in summer camp and how it made me feel during that time. I wanted to create a safe space where children of all ages could come and creative. I have always been a huge advocate for the arts and the importance of free expression for everyone.

I use the Kinderart style of teaching which focuses on the individual creative exploration for each child. The goal is to allow the students to make choices while still following instruction, whether it be through decisions about what colors to use or what kinds of lines to draw. My classes always allow for some independence so that we always get different and amazing artwork from each student.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Prior to Artsy Lee being created, I ran a similar set up pre-covid under the name Moondragon. Unfortunately, COVID hit my business hard. I had a steady 8 kids who would come every weekend and I loved seeing the artwork and friendships being created. After COVID building back up under a new name and a new location has been tough. I pushed through and created a new, younger age group named Banksy Babes, named after the sneaky artist, many know of. This age group is 6 months to 4 years old and it focuses more so on the sensory play around creating artwork. This class began the beginning of this month, May, and it already has gotten 8 kids who attended.

Having to think outside the box of arts and crafts and older age groups was a great part of this journey so far.

How did you build your audience on social media?

Social media, speaking solely of Facebook and Instagram in my case, has been amazing once it is grown. I have tried paying for ads and paid postings, but all of my clients have come from Facebook or Instagram posts that I have done myself and for free. When you work with kids your best bet is to reach out where parents are located. I have worked city events and offered demo art classes free of charge to allow the parents and children to see what they could be doing during class. I also am lucky to be a parent myself and join the Facebook groups that are strictly for parents, and they allow me to post my ads weekly on their pages for free. My Instagram has grown greatly due to my friend and partner Angela who owns Art in Oakland Park. She has the connections needed to have people follow me who in turn share to those who would be interested. Another way to get your social media to grow is word of mouth, I had one class where only one student signed up and instead of canceling the class, I turned it into a more personal event and allowed the parent to join in on their own canvas and paint. She was so grateful to have that mother and son date that she went and spread the word quicker than I ever could to other parents. Social media strives on just that, being social and being real.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.artsy-lee.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artsylee_aimee/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArtsyLee.Aimee

Image Credits
Aimee Robles – All taken by me on my phone.