We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jadarius Lawson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Jadarius, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. 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.
The summer after I graduated with my degree in Computer Engineering, I woke up and said I want to take my photography to the next level, open up my own studio and really have a full second income to my engineer job. I took that risk last year and I’m currently running two separate studios in the same building. I never imagined I would be this successful this fast but I’m always grateful for my clients and always ensuring customer satisfaction by providing them with a great personal experience.
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’m born and raised here in Memphis, TN. After I graduated high school, I started college at University of Memphis and was looking for ways to make extra money. My dad was a photographer and I began to see the benefit of providing good quality work and the customer satisfaction in the end. Throughout college I had to take breaks from taking pictures due to me being a Computer Engineering major that took most of my time studying. Now I’m a full time photographer after my work day job and all weekend. What I believe sets me apart from others is that I truly don’t make business decisions solely based on how much money I will make, I hear so many stories about photographers treating customers poorly and I pride myself on my customer service. At a young age my parents instilled in me to treat others how I’d want them or my siblings to be treated and I bring that mindset everyday in life.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
Having my dad being a photographer who gave me quality equipment as a starter camera provided me with a great advantage. I was able to establish my initial clientele with that and without it, I’m not sure where I’d be today. Since then, I’ve bought two separate cameras (#TeamNikon) that I use daily. Establishing that clientele funded my basic studio equipment and continues to do so.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
Truly caring and treating your clients with grace is something I pride myself on, no matter the occasion. One thing I learned by being a client and having clients, if someone has a good time and feels genuine care then they will become potential repeat customers and refer you to someone else they know.
Contact Info:
- Website: jadariuslawsonphotography.com
- Instagram: @jadariuslawsonphotography
Image Credits
Jadarius Lawson – @jadariuslawsonphotography