We recently connected with Jaquilyn Edwards and have shared our conversation below.

Jaquilyn, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

I still remember the first large, scary investment I ever made in my business. It was early 2020. I had been operating my marketing agency, Ochre & Beige, for 3 profitable years. We had proof of concept and a great client list…but the brand looked, felt, and absolutely was DIY. In fact, I had only one professional headshot in those 3 years — taken on an iPhone!

I knew that my existing brand (strategy, logo, photography, website, etc.) was holding me back from reaching the next level, so I found a brand designer I loved, and we started the conversation.

Well, you can see where this story is going. As talks got underway, the pandemic hit. Oh, and to add some color to the story, just months before, my husband and I had moved out of our apartment to start a year-long “world tour.” (You can laugh.)

I remember being in lockdown in Curaçao, sitting in our one-bedroom Airbnb, wondering what was going to happen to my business, where we were going to live, if the island would stay safe, and how we would get flights back to the U.S.

Aaaaand that’s the moment when I received the project proposal from the brand designer.

Sticker shock is an understatement. I could have bought a car with that amount of money. Amid fear and uncertainty, logic said, “Ummm, maybe I should do this next year…”

But then, a second voice chimed in and said, “What if? What if this is the right thing? What if this changes everything? What if I trust myself to make this an INVESTMENT with huge returns?”

I still don’t know why, but the second voice was louder. Something just felt right on a visceral level, that “gut” instinct, intuition, fate… I took the leap.

Over two years later (and having made other scary investments since then), this is still the best decision I have ever made for my business…and for myself.

In addition to making my investment back almost immediately, my confidence soared. I stepped into greater responsibility, passion, and leadership as an entrepreneur. We increased prices. Elevated the quality of our services. Started hiring and building a team of incredible women. Since then, I have felt more alive and full of purpose.

And because I experienced the transformative power of branding, we expanded our services to include brand strategy and copywriting for the interior designers we were working with. Now, we get to play this same magical role in our own clients’ journeys — and I absolutely LOVE that. It feels real, meaningful, and impactful.

(Oh, and don’t worry. We were eventually able to get off the island!)

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started Ochre & Beige (O&B) in 2017, where my team and I work exclusively with interior designers. We channel our expertise into business strategy, marketing content, and irresistible brands that help our clients build their dream design firms. A side effort of our work? Helping them step into the CEO role, grow their teams, launch product lines, go virtual, and so much more! To each their own.

I’d like to say the business was all my idea, but it was actually a friend who suggested it. At that time, I was leading a successful career in Silicon Valley. I studied Design and Communication at Stanford, joined an exciting tech startup, and spent years working in business development, marketing, and sales.

I loved the environment and rapid growth, but after a while, I was ready to do something different. I wanted pursue my love of writing and travel the world. (You already know how that went!) But how?

I remember telling my friend these life dreams over coffee one summer afternoon. She looked at me and said, “Have you thought about the interior design industry?”

I hadn’t.

“Have you ever thought about starting a business?”

I hadn’t.

“You should think about it.”

I did. And it was perfect for my interests, experience, and goals.

I started the business with hope and hard work and have watched it absolutely explode over 5 years. (And became a business partner with said friend, but that’s another story!) Along the way, I’ve discovered a passion for entrepreneurship and an even more important mission that is near and dear to my heart:

Helping other women, from our team to our clients, build their dream lifestyles, too.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

This is a personal one. And I know all my high-achievers and perfectionists will feel it, too. Failure. Did you just cringe? Right there with you.

By and far, the one thing I have had to unlearn is the desire to avoid failure. From a childhood where anything less than an “A” needed improvement, to life as a student-athlete, to the trial-by-fire nature of the Silicon Valley startup scene, the desire for perfection has been ingrained deep.

Now, don’t get me wrong — I have been very, very fortunate to have the experiences and opportunities I have had, and I don’t regret them! But at this point in my life and business, that mentality no longer serves me. I can’t expect to go through life or entrepreneurship without failing. It isn’t reasonable to ask of myself. Or anyone else, for that matter.

I’ve been doing some self-work on this, and I can tell you…it has been liberating.

If this struggle resonates with you, I highly recommend reading Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck. It has helped me immensely with getting out of the perfectionist mindset and taking a healthier approach to growth, learning, leadership, teamwork, and even parenting…though no kids over here just yet!

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

The #1 strategy for growing our clientele has been… referrals. From the very beginning, I was lucky enough to know other business owners serving the design industry in a parallel capacity, such as business coaches, web designers, and other marketers who offer different services.

In fact, this is probably the single biggest piece of advice I would give anyone just starting out — go find similar service providers and be referral partners! There doesn’t need to be an official agreement (I actually think the relationship is more authentic when there isn’t), but it is mutually beneficial and expands your reach.

This network will expand naturally over time, too. Within about a year, our existing CLIENTS became the #1 referral source for us, which is even more flattering. I largely contribute this to the quality of service we’re providing, which is another piece of advice I always share. If you can create a top-notch experience for your clients, no matter what you’re providing, they will tell their friends. And their friends are probably similar to them.

Of course, as someone in the business of branding and marketing, I also have to say that this referral network is far more effective when you have a beautiful and cohesive digital presence to back it up. Looking polished and professional online will make referral partners and your dream clients far more inclined to work with you. I’ve seen it over and over again!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ochreandbeige.com
• Instagram: ochreandbeige

Image Credits
Erin Bathurst