We recently connected with Jennifer Hunt and have shared our conversation below.

Jennifer, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

Dogwood Hill creates beautifully designed products featuring art we commission from our collective of artists. Every pattern created, every font selected and every card designed has been thoughtfully curated through a multi-level review and revision process, so that what lands on our website for our customers to purchase is the best version of that work. My original idea of providing high-end, custom-looking cards at an affordable price with a quick turnaround meant that I needed to simplify the process for customers. Historically, high-end, custom-looking cards would require hefty design and artist fees and a lengthy proofing process. By absorbing those fees, designing the products in advance, and making them easily shoppable, we provide the customer with a product at a substantially reduced price and typically within 7 to 10 business days. Holiday cards, invitations and notecards have been around for a very long time, but we pride ourselves in a look that is unique to Dogwood Hill.

Jennifer, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I founded Dogwood Hill in 2015. My background is in accounting, and I also owned an art gallery for a time. One year when I waited a bit too long to order holiday cards, I discovered a gap in the market. I tried unsuccessfully to book an artist and graphic designer to create the type cards I wanted, but it was too late since the custom process typically takes some time. I assumed that a web search would be easy enough, but found that no one was delivering online customizable, original art-driven holiday cards at an affordable price with a quick turnaround. That is when the idea sprung for a website where discerning customers could go for cards that were thoughtfully and gorgeously created featuring art by real artists. And so, Dogwood Hill – a name that reflects my hometown – was born. From weddings and holiday cards to paper goods that will keep you organized, we are happy to offer a range of beautifully and thoughtfully created products to enjoy. And with our growing roster of 30 artists, each with their own distinctive style, customers will find an item to suit their taste and personality.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

​​From the beginning, we had the advantage of having a built-in network on social media through our artists and their followings. Also, very early on we started our Holiday Tastemaker program where we work with a handful of people each year who are influential on Instagram and have a similar aesthetic to Dogwood Hill. We develop a card collection with each tastemaker and spend the holiday season highlighting their work and promoting the card collections they created with us. It’s a reciprocal relationship which has proved to be a great way to grow our following and theirs by tapping into audiences that we maybe hadn’t reached yet. We also offer a discount code to customers who post a photo of the items in their order and tag Dogwood Hill. We include instructions on the drop card we include in each order and then send them the code via DM when they tag us and use a specific hashtag.

Any advice for managing a team?

When I started Dogwood Hill, I had a 2 year old and a 5 year old, so it was important to me to build a company that would allow for remote working. I had previously worked in the brick and mortar retail space and preferred the flexibility of ecommerce (and have truthfully never had the intention of opening a store front). As the company grew and the majority of people were working remotely and located throughout the country, communication became imperative to our success. It became apparent that having an organizational hierarchy and structure were key, so that people in different departments and roles knew who to touch base with for various reasons. We also learned that the Directors and Managers of each area needed to meet weekly on a video call and our Design team has recently implemented a monthly video call to go along with their Slack channel where they constantly communicate. Ultimately, we realized that while remote working has a myriad of advantages, it can also make someone feel like they are on an island if communication isn’t stellar. We’re still a work in progress, but we have improved by leaps and bounds. And if the company is running efficiently, which increases with good communication, then often the bottom line improves too, which is a great by-product!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.dogwood-hill.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dogwood.hill/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shopdogwoodhill/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jennifer-hunt-0711b3165/

Image Credits
Dogwood Hill