We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kelsey Pearman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kelsey, appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I’ve always been willing to take calculated risks, from moving for a field job as a biologist to picking a master’s program halfway across the country, to changing careers. They just made sense and there were clear rewards associated with each: new field experiences with new species, an MS in Biological Sciences with a fantastic advisor, and a career that’s more conducive to our family’s schedule.

When my husband suggested turning my terrarium-making hobby into a small business, it felt bigger than any other risks I had taken. Maybe because it was 2021? Maybe because our oldest child was less than a year old? Maybe it was because we were relatively new to the area? Or maybe it was because it didn’t seem like it would be successful? After making terrariums as a hobby for several years, it felt like something that others just weren’t interested in. To be completely honest, Niche Terrariums became a business to prove to my husband that it was a bad idea. After my first market, I was absolutely blown away by the response to my terrariums and we’ve continued to grow since. It turns out he was right and here we are 4 years later! I still haven’t officially told him he was right, but I think he’s figured it out at this point.

Over the four years we’ve gone from simply building and selling terrariums to selling terrariums and offering workshops. We’ve also added lasers that allow us to make terrarium stands, custom acrylic terrariums, and lots of other fun crafty things, like earrings from scrap acrylic.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have a BS and MS in biology and previously worked for an environmental consulting firm and as a wildlife biologist for a state agency before moving to the Cincinnati area and transitioning to a role in air quality. After nearly 5 years in air quality, I decided to pursue a master of arts in teaching and transitioned to a role teaching middle school science. When I was working in more industrial settings, I felt like something was missing and started filling the void left by not working on the wildlife side if things by filling the house with plants. There were some plants that I just couldn’t keep happy, so I finally popped them in glassware that I’d had stashed away for terrariums and the cycle continued.
Eventually, my husband started noticing a lot of terrariums around the house and had the nerve to ask if I’d considered selling some. I expected to prove that I was right and that it was a terrible idea destined for failure, but here we are over 4 years later. Now, in addition to building terrariums for markets, I take custom orders, teach workshops, sell complete terrarium kits, make custom acrylic terrariums, and make other small crafty items with our lasers.

As much as I love customers coming back and buying bigger terrariums after being successful with a smaller starter terrarium, I love teaching workshops. I’ve always really enjoyed teaching and outreach, which you might have guessed, so workshops let me combine a few of my favorite things! As a brand, I think I’m most proud of the fact that people are comfortable reaching out to me for terrarium advice, whether they’re building their own or have questions about one they purchased from my shop.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

It’s not the fun side of the creative journey, but it’s still important. When I first started my business, I operated it as a sole-propreitorship. Looking back, I wish I’d had a better understanding of the business side of things and knew about the amazing resources available to small business owners. I was really lucky and connected with a small business consultant at one of my workshops. She and our insurance agent have both been amazing resources as we’ve grown!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me, one of the most rewarding aspects is bringing people together. It probably sounds odd coming from a terrarium shop, but it’s not uncommon for someone to come to a workshop alone and leave having made new friends. Seeing that brings me so much joy!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://nicheterrariums.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/niche.terrariums
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/niche.terrariums