We were lucky to catch up with Kimber Hardick recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Kimber, thanks for joining us today. Covid has brought about so many changes – has your business model changed?
Covid actually helped Ron and I create our business model. We were tired of being stuck at home. We had our studio in our garage spending the day going from the garage to the backyard to the living room the garage the backyard the living room. Having recently moved to the area we didn’t know anybody nor had we anyway to connect while everything was shut down. We decided it was time to try to find a space for a studio that was secluded yet gave as the opportunity to leave our house. In the process of looking for an affordable space, I kept thinking how great it would be to have an art community . I found many places that might work, but Nothing called me strongly enough to pull the trigger. We rented a space not far from our home. It was everything we were hoping for, except we were the only artist in that Community. There was a small studio space that had a florist a few miles away from where we were renting, and every time I drove past it I remember thinking how it would make an amazing studio. I stopped to inquire about the space and it had just been leased out. I continued to covet that building for the next few months. Low and behold that little property with the florist studio popped up on Zillow and it was for sale. I immediately called met the owner and put in an offer. The property consisted of two small buildings on Honea Egypt Road and shared a parking lot with a chiropractor. It had all the utilities installed and was being sold as a teardown. We purchased the land and I worked with Bel gra construction designing affordable suites to create a small art community. We built three little duplexes with their own temperature control and a sink, thus was born The Bella Bottega. A collaborative working artist community. The timing was perfect as the business partnership at the florist was dissolving and they desired to get out of their lease early. The back building became a shared space with a bathroom and kitchen, that now has been turned into Ardest gallery curated by Julie Verville. In our little duplexes we have six studios, Housing eight artists! We are approaching our one year anniversary in November and have a very small turnover in the studios. We have a wonderful group of diverse artists that we can co create with, get inspired by and learn from. We Open our doors to the public with a Champagne and Chocolate art walk the second Sunday of every month along with hosting special events and art classes. Community is so important, and having our own small separate studio spaces with which to create has truly been amazing. My only regret is that we couldn’t build more!
Kimber, 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 have always been creative but never felt comfortable saying I was an artist. That is until I found ceramics. My husband and I took a class about 5 years ago and have not looked back. Both of us refining our skill and look. My work continues to evolve as My fascination with textures and layers has greatly inspired my work. For years I was stuck with this idea that I had to achieve perfection and realism in my art. This left me feeling frustrated and constrained. Just the idea of perfection often created unachievable standards I set for myself, as well as misguided ideals of what good art was. My practice recently has been learning to embrace imperfection, to find the beauty in it. Thie last few year the practice has begun to influence my art. I have given myself permission to play with the clay, pushing boundaries and exploring. Breaking rules all the while allowing each piece to have its own character, its own story. I am finding that I am enjoying the process, as well as being curious and free to explore and play often not knowing what the end result will be. The raw and unrefined look and feel of the uneven free formed edges and the layers of texture and wear and tear on the surfaces is something I hope makes you want to touch and look at my work, to explore. Each piece has its own unique individual character, its own story and I find the imperfections to be aesthetically pleasing. I donate the proceeds of my work to compassion United, a nonprofit in Conroe helping The people less fortunate in our community.
The Bella Bottega is unique in that our goal is to offer affordable studio space to artist. To create community and to connect with other artist as well as hopefully inspire a few people along the way.
Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?
By cofounder/business partner is also my husband. We met a few years ago on match and eloped in April of 2019. Our first date we met for dinner and I knew then this man was different. On my drive home to the lake I shot a picture of the sunset over the lake and sent it to him. We had plans the next night to watch the sunset. His response was one I think of every time I see a sunset. He said “a sunset is a message from God that everything is going to be ok” The next night we went out on my boat. My kids had just taken it to get it cleaned and it had a brand new starter. We got out on the lake and sat waiting for the sunset lost in conversation when we suddenly noticed the boat was rapidly filling with water! The kids had not put the plug back in the boat!! We were lucky that as a former boat salesman Ron new where to put the plug and we began to bilge to water out of the boat. Unfortunately we drowned my new starter and had to wave a passing boat down to toe us in. We have been attached at the hip ever since!!
How did you build your audience on social media?
I previously was in the wellness industry and relied heavily on social media for my studio as well as workshops. I’ve also learned from my kids how to build my social media. I’m not quite as successful but I’ve done alright. I join as many local groups that either share an interest in Art as well as local groups in neighborhoods. I post frequently but I find my reels of my pets get the most attention. I follow likeminded people as well as local influencers. I share content in all the relevant groups as well as on my personal page. Social media can become tedious but I try to keep it fun. We are working on our email list for our newsletter and when out and about we hand out fliers and have conversations hoping to direct more people to our social media. We have had several press opportunities and we share share share these on social. Hashtags are important although I try to keep a list of hashtags ready for my posts so I don’t have to waste time typing them in.
Contact Info:
- Website: TheBellaBottega.com
- Instagram: TheBellaBottega
- Facebook: TheBellaBottega
Image Credits
Paige Beitler Photography