Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Maggie Lum. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Maggie , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Owning a business isn’t always glamorous and so most business owners we’ve connected with have shared that on tough days they sometimes wonder what it would have been like to have just had a regular job instead of all the responsibility of running a business. Have you ever felt that way?

I love being a small business owner. I worked as a preschool teacher for several years and loved my classroom and working with kids. But as our own family grew it became harder to manage. Being my own boss, I am able to work around our families crazy schedule. I am able to be present for our kids but also able to run my business.

I have thought about going back to teaching, but then I would be tied to the same schedule everyday. I love the flexibility of my days. And I really love being able to create new things every week.

Maggie , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Pinch of Paint is a small furniture painting and curation business in Lansing, Michigan. We find unique pieces of furniture and bring them back to life. Sometimes we paint them, re-stain them or just give them a deep clean. We listen to what our customers tell us they love and we try to produce more of that!

Our business started in 2015. We started on a much smaller scale, selling small home products and a few furniture pieces at a local store. When that store closed we took a step back to assess what we wanted for our family life as well as Pinch of Paint.

Slowly we started flipping more and more larger pieces. We fell into a rhythm of picking up a piece, painting it and selling it. The more we have done it, the more we have learned.

We have so much time and resources invested in our business. I love that every piece I work on is unique. I feel like I am always learning new skills. I would like to think we have our own style and people seem to love what we are creating. Seeing the joy that these pieces of furniture bring to others in the best! You know when someone travels 4 hours to pick up a cabinet, you are doing something right.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I tend to be a people pleaser. My parents instilled a hard work ethic in me as well as good manners. All these come I’m handy in running your own business. But they can also create more work, if you don’t know when to set boundaries. As I was growing my business I took on all the jobs that came my way and rarely told people no. But that isn’t always practical when running a business.

I have had to learn that it’s okay to tell customers, you aren’t able to paint something for them. I quickly learned that dining room sets and chairs are extremely time consuming, so that’s always going to be a NO for me. I know what we can handle and I know what I enjoy painting, and those are the jobs that I will take on.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I have a decent following on IG but I feel like my customers and support group is stronger on Facebook. When we were just starting our business, I created a Facebook page. Then I started inviting all my friends and family to the page. The page has slowly grown over the years. Whenever I list something for sale on FB Marketplace I always include information about our Facebook and IG accounts and we have grown a following with that.
Word of mouth from others has been huge for us. I can’t tell you how many clients have picked up a piece of furniture and told me about a friend who also follows me.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: _pinchofpaint_
• Facebook: Pinch of Paint