We were lucky to catch up with Megan Schmitz recently and have shared our conversation below.

Megan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

Senior year of college we were tasked with developing a brand as part of our senior project and I opted to create my own business. I had pages of notes with adjectives, phrases, definitions – just a LOT of words trying to come up with the perfect pairing but nothing was jumping out. In all honesty I ran out of time and had to pick something in order to move on. Part of my project was developing a client work process so I settled on the word ‘praxis.’ Praxis is the process by which a theory, lesson, or skill is enacted, embodied, or realized. In a not-so radical move, the words ‘design studio’ were added to the end to just be obvious about who I was and what I did. So my business name means “the process of design.” I figured after a year or so I’d change the name when I was out in the real world but here I am 12 years later! Even though I’ve never been in wholeheartedly in love with my business name, it’s been phenomenal phrasing for me to evolve what I do over the years without ever feeling like the name no longer applies.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I help connect big hearted brands to their clients in a meaningful and memorable way through strategically positive design. I’m passionate about what I do and want to attract clients who are equally passionate about what they do. My studio specializes in branding and web design for small businesses and I leverage my experience working with big corporations to create systems that are tailored to each client and their specific industry. We want to not only build for the present, but create a foundation that is expandable for future growth.

Clients generally come to me either in the very early stages of their business or with one they’ve been working in for some time. I love meeting business owners where they are at in their journey and building upon what they’ve established and where they want to be. Design should look good but more importantly it should solve problems and be highly functional. From logo design, to packaging, product labels, website revamp, collateral – no project is a small project when you own a small business and I value each and every one that crosses my desk. My goal is to not just create ‘a good design’ but a confidently cohesive brand that is ready to make waves and take on the world!

After a project wraps, I want my clients to feel empowered to use what we’ve built and secure knowing that if they ever need anything, I’m here and happy to help!

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

How important a customer relationship management platform is if you’re a serviced based business. For years I relied on just a planner and spreadsheet, which worked when I had a few clients but wasn’t really scalable. A CRM has helped streamline a lot of administration tasks like estimating, contract sending, invoicing, reminders and follow up. It’s a huge time saver and bonus that it makes you look extra professional. They do take a bit of time to setup but it is so worth it and I wish I had done it sooner.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Praxis Design Studio started off right after college with a friends wedding invitation design. I was obsessed with all things stationery and it offered a contrast to the more corporate design work I was doing at my full time job. Since I was already working full time, there was only so much time I could devote but gradually received more and more referrals for work over the years. Eventually my day job grew so time consuming I had to stop custom work all together but I’m always in need of a creative outlet. I started illustrating more and eventually turned those into my own line of cards and stickers. On a whim I applied to a market, got in, and setup my first show selling stationery and paper items and I was a success! Product design became the focus for several years as it was easier to work into my schedule and it was the most continued success I had ever had on my own.

After over a decade at my corporate job I became extremely burnt out. I had wanted to strike out on my own for years but had been unable to put the time in to get my business to the point I thought it needed to be in order to go full time self employed. I eventually took the risk and struck out on my own, focusing solely on product development as I felt I needed a creative break from business and brand design. I had some small biz friends reach out with design projects that I took to supplement the lack of markets during the pandemic, thinking these were just one-time gigs. It didn’t take long before I realized that my passion really resided in small business branding and went full focus on that.

Building your own business definitely isn’t a clear cut path!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.praxisdesignstudio.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/praxisdesignstudio/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/praxisdesignstudio
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/praxisdesignstudio/

Image Credits
Sarajane Herrmann Photography