We were lucky to catch up with Michaela McCarthy recently and have shared our conversation below.

Michaela, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us a story about a time you failed?

My Business and passion for art was rekindled after one of my biggest failures.
In 2018 I bought a one-way ticket to Hawaii from California for a job in Film as a location scout. It was one of the biggest moves I had made in my young adult life, and I was so excited! As I opened my phone after landing on beautiful Oahu, I got a call letting me know that the person who brought me on got fired while I was midflight and my position went with it. Most people might have fallen apart, I did for a day or 2, but I picked myself up, took my sketch book and paint set and decided to start making art inspired by the colorful plants and scenery that I had grown up with. I grew up in Hawaii and always loved creating as a child. Bright colors and flowers were always my inspiration. As my love for art started to creep back in in the middle of this “major failure” I realized that I was given an opportunity to change my life. I had moved to start all over anyway, might as well focus on what I’m really passionate about! And so, Michaela K Creations was born. I started selling my artwork as digital downloads and quickly learned that I wanted to turn my art into stickers. I started making them myself on a Cricut, which turned into 3 Cricut’s in 2020 when my shop started to take off. Sharing my art was a great way to express my battles with depression and anxiety while creating something colorful and full of joy. Fast forward to 2022 I purchased my own industrial printing equipment and MKM Prints was born! Owning a print shop wasn’t always in my long-term plan, but I did this so I could produce my own stickers as well as print them for other small artists and businesses who were looking for high quality stickers at an affordable price. Over the past 3 years I have poured my heart and soul into creating a print shop and an art brand that is a safe space for creatives especially women and individuals in the queer community. As a queer creative I know the importance of expressing yourself in a community that lifts you up and supports your work, and I have created what I like to call a sticker family that find this important as well. MKM Prints is a queer woman owned / run business that consists of 3 creatives who also share their art as stickers. We printed over 100,000 stickers in 2024 for a variety of artists and small business. My art business, Michaela K Creations has created custom stickers for shops, movies, book launches, and so much more around the world since its creation. I’ve also partnered with some amazing artists along the way and set up for events for crafting, junk journaling and creative expression. One of my most popular inventions was a 6ft sticker wall that was created with artwork by myself and my 2 friends. It was a huge hit at junk journaling events. We continue to bring this sticker set up to events all over California and hopefully other places soon! Looking back at this journey, I see it as my biggest success story that started from a major failure.

Michaela, 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?

My Business and passion for art was rekindled after one of my biggest failures.
In 2018 I bought a one-way ticket to Hawaii from California for a job in Film as a location scout. It was one of the biggest moves I had made in my young adult life, and I was so excited! As I opened my phone after landing on beautiful Oahu, I got a call letting me know that the person who brought me on got fired while I was midflight and my position went with it. Most people might have fallen apart, I did for a day or 2, but I picked myself up, took my sketch book and paint set and decided to start making art inspired by the colorful plants and scenery that I had grown up with. I grew up in Hawaii and always loved creating as a child. Bright colors and flowers were always my inspiration. As my love for art started to creep back in in the middle of this “major failure” I realized that I was given an opportunity to change my life. I had moved to start all over anyway, might as well focus on what I’m really passionate about! And so, Michaela K Creations was born. I started selling my artwork as digital downloads and quickly learned that I wanted to turn my art into stickers. I started making them myself on a Cricut, which turned into 3 Cricut’s in 2020 when my shop started to take off. Sharing my art was a great way to express my battles with depression and anxiety while creating something colorful and full of joy. Fast forward to 2022 I purchased my own industrial printing equipment and MKM Prints was born! Owning a print shop wasn’t always in my long-term plan, but I did this so I could produce my own stickers as well as print them for other small artists and businesses who were looking for high quality stickers at an affordable price. Over the past 3 years I have poured my heart and soul into creating a print shop and an art brand that is a safe space for creatives especially women and individuals in the queer community. As a queer creative I know the importance of expressing yourself in a community that lifts you up and supports your work, and I have created what I like to call a sticker family that find this important as well. MKM Prints is a queer woman owned / run business that consists of 3 creatives who also share their art as stickers. We printed over 100,000 stickers in 2024 for a variety of artists and small business. My art business, Michaela K Creations has created custom stickers for shops, movies, book launches, and so much more around the world since its creation. I’ve also partnered with some amazing artists along the way and set up for events for crafting, junk journaling and creative expression. One of my most popular inventions was a 6ft sticker wall that was created with artwork by myself and my 2 friends. It was a huge hit at junk journaling events. We continue to bring this sticker set up to events all over California and hopefully other places soon! Looking back at this journey, I see it as my biggest success story that started from a major failure.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

I make every sticker that I sell of my art and for my print shop in house. I learned everything about my equipment and how to create weatherproof stickers through research and attending expos about the print industry. I spent the past 3 years learning and experimenting with my own equipment to create high quality decals that are weatherproof for outdoor signage or dish washer safe for smaller applications. The print industry is very male dominated and targeted at larger companies who need vehicle wraps, large window signage, semi-truck signage, etc. I wanted my print shop to operate a little differently and be detail focused for smaller prints like individual stickers. Part of my research was looking into printing equipment that prints small details and vibrant colors, which as an artist I was looking for and I hoped I could create a product other artists were looking for too. I found all of the materials we use for printing from local vendors on my own by calling and researching for over a year. I knew I wanted to purchase from other small businesses when I first started and I’m happy to say we continue to do so today. The entire process was a lot of trial and error but ended up teaching me so much more about the print.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My biggest pivot is when I decided to leave film and pursue art again after my biggest failure.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mkmprints.com/
• Instagram: @michaelakcreations & @mkm_prints
• Youtube: @michaelakcreations
• Other: Pinterest @michaelakcreations

Image Credits

@Patrenawitt Instagram

Name : Patrena Witt