We were lucky to catch up with Natasha Blakely recently and have shared our conversation below.

Natasha , appreciate you joining us today. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?

I ran my own business for 10 years, but I was a part of a franchise and they really held my hand through the entire process of how to get clients. When I decided to close down my franchise and build my own business model I had to start from scratch. With a whole new target market, I really felt overwhelmed, and I was not sure where or how to start. But I did a lot of research, picked the brain of a few successful business owners, and I joined some online groups that were relevant to my field, and I think that was super helpful for me. One thing in particular that was helpful, obtaining the right verbiage to use when reaching out to partner with other businesses and pointing out the mutual benefit of collaboration. That was so crucial for me because my business is mobile so I had to harvest businesses that would be open to a partnership. I found a local business that I really vibed with on social media. I reached out to them through DM. They welcomed the idea of a collab and the rest is history. I started marketing heavily. I was able to sell out the house with strong support from friends and family, and we were able to capture some amazing moments through photo and video imagery. I remember that it was an amazing feeling to see my little vision come to life right before my eyes.

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 have always been a creative. Someone that just marches to the beat of their own drum. As a kid, I knew I did not want to lead a traditional life working a regular 9-5. The idea of that just made me want to cringe. I have always been a huge fan of art. I did not think I was good at it, but I really enjoyed the process of making and viewing art.

I am thankful that my mom and dad have always spoken life into me. They believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself and I will forever be thankful for that. I could always draw on that energy when I am having a challenging day. So when the opportunity came for me to work in the art industry as an adult, although I was nervous I jumped on it. Art helped to breathe life into me, so I took it and ran with it. It helped me to boost my self-confidence not just in my artist abilities but in all areas of life.

But what really caused me to give birth to my pandemic baby (my company) I was forced to close down my art-based franchise after 10 years, and I was scrambling to figure out what my next move would be. I knew it had to be something that I would enjoy, and would also spark joy in others. I had been selling my paintings for years, and teaching art classes to children. Working with kids I was able to see the impact that art had on their lives, and I realized during the pandemic that everyone needed to embrace the joy of art, especially taking into account the unprecedented times we are all navigating through. In addition to art, as I grow older health and wellness has also become really important to me so I started looking at options in those fields. I applied for a job teaching at a paint and sip and I didn’t get hired because she said I didn’t live in a major city. So I decided to open my own business offering services that I felt were missing in my city. I married my ideas of wellness and art. After a conversation with my sister, where I was explaining what I wanted for my business she actually came up with the name H-art Therapy pronounced “heart therapy” I loved it. I felt it captured the essence of my vision. Our mission is to create a safe space where people can build strong bonds, make happy memories, get creative, increase their confidence in themselves and their abilities and perhaps most importantly spark joy. I believe that humans are beautifully created and that we all have natural creative abilities. We just have to harness our creative talents. When people leave with a smile on their face, and they are impressed by what they were able to accomplish I feel that I have done my job. We work with everyone from corporate team-building paint party events, to children’s educational workshops, and private parties. We adjust each event to the needs of each client which may include team-building exercises, educational fun facts, prizes, photo booth fun, and games. We are not your average paint party company.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

One lesson that I feel I had to unlearn is the idea that I can do it all by myself. I hate to ask others for help. But running a business is a lot of work and there are so many different moving parts. I know how to teach an art class but marketing is not my strong suit. Also, I hate bookkeeping and crunching numbers. But I realize that these are all equally important parts to run a successful business. Some of the more mundane tasks I may need to delegate to someone else so I can focus on other pressing matters. I think it also boils down to having good time management and making good use of others.

Asking questions is how you learn. I really had to humble myself and reach out to successful small business owners to find out what worked for them and what didn’t work so I could learn from their mistakes. I attended business conferences and webinars to learn from others. I asked a lot of questions, and for partnerships. I realized I don’t have to do it by myself and to make the best use of my time I had to learn to delegate responsibilities to others on my team and trust them to be accountable. I had to also learn how to be a better leader and empower all my team members. There is strength in numbers. If your core team isn’t strong you just won’t last long.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I think I used every free resource known to man. During the pandemic, there were a lot of grants for small businesses I took advantage of those grant opportunities. For a while, I was telling people my job was to get grants because that is how I was supporting myself. But I also used tools that market you for free like Yelp, Google Business, Instagram, Facebook, Craigslist, Nextdoor, just whatever I could think of. I joined different vendor lists that are available within my city. I also leveraged relationships I already had with local community centers, libraries, and small businesses. I placed business cards in small cafes and restaurants. I try to make sure I post video content regularly on my social media too. I think the more people see you, the more credible they think you are especially in the art field. If you see an artist in more than one gallery you start to think “wow they must be a popular artist.” So I try in to stay in front of people. I also take art classes myself to grow as an artist this has allowed me to network and meet other artists who share resources. I think my efforts are paying off because we have been open for less than a year and we have been featured on the local news, magazines, and the newspaper. Thankfully our business has continually been picking up with time, and we have been able to self-sustain which can be a challenge for a new business during the early years.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.h-arttherapy.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haart_therapy/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/haarttherapy/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/h-art-therapy-stockton?osq=h-art+therapy

Image Credits
@rawhimages