We recently connected with Steph Davies and have shared our conversation below.

Steph, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a story that highlights an important way in which your brand diverges from the industry standard.

In the years since Covid I’ve relied on working towards less. I closed my brick & mortar location and went online. It’s easier to manage with less overhead and I feel healthier and happier in this new space.
B.C. (Before Covid) I was IN the game; my shop had expanded into 4 times our original space after three years in business in 2015 and in 2020 we were well on track to have our first year making over a million in sales.
But I was also stressed all the time and even with so much coming in, I had so much going out to keep it all growing growing growing.
When Covid hit and our 5 year lease happened to be up, it made sense to take a step back and re-evaluate & I’m so glad I did.
I think I’ll return to a brick & mortar again someday but for now I am spending more time creating art in my own studio space and I feel more space to reflect on the products I am bringing into the shop and less pressure to “keep up”.
Cheers to anyone pivoting in this hard-to-predict economic landscape!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Growing up whenever I took those career aptitude tests (what should you be when you grow up?) Entrepreneur always topped the list. For so long that term felt so abstract to me. Through college (I attended The School of the Art Institute of Chicago where I graduated in 2005 with a Bachelors Degree in Illustration & Printmaking) & afterwards I worked whatever odd jobs I could to afford my mountain of student loan payments & allow myself as much time as possible to create art.
When I turned 29 I decided to quit all my odd jobs and give myself the opportunity to really pursue art before I turned 30.
I spent a lot of time creating work for local gallery exhibits & developing my jewelry line, Dear Darlington.
One of the shops that picked up my work was called The Hummingbird Art Boutique. In addition to selling my work there, I also started picking up weekend shifts to make ends meet. It was a small space run by two local women and they were really open about everything that went into running a business behind the scenes.
After a year in business, they decided not to keep going and I made the leap to take over the space and open my own shop, The Waxwing.
By March 2012, we were up & running and my main focus was on representing art that, at the time, I didn’t see in other spaces including original artwork & pottery.
I’ll never forget opening day; my mom was in town helping me set up & I suddenly realized that I had invested all my savings into this space with no back up plan. I remember saying to her “I hope at least a few people come by today”
15 minutes later there were so many people in the tiny (400 square foot!) space and even more outside, we counted over 200 people that first day and it just kept growing.
I have always felt so blessed by the support the local community has given me since day one…it’s truly incredible.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

The initial capitol for my business was meager. $3500. That’s it, that’s what I had. The initial inventory in my space was all sold on consignment (with local artists being paid as items sold) so there was little risk involved and I went into it thinking the space would act as a personal studio for me with the added bonus of selling my work & the work of others. I had no idea that it would be such a busy retail space that I would never really have time to make art there. I got really lucky in this regard. I brought something to a neighborhood that really wanted it & they showed up. My investment paid off within the first two days.

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

I’ve been authentically myself always. I am an open book & very honest with my customers and followers about the struggles of being a business owner, a woman, a mother…
At our first storefront, a year and a half in, I had my first kid and I brought her to work with me. Customers would hold her while I rang them up.
I’ve seen regular customers start their own families & watched those kids grow.
Customers & artists in the shop eventually became employees as business grew & those employees to this day are an extension of my own family.
Small businesses (in my opinion) have the advantage of being more involved in the community. Our customers are just as familiar with our faces as they are with our logos.
Before I had any sort of advertising budget, these relationships were the foundation of our growth & success. These customers told their friends and their accounts & repeat business are why we still exist today.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thewaxwing.com (personal brand: www.deardarlington.com)
• Instagram: @thewaxwing (@deardarlington)

Image Credits
Myself