We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stephanie Persichitti a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Stephanie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

Growing up with a twin sister, we embodied the duality you often see in twins, as far as passions go. My interests steered toward the more creative side of things. Jumping from thing to thing, always crafting, interested in all things creative.

In 2017, I started creating String Art and the opportunity to work creatively, full time. When the pandemic hit, I (like many people) worked on other creative passion projects, which included making candles and that turned into another creative/professional outlet.

When I created Makers of Maryland on a whim in 2018, that’s when it became more apparent that I was going to lean more into this field, although I can’t confidently say that I know when about I wanted to pursue creative or artistic path professionally, however it was always underlying in all that I did.

At the end of the day, I love people, I love the experience of meeting new people, and being creative with them and I was always going to find a way to do that.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

After being in the creative world for a number of years, I had found my little group of friends and we were trying to figure out small business ownership, how that translates to learning the social media aspect of things, and all of the other little things you need to do in your small, creative business.

I creatively create string art and candles, and after trying for so long to find a community in the create world, I instead created one.

After grabbing the instagram handle @makersofmaryland on a whim, I started actively promoting my fellow Makers.

My goal was to create opportunity & give knowledge for Makers in any way I can. This has currently manifested in a Pop Up Retail Store in which we are in our third pop up, have 3 more scheduled over the next few year, and just won Best Pop Up Shop in Baltimore for the year of 2022.

In the last three Pop Up Shops we have been able to support over 200 artists/makers and are growing that number daily.

We have so many things coming for Makers in order to better help our community;
– A living Makers community where people can connect, ask questions, give advice.
-More opportunities for vendors events in different areas of Maryland.
-Offering Pop Up shops in other regions.
-Information for new and seasoned Makers to operate their small business and navigate the social media world with ease.
-literally anything else we can do to help the community grow!

I am most proud of my time in our Pop Up Shops and creating a space where Makers can not only sell their items, but work with their fellow Makers to create connections. Seeing Makers collaborate, work with one another, grow relationships in what I am most proud of.

People want to support small businesses, now more than ever. Not only are we fostering growth within the community but brining these Makers to the forefront to give their potential supporters an easier way to find them.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an Artist/Creative is the joy I can bring to others. Being a people person and wanting to create experience for others is driven by my experience that I want our supporters/customers to have and the experience that our Makers can have while working with us.

Bringing joy and opportunity, and see those things come to fruition is exactly what I want to do.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

Everything, anything. NEVER stop learning. Never stop reading. Never stop joining programs, even when you already know the material. Intake all of the information you can.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.makersofmaryland.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/makersofmaryland