We were lucky to catch up with Zanielle Foxcroft recently and have shared our conversation below.

Zanielle, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you wish you had waited to pursue your creative career or do you wish you had started sooner?

I don’t! What I learned and experienced working in jobs like visual merchandising and marketing taught me a lot about running my own business.
I started thinking about starting my own business when I fell pregnant with my first son, Bodhi. I knew I didn’t want to return to work full-time after having him, and you can take a year-long maternity leave in the UK. So with a newborn in my arms Foxcroft French started to become a reality.
Having worked as a marketing manager before having my son, I knew about getting my business name out there and had worked with social media campaigns and product photography. I knew the time was right.

Zanielle, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

It started when I went to college to study Fashion Design. I was born in South Africa, but I moved to London as soon as I graduated. Living in London, I worked in Visual Merchandising and became a Marketing Manager for a fashion company until I had my first son, Bodhi, now 9. I stopped working to be with him but soon realized not working was not for me. I started Foxcroft French when he was 3 months old. Foxcroft is me, and the French part was for my love of France, the fashion, the style, the women, and the lifestyle.

I began making vases and pots from concrete, and then I started to draw and paint again. Soon, I was selling prints and cards and adding my images to other products. Two years later, my husband was offered a promotion in Minnesota. We had already relocated to another country once, so what was one more time? We landed in January 2018 and have never looked back. Shortly after we settled in Elk River, I was expecting my second son, Luca, now age 4. I started Foxcroft French again, this time adding woven items, wooden items, and jewelry. If I saw a product I saw makers making, I wanted to try that technique and see if I could make it. I sold my items in Rose and Loon, Picadilly Prairie, and Smith and Trade, to name a few.

I have toned down my product line a lot since then, I became a Social Media Manager for a few small businesses and realized I needed to plan my time more efficiently, so I could still continue to make. My main product line is my prints, I draw pen on paper to create intricate yet simple and modern drawings. From dogs to birds and country cottages, I love to draw! I have used my drawings to create other products including wooden block art and now use a company to print t-shirts and mugs for me. I am currently working on new drawings that are more “tattoo inspired”
I think what sets me apart is all my prints are hand drawn so they are not perfectly perfect! They are very detailed and interesting, but because I only use black and white they look minimal and modern.
I am just happy people like my art and would want to add a piece of my style to their homes. I love doing custom requests, I once drew a cat with tattoos, a gift from someone to their tattoo artist who loved cats!

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

So, I am a book lover! I no longer read fiction books these days, it’s all about gaining more knowledge for me.
If I want to start a new medium, learn a new craft, or see beautiful images for inspiration, I buy a book for that.
My most memorable would be “How to Style Your Brand” by Fiona Humberstone. The gorgeous imagery and step-by-step information guide is a must for anyone wondering where to start!
Another one would be “Work for Money, design for Love” by David Airey. It is all about starting and then running a design business – it’s a must-read for all creatives.

Some others that come to mind are “Becoming a successful illustrator – Derek Brazell and Jo Davies and “Keep going” – Austin Kleon, which is an easy read with 10 ways to stay creative!

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

For me it is being able to do what I love, it makes me happy to see something I can dream up come to life. If I am creating a custom print for a client, they are choosing me to create an image based on how I see the chosen subject. I get a lot of orders to draw pet portraits, where they are sending me heaps of photographs of their four-legged friends and I get to draw that portrait for them, in my style, to cherish forever. With so many other illustrators and artists out there, it gives me validation that my work is worthy. It’s a win-win!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://foxcroftfrench.com
• Instagram: @foxcroftfrench
• Facebook: @foxcroftfrench
• Other: My Etsy store is back open! I have prints and other items available. Find me at Foxcroft French