Like most artists, Connie Rose has been creating works of art all her life. However, she never quite considered herself an “artist." Like anyone else, she worked a typical 9-5 office job and art was just a hobby on the side. After a while she began selling her bead work and experimenting with textiles. Even after Connie had begun selling her art work, she still didn’t label herself as an artist. However, after she participated in the North Coast SBDC Artists Flight program that all changed.
When Connie came to the North Coast SBDC, she had already been selling her art for many years. However, she felt she needed help marketing both her art work and herself as an artist. While in the Artist Flight program she took SBDC’s business basics classes. These classes allowed her to create a business plan with a strong emphasis on marketing. SBDC also helped her create a website for her art business, while teaching her the importance of brand identity and equity. This knowledge helped Connie create her own brand image. She now uses her brand image on her websites, her business cards, and any other print media she creates. However, the business knowledge was only a small piece of what SBDC gave her.
The SBDC’s programs also helped to develop Connie’s confidence as an artist. “I feel a lot stronger in my personal self-image. I recognize now that I want to change and grow as an artist. I have the confidence and a whole new attitude to recognize that I am an artist.” Connie is now more focused than ever on art and being an artist. She feels that she now has a much better grip on what she is doing. And even though Connie had already started her own art business when she came to SBDC, they were able to help her plan for the future and put her on the right path. “SBDC is an extremely good resource for people at any stage of their business development. They provide a tremendous amount of resources; I only scratched the surface. The services and resources they provide are wonderful and free!”
