E115: From Greeting Cards to Major Stockists: Katie Leamon on Creative Business Growth

Send us your feedback What happens when the creative business you wanted starts leaving you less time to create? In this episode of Creative Juggle Joy, Kaylie Edwards chats with Katie Leamon, founder and creative director of the family-run luxury stationery brand bearing her name. Founded in 2010, Katie’s business produces greeting cards, notebooks and gift wrap for independent retailers worldwide. But behind the beautiful paper goods are plenty of experiments, unexpected opportunities and decisions about what sustainable growth actually looks like. Katie shares the story of arriving before dawn for a Liberty buyer open call, learning wholesale as her first major stockists came on board, and eventually recognising that a larger team wasn’t giving her the working life she wanted. We also talk about raising children alongside a creative business, maintaining customer relationships as buying moves online, and making something simply because you want to. You’ll hear about: Why wholesale pricing needs room for the retailer’s margin. What Katie would ask before agreeing to supply a large store. How her business moved from printing to order towards holding smaller amounts of stock. Why retail buyers and individual customers need different marketing. How Katie develops coordinated collections from sketchbook ideas. The difference between designing commercially and keeping space for creative play. Exploring licensing without taking on every aspect of manufacturing a new product. If you’re an artist, illustrator or maker wondering how to grow without building a business that takes over your life, listen in. Find Katie Leamon: Website: katieleamon.com Instagram: @katieleamon Support the show  Don't miss an episode—subscribe to The Creative JuggleJoy Podcast! Follow us on social media and join our email lists for more tips, stories, and updates on new episodes. Kaylie Edwards - Instagram  - Website - Facebook - Threads Spellweaver Creative Hub Membership Free Email List Builder Checklist For Creatives Delores Naskrent - Website & Digital Art School - Instagram - Facebook - Pinterest - Youtube Procreate Foundations Course Affinity Foundations Course