Conversations with Sarah Cochran

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Cochran.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started my business as a small Etsy shop selling only original paintings and drawings. Since then, I’ve learned so much and have expanded to include stationary, stickers, prints, and custom brand design. Over 6 years, I’ve made many mistakes and also had a lot of great high points! All of the products that I now offer were huge learning curves, and I’m still learning all of the time.

This summer has been a period of growth, as I have expanded to offer my products wholesale! I’m currently a vendor in 7 Alaskan businesses, as well as a couple down in “the lower 48” (as we call the contiguous USA). There’s also a business in Europe that carries some of my cups. As I said, I’m still learning a lot and every day is a new task to tackle. I’m very thankful for everyone who supports me and for all of God’s blessings.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Ha! I think that compared to many people, it has been a relatively smooth road. I’ve had support from family and friends that many small business owners don’t have. That being said, I didn’t have anyone to walk me through the multiple avenues that my business has gone down. Marketing, bookkeeping, taxes, pricing, branding, wholesale… all of these things take many hundreds of hours to learn and apply, and not without trial and error.

Making mistakes and learning from them is the biggest struggle. They say that hindsight is 20/20, and that especially applies to small businesses. I’d say the other struggle that is both a blessing and a curse is learning everything yourself. I can’t tell you how many hours I’ve spent Googling this or that, or watching Youtube videos to find what I need. But that’s also a blessing because most of that information you can now get for free if you just know how to find it.

Lastly, doubt is a huge struggle. Questions like, “Is this worth it all?”, “Am I good enough for this?”, “What if they don’t like it?”, definitely pops up all of the time. But willpower and thankfulness are amazing things because if you can find joy even in the smallest success, it’ll help you keep going until the next one and the next one and the next one.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Recently, someone asked me what my niche is and I said, “Making people happy”. Everything that I make is whimsical and fun, and that is what my art has become “known for”. With the Christmas season in full swing, I’ve been spending a lot of time painting custom pet ornaments. These are keepsakes and many people entrust me to paint their pet who has passed away, which I take very seriously.

It makes both of me and them happy to make something so special. Notecards, stickers, mugs, and prints are things that I sell all of the time in my Etsy shop. Lastly, I’m releasing an Alaskan Christmas Gift Box soon, which will have a variety of items like ornaments, cards, stickers, Alaskan honey, and some other fun things. It’s always changing and developing as inspiration comes!

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting?
Find an expert that does what you want to do and ask them to be your mentor. Or, if they offer a course, buy the course and learn from them. You won’t regret spending that money to get started right! Other than that, you can Google anything (haha!).

Pricing:

• Commissions – Dependent on Project
• Brand Design – starts at $250
• Custom Ornaments – $40

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sarahcochranartist.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.cochran.artist 

Image Credits
Morgan Melton