Meet Trailblazer Taryn Turner

Today we’d like to introduce you to Taryn Turner.

Taryn, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
The dream behind Wandering Poppy Co. was inspired by my desire to create, mixed with my love for nature and its beauty. Since I can remember back into my childhood, I have always been designing and creating, whether it has been table settings for family holidays, paintings on birthday cards, or little dresses out of scraps of fabric for my dolls. My sketchbook in hand growing up, I longed to capture anything beautiful with my pencil and paint. After high school graduation, I was encouraged to pursue a degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing to back my passion to create. While attaining my bachelor’s degree at the University of Colorado, I also completed a minor in Visual Arts. While my degree gave me the business backbone I needed, my art minor taught me valuable life lessons in confidence, pushing outside of my comfort zone, and creative identity. After college, I have had the honor of working at Anthropologie overseeing visual merchandising and display. This has improved my knowledge in spatial relations, design principles, construction of installations, balance of color and texture, areas of impact, but most importantly, listening to the customer.

Four years ago, I began to dream of finding a way to add more simplicity and beauty into the world through flowers. There is something so surprising and yet nostalgic about a flower popping up through the sidewalk in a busy city, and thus a vision of Wandering Poppy Co. was formulating. I began sharing with friends and family this desire to spread flowers throughout the city, but in 2017, I was given the opportunity to dabble in the field with several weddings of family and friends. This quickly turned into multiple pop-ups, a full 2018 season of weddings and events, styled shoots with photographers from all over the country, and several installations throughout the city and state. Like a poppy, native to Colorado mountainsides, I desire to bring something that feels wild and imperfect to Colorado and hopefully beyond. The learning and growth process has been steep, but the joy that the finished product brings to those around them makes all the hard work worthwhile. I am thrilled to be starting my third season of Wandering Poppy Co. with a packed year ahead, an incredible community of fellow creatives around me, and a vision to create beauty wherever I go.

Has it been a smooth road?
As with any new venture, there are always learns and growing obstacles that make the business and entrepreneur stronger and more equipped to grow. Often these areas have nothing to do with the actual product or customer, but more about the legalities of running a business. Learning the sales tax requirements of small businesses, especially those conducting sales in multiple cities, took some patience and diligence to fully grasp. Now that I feel confident, I hope to one day assist other entrepreneurs in this area. Another challenge all business owners and creatives must face is the valuation of your work and time. One of the most crucial aspects of a small business is pricing your work properly to cover the cost of materials, but also your labor. Starting off, it is easy to take jobs that do not pay properly to grow the business but know when it is time to raise your prices with demand, creating more value in your product. Finally, running the business in a big way while you’re still small was a learn. Prioritize what assets will really grow the business and provide value to the customer, and which ones make running a little bit easier. Creating a floral refrigerator system within my home has allowed me to invest in materials for the customer instead of the overhead of running a separate space. I have been able to utilize my profits for more varieties of vessels, rentals, and installation possibilities. My biggest piece of advice for young entrepreneurs is reaching out to the community around you and finding a mentor. I have met an abundance of knowledgeable, strong female entrepreneurs who have coached, guided, and supported myself and the company over the past few years.

We’d love to hear more about Wandering Poppy Co.
My love for taking the ordinary and making it extraordinary has defined my work. I am a full-service wedding, special event, and multi-faceted installation florist focused on achieving the vision of the client to its fullest potential. Wandering Poppy Co. specializes in installations involving greenery, dried and fresh flowers, wood and textiles, along with any other materials that might add to the impact and beauty of a piece. These installations can take place in any public or private space including but not limited to businesses, restaurants, museums, event centers, open spaces, and homes. I can provide services outside of the city of Denver, and enjoy pushing what has been done before to accomplish a client’s vision.

We’re interested to hear your thoughts on female leadership – in particular, what do you feel are the biggest barriers or obstacles?
Being a female leader and entrepreneur in the business world is empowering, but requires a lot of confidence and self-advocacy. To say there is a barrier to female leadership as an entrepreneur would be an easy fallback. I believe it is vital to use your voice as a leader and business owner, not be afraid to walk away from an opportunity if it is devaluing yourself or your product and be your biggest advocate for your business. The liberating part of being a female business owner is the ability to break the stereotypical mold of what a woman is in the workplace and in leadership and create something new. As a female business owner, I want to change the way to world views women in leadership and see it as an advantage instead of a barrier.

Pricing:

• Wedding and Event Minimum – $3,000
• Installation Minimum – Contact for more details

Contact Info:

• Email: thewanderingpoppyco@gmail.com
• Instagram: @wanderingpoppyco
• Facebook: @wanderingpoppyco

Image Credit:
Andrea Godfrey Photography, Jessica Schu Photography, Cristina Dowl Photography

Getting in touch: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.