We had the good fortune of connecting with Josh Miller and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Josh, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I jumped into adulting super fast. After 3 weeks of college I dropped out, moved in with my girlfriend and by the time I was 20 we had our son to take care of. During those early years I worked low-paying manual labor jobs. Working in warehouses, doing construction, landscaping, etc. So when you’re waking up every morning to a job that you hate and making $12 an hour trying to support a family of 3, it’s an easy decision to see what starting a business is all about.

I figured if I was going to be broke I’d rather be broke doing something I love than broke and miserable.

From there it was figuring out what type of business I wanted to create. Not only based off of the work that I enjoyed, but also the life that I wanted to live with my family.

What should our readers know about your business?
Matchbox has evolved and morphed into quite a few things these last 7 years. From just freelance photo and video gigs to running hip-hop shows to music and art festivals and now to being a full-service marketing agency for some amazing companies.

I just turned 34 and the internet can have you thinking that you’re old and that you haven’t seen success as early in life as you would like, but man…life has been amazing and the journey is one that I still wake up excited to continue every day.

I’ve learned so many lessons. From how to structure a business to working with clients, but the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that every moment in life is an opportunity to learn and grow. If you can have that mindset that you’ll never stop being a student and that you have to reflect on what you do daily then you’ll continue to move forward.

Before Matchbox became what it is today, I cut my teeth on learning about people and marketing through hip-hop shows and festivals. We definitely pride ourselves on not being your typical marketing agency. We look for team members that have that DIY spirit and enjoy doing a lot with a shoestring budget. These days, we take our experience in throwing pop-up concerts in parking lots and combine it with a little traditional marketing tactics to think of new and unique ways to connect our clients with their target audience.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I always say that the people are what make Columbus a good place to visit. From the local restaurants and coffee shops to the festivals and other events. You aren’t coming here for any awesome outdoor adventures and you definitely aren’t visiting for the weather.

Checking out the neighborhoods and what makes each one unique is where we’d be.

*I’d have to start at home in Grandview, grab some coffee from Stauf’s and a breakfast burrito at Brekkie Shack.

*From there, maybe we’d hit up the local art shops; Lookout Supply and Too Kold Art, both on the westside of the city.

*After that we’d head to OTE for some Upper Cup Coffee and Addella’s On Oak (which I’ve been dying to try)

*Then downtown for the North Market and a quick “what’s up?” to the crew at Blockfort Art Gallery/Studios.

*Get a little bouldering session in at Bloc Garten near the Brewery District

*If it’s the 2nd Friday of the month, we’d head to Franklinton Friday’s to see a ton of art all over the neighborhood, get some shopping in at the Franklinton Flea, and get Yellow Brick Pizza to round out the night.

That would be where I’d hit the first day.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Too many people to shoutout for helping me get to where I’m at in my journey. Definitely wouldn’t have been able to do it without my wife, Danielle, who has truly been my ride or die in life.

As far as anyone who’s been a mentor, supporter, etc. My guy Adam Brouillette has been a huge source for inspiration, motivation, and knowledge. Without him I don’t know where I’d be today. Also, my dude Trey Hardy who’s been a good friend since high school. He really motivated me early on by just the way he was changing his life up for the better and he’s one of those people in my life that I can’t help but have a big smile on whenever I see him. Mad love for both of those guys and everybody else.

Website: www.matchboxltd.com

Instagram: ohnojoshmiller

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ohnojoshmiller/

Image Credits
Photos by Josh Miller unless mentioned in the photo.

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