Meet Rachel Kostival | Owner of a backpack and handbag company

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

Hi Rachel, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Entrepreneurship has been a constant in my life in ways I didn’t really realize until recently. When I look back on my history, it’s always been there in one way or another. As an elementry school kid, I always found new and creative ways to invent things. My lemonade stand carried lemonade in a variety of colors as I had decided to use food dye to see which ones people would gravitate towards (to noones surprise, green lemonade did not sell well). In school I would doodle characters that people liked, which I ultimately turned into a currency – I will give you once character if you give me two drawings of your own, etc. As I got older, I dabbled in various Etsy careers from jewelry to print making, to calligraphy and wedding invitations. I never made big money, but I was fascinated by the idea of creating my own destiny. It never stopped, even when I graduated college and entered the corporate world, there was always something on the side. As I toiled away working for the dreams of others, I always pondered what it would be like to work towards a dream that I created. What held me back was feeling like I had yet to find the right idea.

In 2018 I began work at a manufacturing company where I got my first taste of what it would look like to bring the bigger ideas in my head to larger audiences. I was lucky enough to work in product design and development as well as travel to trade shows around the world where I saw my creations in the hands of many consumers. Slowly, over my five years at that company, I began to build the confidence that my ideas had legs. At the same time, I met my husband and got married. As we began talking about having a family, I found yet another reason I wanted to work for myself – the flexibility to raise my children on my own schedule.

As we got closer to starting our family, I became more energized and motivated to use my newfound product design skills to create a business of my own. However, I quickly realized I was limited by the funds needed to get prototypes made. My solution to this, was learning to make them myself, so I taught myself how to sew. Shortly after, I opened my very first LLC with the idea that I could learn how to run a business selling small sewn goods as I developed the skills to design the larger items I had in my head. This idea quickly turned into so much more than I had intended, and I found myself spending my days working and my nights sewing, inventing and prototyping. Eventually, it became clear that I couldn’t use my creative energy both at my day job and my night job, so with the support of my husband, I took the leap and pursued my business full time, enabling me to learn much faster and complete a the more complicated prototypes I had been dreaming up.

It took me the better part of six months, but it came together last year and I started selling my own designs immediately. I am still at the start of my venture, so there will be so much more to this story, but these are the beginnings, and I am excited to see where it goes from here!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My art is twofold, from the product design to painting. I believe what sets me apart is the importance of function in my creations. I don’t often like to create artwork that hangs on a wall, but pieces that you can use in some way every day. The backpack I designed was made to be an attractive, one-stop-shop alternative for women’s travel solutions. It combines comfort and function with beauty. So many of the bags ont he market today don’t consider one or the other. Either they are highly functional but don’t look the way one would need for professional settings, or they are stunning but uncomfortable to wear and lacking in space and usability.

The same can be said about the sneakers I paint. One could argue that I could sell floral paintings, but I find it so much more rewarding to create wearable art. SOmething you can use to express yourself and smile at every time you see it throughout the day.

There are so many questions here and I’m not sure if you wanted answers to them all, but I think there is one thing about my story I am most proud of and most want to share. In my corporate career, I traveled nearly every month, sometimes multiple times a month, and struggled to find consolidated travel solutions that I felt were designed for women. Predominantly, as a professional business woman, you not only need a suitcase and some kind of sleek bag for your computer and notebook, but also an evening bag separate from these two things. It is seen as unprofessional to go to customer dinners with a large laptop bag. I always found this so frustrating, especially with airline policies that allow for only two carry-ons (and I often didn’t want to check a bag and risk loosing anything I needed for meetings). In addition, I found that most bags that looked the part were uncomfortable, so I often opted for backpacking packs, which I couldn’t take with me into my meetings, leading me to have to pack an additional packable bag for that purpose. This is where my idea for the Day Pack was born from. A sleek, modular backpack made of good-looking and comfortable yet weather resistant materials that acts as an all-in-one carryon. The best feature for women is that the single bag can be taken apart and used for multiple purposes while still meeting the TSA one-under-seat-bag policy. The front pocket comes off and can be converted into both an evening bag (for work and special occasions) or a sling (for short day hikes). The straps come off so the backpack itself can be used as a packing cube or the straps can be reattached to other items like a stroller. One bag that solves every problem.

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.
Likely I’d take them to the Bagel Deli for breakfast on the way to Pearl Street in boulder. We’d walk around the shops, go to one of my favorite art supply stores, Two Hands Paperie, and grab schwarma at Falafel King for lunch. In the afternoon I’d take them to either Atlas or Lost coffee and either walk around Washington Park or the Denver Pearl Street area before taking them to Makizushico for dinner. Depending on the night, we could do trivia at Landsdown Arms or a movie at the Alamo.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My husband. He was instrumental in supporting me through the entire process, from helping me get out of my own way and take the plunge, so supporting our family financially as I get my business off the ground, to helping me solve roadblocks along the way. He is my partner in every way, and I am so grateful to have him with me on this journey.

Website: https://www.artisanalink.com

Instagram: @artisanal.ink

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

Image Credits
Not applicable – all pictures are my own.