Meet Sophie Taylor | Founder & Lead Creative

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

Hi Sophie, what is the most important factor behind your success?
The success of my business is entirely a gift from God. I surrendered myself and my business to Him long ago, and I only ever go where He leads me. It’s easy to say that now, but it wasn’t always the case. I’m a very driven, determined, goal-oriented person and admit that I used to think more highly of myself than I should have. Once I realized that all of my talents and abilities are gifts from God and that the pace and successfulness of my business are fundamentally dependent on Him, it freed me up to dream big, knowing that whatever God has planned for my business is best. I no longer worry about whether or not I will secure clients or how to get a seat at the table. I work hard and I pursue excellence in everything I do, but at the end of the day, any success I achieve is only because God enables me to.

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.
The first business I ever tried to build was a flop. The second one, an all-around craft boutique, did better but the learning curve was STEEP. I failed a lot when I first started trying to make a business out of my art. At the time, I thought the answer was spending tons of money on all these courses that would teach me how to do the things I wanted to sell. Half of those courses remain unwatched even now, and a quarter of them I sorely regret wasting the money on. Looking back, I can see that not having a specific plan of action hurt me in the long run. I should have separated my personal interests and hobbies from my business pursuits. Trying to “do it all” lead to confusion in both myself and my audience. I resisted “niching down” for such a long time because I didn’t want to be pigeon holed into making just one thing for the rest of my life. As an artist, I craved creative freedom but I learned the hard way that personal creativity and marketable creativity are two different things. When I finally committed to one path, I began to see my business grow. I narrowed my offerings and centered them on calligraphy services in the wedding industry. From there, I was able to discern which courses and resources to invest in (shout out to Dubsado, my beloved CRM) and which to ignore the urge to spend money on. I spent time creating systems that supported the services I wanted to and could offer and laid a solid missional foundation for both my brand and myself. I know what it’s like to be filled with a sense of wonder and to have the skills to chase down exciting new interests, but, my advice would be to make sure your foundation is solid, build out your pillars (3-4 product or service offerings that function as the backbone of your brand), function within those restraints until you have a reliable, replicable, recognizable process, and THEN branch out one new offering at a time from there. My brand, Taylor Design Studio, still offers calligraphy services, but we’ve branched out into stationery design and production because our pillars lend themselves to growth in that direction. We are gearing up to offer an exciting new line of services and I cannot wait to share them with the world. So keep your eye on TDS because fun things are coming later this year!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love the beach and I love to eat, so Ventura and Santa Barbara are some of my favorite places to visit! My favorite resort is in Oxnard (shout out Zachari Dunes!), so I’d definitely take my besties on a vacation there. They have a ton of amenities and their spa services are amazing. Many of the rooms have ocean views and the on-site restaurant has a killer pork chop (so yummy!). Since my favorite restaurant in CA, is just half-hour from Zachari Dunes, Stella Mares in Santa Barbara, we’d eat at least one meal there during our bestie vacation. There’s also really good food on Linden Ave. in Carpinteria, so I’d for sure take us to Giannfranco’s and Siam Elephant. But mostly, I’d spend time at the beach. I love the coastline between Ventura and Santa Barbara and there’s beach access to so many great spots – Seaward Ave. is one of my favorites! I cherish quality time with the people I love, so sharing my favorite places with them is one of my favorite things ever!

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?
I gush about my mentors all the time because they are truly amazing. I took my first lettering course with the twin sisters and founders of Loveleigh Loops, Jillian and Jordan, and was immediately hooked. Not only did they give me the best, most comprehensive lettering foundation, they also bought the first thing I ever tried to sell as a lettering artist. In those early days, their encouragement gave me the confidence to try new things and put myself out there despite struggling with perfectionism and imposter syndrome. Being a part of their community was pivotal to my growth as both an artist and a person. To this day, I tell everyone about Loveleigh Loops because I want other people to benefit from the comprehensive education Jillian and Jordan provide just like I did. Making art and learning how to sell it can be scary and lonely sometimes l, which is why it is vital to have a community to share with, learn from, and contribute to. And the community that J2 (as their students lovingly call them) have created is the very best, most encouraging, most intentional community I’ve ever been a part of. And that doesn’t happen by accident. It takes kind, innovative, humble, intelligent leaders to build something truly exceptional, and that is exactly what Jillian and Jordan have done.

Website: www.taylordesignstudio.com

Instagram: www.instagram.com/taylor_design_studio

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@taylordesignstudio

Other: Email: info@taylordesignstudio.com

Image Credits
Sarah Katie Photography