6 months of running my small business full time - Here’s how it’s going…
It’s been six months since I went full time with A Little Brush - our small business in which my husband Matt paints watercolour wedding venues, houses and pet portraits, whilst I run the business, and design bespoke wedding stationery too.
What started as a side hustle with plenty of late nights on the laptop, is now a full time venture for me (still with a few late nights on the laptop!). I wanted to share a little behind-the-scenes look at what these first six months have been like.
Taking the leap
Leaving a steady job to pursue a small creative business full time is something people always say is brave, and honestly, it was slightly terrifying. We’ve got a hefty mortgage & childcare costs to think about, which certainly didn’t make it an easy decision… But I was so determined to make it work. We’d spent 7 years building up A Little Brush in the evenings, slowly gaining the confidence that there was something special here to grow, if only I was able to put more time into it.
I’d been at my design job for over 10 years, and I was craving a better work/life balance. A long commute into London three times a week meant I was hardly seeing our two young kids, and with our daughter starting school in September ‘24, I wasn’t around as much as I wanted to be. If I worked for myself I would have the flexibility to choose my own hours, making it work around the needs of our family. It was time for a change, and with Matt’s support, I handed my notice in, and finished just before Christmas. I was SO excited to get started in the new year.
It’s now or never!
The first thing I did in January, was sign up to business mentor Jenny Pace’s free workshop ‘The 2025 Magic-Making Business Plan’ - a 3-day challenge alongside 150 other small business owners to map out the coming year. It was eye-opening. I knew that taking the business full time meant that I had to put everything into it, to grow it enough for it to become financially viable, and the workshop gave me so many ideas. I also figured that in my first year, I’d benefit greatly from having structure to my week, and well as guidance and help from someone who really knows their stuff, so I decided to join Jenny’s ‘The Better Business Collective’. Myself, and over 20 other small business owners have twice-weekly calls, we do a monthly ‘ritual’ where we go through our numbers from the previous month, and analyse our findings, as well as regular marketing workshops (& loads more!). Being part of the collective feels like having colleagues again, and the support we get from Jenny as well as each-other has been game-changing for the business so far.
‘Proper’ business owner
Even though it’s not a new business, it was never my sole focus, and I knew there were so many things I could streamline, or do more ‘professionally’. Here are some of the things I’ve done so far this year, which made me feel like a ‘proper’ business owner:
Worked out the ‘cost of sale’ for each product/variation we sell + our profit margins (I really should’ve done this sooner!).
Put lots of time into SEO, across the website & Etsy shop (still more to do!).
Streamlined the way I send & file invoices, and created folders within my emails to keep everything where they should be.
Set the business up properly on Google, and asked for reviews from past customers.
Hired a bookkeeper (my Mum!) who I give all of our monthly invoices & receipts to, and she creates spreadsheets for me (these are not my strong point).
Gather monthly data & analyse what went well and not so well.
Started backing everything up regularly to an external hard-drive.
Two Pinterest masterclasses to understand how to use it for business.
Plan my marketing ahead of time instead of posting sporadically (still some improvements to be made here though!).
Some of the more fun/creative things I’ve done:
Exhibited at 3 wedding open days as a recommended stationery supplier & met so many lovely couples.
Created stationery for 18 weddings!
Started a monthly round-up email to our mailing list subscribers, plus being more consistent with email marketing.
Stepped out of my comfort zone and shared more reels on our Instagram (I find Martha @businesssecretsclub amazing for inspiration for these!)
Best month yet!
Whereas most small businesses tend to work towards a big rush at Christmas, the summer has always been our busiest time of the year (hello wedding season!). January & February were unsurprisingly quiet, and I definitely had a couple of oh no, what have I done? moments… But things started to pick up in spring, and June was our best month so far! Not only are our shops open for print orders & original watercolour commissions, I’m also designing wedding stationery for 2025/6 couples, plus working directly with venues on custom artworks/requests.
I am absolutely loving being a small-business owner full time, and don’t regret my decision for a second! I’m at home more, I’m flexible with my working day, and can be there for school drop offs & pick ups. If I don’t get as much done as I wanted to during the day, I’ll happily sit in front of the TV with the laptop in the evening while Matt paints, because honestly, this really doesn’t feel like work!
Thank you
To our customers, friends, family, and fellow small business supporters - thank you. Your kind words, support, and trust have made these first six months not only possible but genuinely joyful - I’m so grateful that I get to do this for a living!
I can’t wait to see where the rest of the year takes us…
Abby x