Here’s a sneak peek into the life of a co-founder of Hitch Studio in Brookings, SD. Carrie Kuhl is a busy gal!
Friday, October 16th, 2015:
6:00-6:30: Time to wake up (a.k.a. press snooze for a half hour because, let’s be honest, we all want to sleep in)! I get myself ready for the day and soon my 3-year-old son, Maxen, is up and wiping the sleep from his eyes ready to start his day. He wakes up slowly, but happy and insists upon picking out his own clothes for the day and dressing himself. I love that he is so independent and apparently has some fashion sense! Maxen goes to daycare, my amazing husband Jason gets a kiss goodbye and I get to work!
Today my morning starts with my “Lady Brain Meeting” (my Masterminds group) at Chocolatte. I can’t be awake for more than a few minutes without coffee! This is a great, supportive group of women who are all entrepreneurially-minded and absolutely brilliant. Starting a work day off with them is inspiring and is something I look forward to every two weeks! Below is Stacy and Gina, two members of our group.
9:30: We finish up changing the world, so I jump in my car and drive to our store on Main Avenue in Brookings. Walking into our store every day still makes me giggle with joy! I love contributing to the downtown community through our retail space as well as our wedding and small business design services. In our little store we have stationery, jewelry, gifts, planners and a great selection of unique cards all hand picked by Renee and myself!
After I arrive at the store, I have a simple morning routine to start the day. First, I turn on my Pandora “Grace Potter” radio station, then I check my email… and, check more email… and a bit more… Somedays this is what that may look like.
Next, I make my very important “To Do” list, this helps me keep my sanity! I love my Rifle Planner when trying to stay organized! Then I dig into the first project of the day.
Today’s quote from my planner was:
“Wherever you go, go with all your heart.” ~Confucious
It’s nice having those little moments of encouragement built in throughout the day! Todays quote was very fitting.
10:30: I try to get as much work done in the morning as I can, uninterrupted work time is so valuable. At 11:00 I open the store for business and look forward to seeing our great customers giggle over our merchandise and “oooh” and “awww” over its quality. This is when my day starts to become a juggling act. Throughout the rest of the day, Renee and I balance meetings, serving our customers in the store, and working from our back offices on design projects. It is a wonderful blend of work that I love and the challenge of learning to run a successful business.
Before Lunch: I head over to an impromptu meeting at the Children’s Museum which includes a great marketing discussion as well as a full tour of the facility!
1:30: We are hosting a “Tour of Barns” event this weekend to showcase some of the great event spaces in our area. Barns are the trendiest location for weddings and events currently! So, hosting this event is a perfect match for Hitch. I close my computer for a while and we pack up our gift bags for the big event.
2:30: I’m back at my computer to work, work, work! In our partnership, Renee works more closely with weddings and I focus on designing websites and logos for our clients. I spend the rest of the afternoon working on client projects.
Renee knows how much I love ice cream and brings me a surprise treat!
4:00: Renee and I take a break from our computer work to discuss the wedding and “Tour of Barns” event that we have going on for the weekend. We wrap up all of the last minute details together and then return to project work.
5:30: By this point, Hitch is winding down for the day. I attempt to finish off my “To Do” list and make note of what projects I’ll get started on come Monday morning.
I pack up all my stuff…and here is whats in my bag every day! Then it’s, goodbye store!
It’s time to head home to my boys!
Thanks so much for reading about my Friday at Hitch! It’s a busy, energizing place to be a partner and I love working alongside Renee. We make a great team!
PS: Our barn event and Renee’s wedding over the weekend went great! Look for details in our upcoming blog post about the event.