Featured #bloomgirl: Marion; Founder of Kennett Design!

KDPaintParty is Kennett Design to go! The idea for this business came about in 2012 when I was considering new business opportunities. I was at a cross roads in my life; my youngest daughter was starting college, my marriage was dissolving and after working 25+ years in corporate America I thought it would be nice to use my business skills to start my own business. As I was researching ideas, I read an article in Entrepreneur Magazine entitled "A Winning Business Idea: Wine & Paint."  My children were all very creative and artistic and I liked to drink wine, so I thought it might be something viable to look into!  Once I talked to my kids, they were enthusiastic about the idea and started creating the first paintings.  We opened 6 months later in March of 2013.

The primary thing that makes us different is that we are not a franchise!  We are entirely mobile and hold painting events in Delaware, Maryland and Pennsylvania.  As a locally owned and operated company, we have the freedom to make our own design decisions.  We contract with local artists to produce locally relevant designs that appeal to people in our area.  We have a mix of classic paintings, as well as paintings that appeal to peeople in specific locations.  For example, people in Maryland LOVE their flag, so we have developed several designs incorporating that theme.  We have a painting of the Rockford Tower in Wilmington, Delaware that is a local landmark.  After our customers starting telling us that they would like to paint on surfaces other than canvas, we introduced glass, slate and wood designs.

I get most of my inspiration from friends and family. I follow my family and friends on social media to see what they are interested in and what appeals to their age group. My husband is a huge supporter and is always talking to people about Kennett Design and encouraging me with new design ideas.  I enjoy nature, sunsets and boating, so you will see those themes crop up in a lot of our designs.

I can't live without my Monthly Planner! I love the size and the large blocks for each day of the month. I do all of the monthly scheduling for new painting events using this planner!  I also use the Vintage Floral Desk Calendar for a quick overview that combines KD events with my personal life events.  I use the notebooks to keep track of notes and phone messages and I love to stay organized using bloom's File Folders.

Don't be afraid to pursue something new! Just because my business experience was in finance and banking, it didn't mean that I couldn't pursue a creative field. It's important to have the support of family when venturing into something new. I couldn't have done it without family support. Keep learning! Running a small business is much different than working for a large company. I have to be on top of the financial, operational and marketing aspects of my business at all times. I'm constantly learning new things, researching new approaches and trying out different forms of marketing and advertising.

We hoped you loved reading about Marion and her story! You can find out more about Marion and Kennett Design here: https://kdpaintparty.com/. Do you have a #girlboss story to share? Email us at bloom@bloomplanners.com for a chance to be our next featured bloom girl!

xoxo,

the bloom team