Hello friends, and welcome back to our Canton Farmers’ Market series! This week I’d like to share a lovely interview that I held with Woven Oak Design’s founder, Nicole!
Grab a seat, get comfy and go get a coffee to sip on!
If you’ve come into Bizarre on a Saturday, we have had the Woven Oak Design pop-up shop outside with all of her amazing, handcrafted decor. If you haven’t been here on a Saturday when she’s here, I’m sure you’ve noticed the adorable hanging disco balls in our windows. They are just one of the many beautiful pieces she has in her store.
Hey Nicole! Thank you so much for meeting with me. I’d like to just jump right in and ask how did you get the idea to start Woven Oak? What was your inspiration?
It’s a funny story actually! Back in 2019 I was scrolling through Facebook Marketplace when I stumbled across a listing for a macrame plant hanger. I immediately thought “hmm I could do that!” I then looked up a few plant hanger tutorials on YouTube, ordered some super cheap macrame cord off of Amazon and the rest was history! I fell in love with macrame and from that moment forward I wanted to learn more about it. I watched several tutorials on YouTube and made anything and everything I could, from wall hangings to wine totes.
Wow, that’s amazing! I love that you just already had the natural talent for it as well, it’s amazing that you were able to pick it up that easily and just jump right in! Starting a business is not an easy feat; who are some of the people that have helped you the most along your journey?
My best friend, Tariana, has been one of my biggest supporters since the beginning. She bought my very first wall hanging before I had even finished making it. She’s the one who pushed me to start my small business. She helped me set up my instagram account for my business and to this day takes and edits the majority of the photos and reels that you see on my business account! She’s a best friend in every aspect of the word. She shows up to my events, helps with content and purchases products from me often. I’m blessed to have her in my life. I can truly say that without her Woven Oak Design wouldn’t exist. I can’t thank her enough for helping me get to this point. Of course I’ve had the support of my mom as well as my friends and family, but Tariana has definitely been my biggest supporter since day one!
That’s the sweetest thing. I love to hear that you have a friend like that, support from best friends is incredibly important and I’m so happy to hear that Tariana has been that for you. How did you first get started with the farmers’ market and Bizarre pop ups?
The 2023 market season will always have a special place in my heart. I started my small business back in 2019 and this was my first year doing in person events. I am very blessed to have met two small business owners at the Bizarre Bash event that Bizarre Coffee hosted to celebrate their business’s two year anniversary back in December of 2022. Those small business owners being Emily Grimes of Southern Sage Jewelry and Ashley Bruce of Ashley Bruce Artworks. Emily and Ashley took me under their wings and showed me the ropes since I hadn’t, at the time, participated in any in person events. I’m so grateful for all of their support and guidance while navigating this new, scary and exciting side of owning a small business. Their help and words of encouragement gave me the confidence that I needed to reach out to my favorite local coffee shop, Bizarre Coffee, about potentially doing a pop up. I had seen them showcase other small businesses through pop ups before and figured it wouldn’t hurt to reach out. Sabrina, one of the owners of Bizarre Coffee, was extremely sweet and immediately accepted my proposal to do a pop up outside of her shop. My pop up was on Earth Day 2023 alongside Plant Daddies of ATL. It’s one I’ll never forget. Not only was there an amazing turn out, but this was my first in person event! I’ve been lucky enough to participate in several pop ups/markets since April and I’ve discovered my favorite thing about doing these events is the people you meet. Not only are the customers so incredibly sweet, but so are the other small business owners. I’ve been very blessed to build such great friendships with both customers and other business owners. There’s a little saying amongst the small businesses community and that saying is “community over competition.” I’ve received lots of support from the online small business community and experiencing that same support in person was so heartwarming.
I had no idea that this was your first year doing pop ups and the farmers’ market over here! That’s amazing!! I also love the “community over competition” statement. I have seen that with many different small business owners here in Downtown Canton, its beautiful to see the friendships and community that has grown among so many in the area. What would you say is your favorite part of owning a small business and what is the hardest part
One of my favorite things is that there are several opportunities to showcase my small business. There are always events taking place and lots of market and pop up opportunities. I’m honestly very blessed to have such a specific niche. I think that if I had a more common craft that it would definitely be harder to get approved for markets. I suppose the hardest thing, despite having a specific niche, would be competition as far as markets go. There are several amazing small businesses in the area that, like myself, rely mainly on in person events for marketing and to move product. Having so many small businesses in the area despite the diversity in products and services can still make it difficult when applying to markets.
I can see that! Your niche is very unique, and I think it’s awesome to see how different your product is from the typical stuff I see at the farmers’ market. What is your favorite product that you create and why?
My favorite product that I currently offer would definitely have to be my Disco Ball Hangers. They first made their debut at my Earth Day pop up at Bizarre Coffee. I wanted to bring a product with me that fit the funky and fun vibe of Bizarre. What better than a disco ball? I had seen several other macrame small businesses online offer several different versions of disco ball hangers and decided I’d give it a try. It’s funny to me that the product I decided to make on a whim has ended up being my best seller. The support and love I’ve received for my Disco Ball Hangers has been immense.
I definitely have fallen victim to the charm of the disco ball hangers! They are adorable. I have one for my room…I also definitely have a keychain for my keys. I’ll probably end up with all of your products by the end of market season. Completely unashamed of my obsession with your art! It’s the cutest. My last question for you is how can the community continue to support your business?
A few different ways the community can continue to support me would be by following my small business on social media! We are present on Instagram, Tik Tok and Facebook. It would also be helpful if they would share the news about my business with friends and family! Tagging in stories, posts, etc. would be amazing! Not only that but if people continue to come and see my pop-ups and tables at markets. I’m so grateful for my community’s support!
Thank you so much for taking the time to chat, I’ve loved hearing about your business and the journey you’ve been on. You’re amazing! I look forward to continuing to see you in Bizarre and outside with your pop ups.
I hope you all enjoyed this week’s Canton Farmers’ Market series, you should definitely go check out Woven Oak Design on social media, and stay tuned for when she’ll be at the market/our Saturday pop-ups through her Instagram.
Thanks for sitting in on this convo, can’t wait to chat next time about another locally owned female biz! I hope you have a glorious day, and don’t forget to drink your Good Mood Juice!
Photos by Katie Johnson Photography
