Sarah Parrott's guest appearances

Sarah Parrott

Proof to Product

Happiness and Humans

Christina Stembel

Nicole Walters

Kate Ahl

Paul Jarvis

Jess Ekstrom

Jen Gotch

Jon Acuff

Samantha Barnes

Morgan Harper Nichols

Jessica Freeman

Tonya Dalton

Sean McCabe

Jennifer Morgan

Alisha Cohen

Natasha Samuel

OwlTail

Sarah discusses changing career, going back to university, balancing life and her HR career in the civil service. She talks about impact and the importance of her work on others and how that drives her career.

HR in the civil service with Sarah Parrott

Parrott Design

Sarah Parrott is the founder of Parrott Design Studio and this is Part 2 of her interview.  If you missed Part 1 which was Episode 81, I recommend you head back and listen to that one first.   Here on Part 2, Sarah talks about hiring a team, how she started slowly delegating and fears she had around letting go of things in her business, we talked about her multiple revenue streams and the pros / cons of having multiple businesses, navigating tough seasons in life while owning a business and how Sarah’s definition of success for her business has changed over the years.   As background, Parrott Design Studio is a letterpress studio in Sebago, a lake town in Western Maine. The studio was established in 2007 by Sarah Parrott with a small Print Gocco, an inexpensive and easy to use screen printing tool that originated in Japan. That same year she took her first course in letterpress, learning to use a Vandercook press.   In 2008 she purchased her own press, an 1898 Golding Jobber platen press. At the time there were no courses to learn on that type of press, and she spent a year teaching herself how to use it. She fell in love with the centuries-old artisinal printing technique and the process of feeding the press one piece at a time, one color at a time. In 2010 she left her job as an event planner to pursue Parrott Design Studio full time.  Sarah is one of our original Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni. She attended our very first round of Tradeshow Bootcamp classes in 2011 before exhibiting at the National Stationery Show in 2012.   ON TODAY’S EPISODE:  How her team has shifted during different seasons The event space Sarah &amp; her husband opened How her multiple revenue streams are intertwined The pros and cons of running three businesses at one time How she managed her businesses through a difficult season in her personal life Sarah’s definition of success and how it has changed over the years Her advice for someone just starting out in a product-based business    KEY TAKE-AWAYS: “There's a lot of benefit to hiring people that already understand your business or have followed you for a while.” - Katie Hunt “I always love weddings, no matter what I'm doing, and still doing wedding-related things.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It's so funny because we never set out to be in weddings or even to be entrepreneurs, and it all seemed very natural. Nothing's been forced. It just worked.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “They kind of all have different times where they are busy, so I'm not depending on just one of them as my main source of income.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It's okay to say no and it's okay if something doesn't work or it's okay to walk away from something because it's your business and you can make that decision for what works the best, because if you don't, why are you doing it?” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “One person's startup story is not the same as another person's story, and neither one is right or wrong. It's whatever works for you.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “When you're first starting, you're looking to a lot of people because they're your inspiration, and you just have to know that how they did it might not work for you. It might, but it probably won't.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli   CONNECT WITH SARAH PARROTT BIANCULLI Website: http://parrottdesignstudio.com Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/Parrott-Design-Studio-245078337090/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/parrottdesign/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/parrottdesign/   SPECIAL OFFER: Proof to Product listeners get 3 free months of Gusto when they run their first payroll. Go to www.gusto.com/proof for more information   What if you could sit in a room with 30 other product makers who are doing exactly what you’re doing -- building a business they love!  You could share resources, leverage each other’s experiences and learn from those who are where you want to be. Imagine the growth potential!   Join us March 14-15th in Los Angeles for our Paper Camp Conference.   Over 800 brands have attended Paper Camp.  Brands that sell to stores like Target, Paper Source, Container Store, Anthropologie and independent boutiques internationally.   This program is for you if you’re a stationery or gift company interested in selling wholesale, exhibiting at trade shows or looking to expand your outreach to wholesale customers.     We believe in the power of community, collaboration and sharing everything we know.  Get all the details and register at  www.tradeshowcamp.com/papercamp   SUBSCRIBE To subscribe on iOS, go to the  iTunes page and subscribe to Proof to Product. On Android, you can listen using your favorite podcast app. WRITE A REVIEW Writing a review on  iTunes will help other product based business owners find Proof to Product as they are working to up level, scale, and build profitable and sustainable companies. FOLLOW PROOF TO PRODUCT Follow Proof to Product on Instagram for the latest updates. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST If you'd like to receive more information about our upcoming episodes of Proof to Product including show notes and information about our guests, head over to www.prooftoproduct.com and sign up for our email list.   SHARE Be sure to share Proof to Product with all of the product based business owners that you know!   ABOUT PROOF TO PRODUCT: Proof to Product is brought to you by Tradeshow Bootcamp and hosted by Katie Hunt. Since 2011, TSBC has worked with hundreds of product based businesses to help them up level, scale, and build profitable sustainable companies. You can find our show notes and additional resources at ProofToProduct.com. If you like what you heard today, please head over to  Apple Podcast to leave a five star review and subscribe. Thanks so much for listening. We'll be back next week with a new episode!

Sarah Parrott is the founder of <a href="https://parrottdesignstudio.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Parrott Design Studio</a> and this is Part 2 of her interview.  If you missed Part 1 which was <a href="http://tradeshowcamp.com/prooftoproduct081" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Episode 81</a>, I recommend you head back and listen to that one first. Here on Part 2, Sarah talks about hiring a team, how she started slowly delegating and fears she had around letting go of things in her business, we talked about her multiple revenue streams and the pros / cons of having multiple businesses, navigating tough seasons in life while owning a business and how Sarah’s definition of success for her business has changed over the years. As background, Parrott Design Studio is a letterpress studio in Sebago, a lake town in Western Maine. The studio was established in 2007 by Sarah Parrott with a small Print Gocco, an inexpensive and easy to use screen printing tool that originated in Japan. That same year she took her first course in letterpress, learning to use a Vandercook press. In 2008 she purchased her own press, an 1898 Golding Jobber platen press. At the time there were no courses to learn on that type of press, and she spent a year teaching herself how to use it. She fell in love with the centuries-old artisinal printing technique and the process of feeding the press one piece at a time, one color at a time. In 2010 she left her job as an event planner to pursue Parrott Design Studio full time.  Sarah is one of our original Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni. She attended our very first round of Tradeshow Bootcamp classes in 2011 before exhibiting at the National Stationery Show in 2012. ON TODAY’S EPISODE: <ul> <li>How her team has shifted during different seasons</li> <li>The event space Sarah &amp; her husband opened</li> <li>How her multiple revenue streams are intertwined</li> <li>The pros and cons of running three businesses at one time</li> <li>How she managed her businesses through a difficult season in her personal life</li> <li>Sarah’s definition of success and how it has changed over the years</li> <li>Her advice for someone just starting out in a product-based business</li> </ul> KEY TAKE-AWAYS: “There's a lot of benefit to hiring people that already understand your business or have followed you for a while.” - Katie Hunt “I always love weddings, no matter what I'm doing, and still doing wedding-related things.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It's so funny because we never set out to be in weddings or even to be entrepreneurs, and it all seemed very natural. Nothing's been forced. It just worked.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “They kind of all have different times where they are busy, so I'm not depending on just one of them as my main source of income.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It's okay to say no and it's okay if something doesn't work or it's okay to walk away from something because it's your business and you can make that decision for what works the best, because if you don't, why are you doing it?” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “One person's startup story is not the same as another person's story, and neither one is right or wrong. It's whatever works for you.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “When you're first starting, you're looking to a lot of people because they're your inspiration, and you just have to know that how they did it might not work for you. It might, but it probably won't.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli CONNECT WITH SARAH PARROTT BIANCULLI Website: <a href="http://parrottdesignstudio.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://parrottdesignstudio.com</a> Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Parrott-Design-Studio-245078337090/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> https://www.facebook.com/Parrott-Design-Studio-245078337090/</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/parrottdesign/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/parrottdesign/</a> Pinterest: <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/parrottdesign/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.pinterest.com/parrottdesign/</a> SPECIAL OFFER: Proof to Product listeners get 3 free months of Gusto when they run their first payroll. Go to <a href="http://www.gusto.com/proof" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.gusto.com/proof</a> for more information What if you could sit in a room with 30 other product makers who are doing exactly what you’re doing -- building a business they love!  You could share resources, leverage each other’s experiences and learn from those who are where you want to be. Imagine the growth potential! Join us March 14-15th in Los Angeles for our Paper Camp Conference. Over 800 brands have attended Paper Camp.  Brands that sell to stores like Target, Paper Source, Container Store, Anthropologie and independent boutiques internationally. This program is for you if you’re a stationery or gift company interested in selling wholesale, exhibiting at trade shows or looking to expand your outreach to wholesale customers.   We believe in the power of community, collaboration and sharing everything we know.  Get all the details and register at <a href="http://www.tradeshowcamp.com/papercamp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> www.tradeshowcamp.com/papercamp</a> SUBSCRIBE To subscribe on iOS, go to the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/proof-to-product/id1226904668?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> iTunes page</a> and subscribe to Proof to Product. On Android, you can listen using your favorite podcast app. WRITE A REVIEW Writing a review on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/proof-to-product/id1226904668?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> iTunes</a> will help other product based business owners find Proof to Product as they are working to up level, scale, and build profitable and sustainable companies. FOLLOW PROOF TO PRODUCT Follow Proof to Product on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/prooftoproduct/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Instagram</a> for the latest updates. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST If you'd like to receive more information about our upcoming episodes of Proof to Product including show notes and information about our guests, head over to <a href="http://www.prooftoproduct.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.prooftoproduct.com</a> and sign up for our email list.   SHARE Be sure to share Proof to Product with all of the product based business owners that you know! ABOUT PROOF TO PRODUCT: Proof to Product is brought to you by <a href="http://tradeshowcamp.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tradeshow Bootcamp</a> and hosted by Katie Hunt. Since 2011, TSBC has worked with hundreds of product based businesses to help them up level, scale, and build profitable sustainable companies. You can find our show notes and additional resources at <a href="http://prooftoproduct.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ProofToProduct.com</a>. If you like what you heard today, please head over to <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/proof-to-product/id1226904668?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Apple Podcast</a> to leave a five star review and subscribe. Thanks so much for listening. We'll be back next week with a new episode!

082 | Part 2 - Sarah Parrott Bianculli, Parrott Design on hiring a team, managing multiple businesses and defining success

Sarah Parrott is the founder of Parrott Design Studio and I’m excited for you to hear her story. Parrott Design Studio is a letterpress studio in Sebago, a lake town in Western Maine. The studio was established in 2007 by Sarah Parrott with a small Print Gocco, an inexpensive and easy to use screen printing tool that originated in Japan. That same year she took her first course in letterpress, learning to use a Vandercook press.   In 2008 she purchased her own press, an 1898 Golding Jobber platen press. At the time there were no courses to learn on that type of press, and she spent a year teaching herself how to use it. She fell in love with the centuries-old artisinal printing technique and the process of feeding the press one piece at a time, one color at a time. In 2010 she left her job as an event planner to pursue Parrott Design Studio full time.      Sarah is one of our original Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni. She attended our very first round of Tradeshow Bootcamp classes in 2011 before exhibiting at the National Stationery Show in 2012.     We covered a lot of topics in this interview.  So much so, that we’re going to break this up into two separate episodes. Episode 81 is Part 1.   On this episode, Sarah shares how she started her business with a Gocco printer and Etsy shop, how her business model shifted from retail to custom to retail and wholesale, how she expanded into new product categories, why she strives to find local manufacturing partners and we also talked about her process for deciding which products to discontinue.   ON TODAY’S EPISODE:  How she got started with a Gocco printer When she transitioned into letterpress When Sarah realized she was going to pursue this as a business instead of just a creative outlet The evolution of her business over time The three arms of her business and the products she currently offers How she came up with the idea of acrylic cake toppers and how she brought them to market The specific challenges she faced when starting to offer pencil pouches How she manages inventory How she decides to discontinue a product or design The confidence she feels in her business and how it is impacting next year’s release    KEY TAKE-AWAYS: “I really just learned by doing.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “All of a sudden I realized, I'm set to make more money doing this than my current day job.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “As my business has gone on, I'm trying to have as many of my suppliers be as local as possible and that's been, it's 11 years, I'm still working towards that goal and constantly searching.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It's very rare that the first person we work with on a project is going to be the person we work with long-term.” - Katie Hunt “I'm pretty ruthless every year cutting out anything that's not working.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “My style has absolutely changed since I started this. I look at things when I first started to what I'm doing now, it doesn't even look like the same person.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It just doesn't make sense to keep these things that aren't selling and it just allows more room for new things as well.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “I feel the best I've ever felt in all the businesses I've had and I'm working on next year's release and it's looking a lot different than anything I've ever done before.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli   CONNECT WITH SARAH PARROTT BIANCULLI Website: http://parrottdesignstudio.com Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/Parrott-Design-Studio-245078337090/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/parrottdesign/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/parrottdesign/   SPECIAL OFFER: Proof to Product listeners get 3 free months of Gusto when they run their first payroll. Go to www.gusto.com/proof for more information   What if you could sit in a room with 30 other product makers who are doing exactly what you’re doing -- building a business they love!  You could share resources, leverage each other’s experiences and learn from those who are where you want to be. Imagine the growth potential!   Join us March 14-15th in Los Angeles for our Paper Camp Conference.   Over 800 brands have attended Paper Camp.  Brands that sell to stores like Target, Paper Source, Container Store, Anthropologie and independent boutiques internationally.   This program is for you if you’re a stationery or gift company interested in selling wholesale, exhibiting at trade shows or looking to expand your outreach to wholesale customers.     We believe in the power of community, collaboration and sharing everything we know.  Get all the details and register at  www.tradeshowcamp.com/papercamp   SUBSCRIBE To subscribe on iOS, go to the  iTunes page and subscribe to Proof to Product. On Android, you can listen using your favorite podcast app. WRITE A REVIEW Writing a review on  iTunes will help other product based business owners find Proof to Product as they are working to up level, scale, and build profitable and sustainable companies. FOLLOW PROOF TO PRODUCT Follow Proof to Product on Instagram for the latest updates. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST If you'd like to receive more information about our upcoming episodes of Proof to Product including show notes and information about our guests, head over to www.prooftoproduct.com and sign up for our email list.   SHARE Be sure to share Proof to Product with all of the product based business owners that you know!   ABOUT PROOF TO PRODUCT: Proof to Product is brought to you by Tradeshow Bootcamp and hosted by Katie Hunt. Since 2011, TSBC has worked with hundreds of product based businesses to help them up level, scale, and build profitable sustainable companies. You can find our show notes and additional resources at ProofToProduct.com. If you like what you heard today, please head over to  Apple Podcast to leave a five star review and subscribe. Thanks so much for listening. We'll be back next week with a new episode!

Sarah Parrott is the founder of <a href="https://parrottdesignstudio.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Parrott Design Studio</a> and I’m excited for you to hear her story. Parrott Design Studio is a letterpress studio in Sebago, a lake town in Western Maine. The studio was established in 2007 by Sarah Parrott with a small Print Gocco, an inexpensive and easy to use screen printing tool that originated in Japan. That same year she took her first course in letterpress, learning to use a Vandercook press. In 2008 she purchased her own press, an 1898 Golding Jobber platen press. At the time there were no courses to learn on that type of press, and she spent a year teaching herself how to use it. She fell in love with the centuries-old artisinal printing technique and the process of feeding the press one piece at a time, one color at a time. In 2010 she left her job as an event planner to pursue Parrott Design Studio full time.    Sarah is one of our original Tradeshow Bootcamp alumni. She attended our very first round of Tradeshow Bootcamp classes in 2011 before exhibiting at the National Stationery Show in 2012.   We covered a lot of topics in this interview.  So much so, that we’re going to break this up into two separate episodes. Episode 81 is Part 1. On this episode, Sarah shares how she started her business with a Gocco printer and Etsy shop, how her business model shifted from retail to custom to retail and wholesale, how she expanded into new product categories, why she strives to find local manufacturing partners and we also talked about her process for deciding which products to discontinue. ON TODAY’S EPISODE: <ul> <li>How she got started with a Gocco printer</li> <li>When she transitioned into letterpress</li> <li>When Sarah realized she was going to pursue this as a business instead of just a creative outlet</li> <li>The evolution of her business over time</li> <li>The three arms of her business and the products she currently offers</li> <li>How she came up with the idea of acrylic cake toppers and how she brought them to market</li> <li>The specific challenges she faced when starting to offer pencil pouches</li> <li>How she manages inventory</li> <li>How she decides to discontinue a product or design</li> <li>The confidence she feels in her business and how it is impacting next year’s release</li> </ul> KEY TAKE-AWAYS: “I really just learned by doing.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “All of a sudden I realized, I'm set to make more money doing this than my current day job.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “As my business has gone on, I'm trying to have as many of my suppliers be as local as possible and that's been, it's 11 years, I'm still working towards that goal and constantly searching.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It's very rare that the first person we work with on a project is going to be the person we work with long-term.” - Katie Hunt “I'm pretty ruthless every year cutting out anything that's not working.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “My style has absolutely changed since I started this. I look at things when I first started to what I'm doing now, it doesn't even look like the same person.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “It just doesn't make sense to keep these things that aren't selling and it just allows more room for new things as well.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli “I feel the best I've ever felt in all the businesses I've had and I'm working on next year's release and it's looking a lot different than anything I've ever done before.” - Sarah Parrott Bianculli CONNECT WITH SARAH PARROTT BIANCULLI Website: <a href="http://parrottdesignstudio.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://parrottdesignstudio.com</a> Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Parrott-Design-Studio-245078337090/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> https://www.facebook.com/Parrott-Design-Studio-245078337090/</a> Instagram: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/parrottdesign/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.instagram.com/parrottdesign/</a> Pinterest: <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/parrottdesign/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.pinterest.com/parrottdesign/</a> SPECIAL OFFER: Proof to Product listeners get 3 free months of Gusto when they run their first payroll. Go to <a href="http://www.gusto.com/proof" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.gusto.com/proof</a> for more information What if you could sit in a room with 30 other product makers who are doing exactly what you’re doing -- building a business they love!  You could share resources, leverage each other’s experiences and learn from those who are where you want to be. Imagine the growth potential! Join us March 14-15th in Los Angeles for our Paper Camp Conference. Over 800 brands have attended Paper Camp.  Brands that sell to stores like Target, Paper Source, Container Store, Anthropologie and independent boutiques internationally. This program is for you if you’re a stationery or gift company interested in selling wholesale, exhibiting at trade shows or looking to expand your outreach to wholesale customers.   We believe in the power of community, collaboration and sharing everything we know.  Get all the details and register at <a href="http://www.tradeshowcamp.com/papercamp" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> www.tradeshowcamp.com/papercamp</a> SUBSCRIBE To subscribe on iOS, go to the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/proof-to-product/id1226904668?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> iTunes page</a> and subscribe to Proof to Product. On Android, you can listen using your favorite podcast app. WRITE A REVIEW Writing a review on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/proof-to-product/id1226904668?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> iTunes</a> will help other product based business owners find Proof to Product as they are working to up level, scale, and build profitable and sustainable companies. FOLLOW PROOF TO PRODUCT Follow Proof to Product on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/prooftoproduct/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Instagram</a> for the latest updates. JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST If you'd like to receive more information about our upcoming episodes of Proof to Product including show notes and information about our guests, head over to <a href="http://www.prooftoproduct.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.prooftoproduct.com</a> and sign up for our email list.   SHARE Be sure to share Proof to Product with all of the product based business owners that you know! ABOUT PROOF TO PRODUCT: Proof to Product is brought to you by <a href="http://tradeshowcamp.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Tradeshow Bootcamp</a> and hosted by Katie Hunt. Since 2011, TSBC has worked with hundreds of product based businesses to help them up level, scale, and build profitable sustainable companies. You can find our show notes and additional resources at <a href="http://prooftoproduct.com" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">ProofToProduct.com</a>. If you like what you heard today, please head over to <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/proof-to-product/id1226904668?mt=2" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"> Apple Podcast</a> to leave a five star review and subscribe. Thanks so much for listening. We'll be back next week with a new episode!

081 | Part 1 - Sarah Parrott Bianculli, Parrott Design on shifting her business model, finding manufacturing partners and discontinuing product