Meet Niome Hulett | Tumbler Artist and Creative Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Niome Hulett and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Niome, how do you think about risk?
I think taking risks are important and often times what determines your success. If it’s something that you are authentically passionate about…it makes taking risks much easier. I am generally not a person who would be considered a “risk taker” however when starting my business in 2019 because I was genuinely excited and loved creating it evolved organically and I was successful.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As a creative person who makes things and has their own style, and I think that sets me apart from others. I have made an effort to stay true to what I love and not just follow trends. If there is a trend that I happen to like I always look for ways to make it mine and put my spin on it! I take inspiration form everything around me. It could be a picture from a magazine, fashion, movies…literally anything sparks creative ideas. I really relied heavily on my creativity especially in the very beginning. I have always been on social media and have followed people who became influencers for many years. Once you follow people for a span of time you feel like you know them and their personalities. That being said I started sending tumblers that I created to them. They didn’t know I was making them anything. I didn’t have their input, I made cups that I thought they would like based off of seeing their hauls or vlogs. I didn’t ask for my products to be shared with their audiences, but rather hoped they would love it so much that they wanted to share. I tried to think as a customer and see things from the standpoint of a customer. I knew in order to grow I needed reviews, I wanted people to shop with ease and excitement. Etsy was an easy platform to setup, communicate with customers through, get reviews and most importantly it was easy for customers to use. Most people were already familiar with Etsy and had confidence shopping through that platform. As my tumblers reached the influencers they began to organically share and I started to get orders through Etsy! As I became busier the challenge of time management came into play. I was new to owning a business and working for myself. I had to quickly learn everything that came along with that. This meant I was designing, making, communicating with customers, buying supplies to make cups, buying shipping supplies, maintaining my Etsy page, and packaging up orders. Not to mention learning new design methods and design programs, taxes etc. all while being a mom and trying to keep up with a home. This is where having a support team really came into play!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Houston makes this question easy! This city offers so much in terms of entertainment. We have some of the best food spots ever! One of my favorite restaurants is small quaint Thai place Songkran. They have a slow cooked braised pork shoulder that is to die for!! Another favorite spot not too far from there is Bayou City Seafood…great portions, customer service and personable feel. I enjoy visiting the Houston zoo, museum of natural science, there is almost always a concert, musical, or festival to visit as well.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My success has a direct correlation to the support of my family and a small group of fellow artists that I met online via social media. My family which consists of my husband, two boys, mom and dad has always been supportive and helped me tremendously along the way. I would consider my mom my best friend so having her support meant she was always honest with me and that meant she was a sounding board often. When I felt overwhelmed, reached creative blocks, or was too hard on myself my family was always there to lend a hand in practical and emotional ways. Being somewhat of a perfectionist and also making items by hand can be very frustrating, but with the support of my family I was able to push through those times. The online community was extremely vital and helpful as well. We would regularly gather each week sometimes multiple times to have our creative talks via IG live. We called ourselves the “late night crew” often times staying up well past 1am working all while laughing and sharing thoughts and options on literally anything under the sun! The encouragement and support from essentially just “internet” friends was something I hadn’t experienced before and looking back it played a great part in the confidence I gained. Within that group I have since made lasting friendships and meet up throughout the year with the locals. Having that group of likeminded individuals to vent to, bounce ideals off of, and collaborate with is just refreshing and I feel fortunate to have met them.

Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/RyomeDesigns?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

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