My everyday essentials rounded up!
Today on the blog, I wanted to talk to you about what it’s like to be a free-lance designer.
I’m often asked about my life as an entrepreneur, and I wanted to take this occasion to give you some insight about my essentials.
Of course, drawing is still an important part of my day, but as the owner of a small company, I have to multi-task more than you can imagine!
After 11 years of running Liligraffiti (including 7 years dedicated to stationery), I think I finally have all the tools that make my life easier!
To draw, I like to use the Adobe Illustrator 2022 software, on my Wacom Cintiq 22 tablet : the screen is very large, which allows me to draw on a inclined plane for many hours.
I also recently purchased an IPAD PRO, and I draw on it with Adobe Illustrator Draw : so useful and convenient to carry around when I want to be outside my office!
Communication is a very important part of the job, when you own a brand/a shop. Social media are definitely your friends! Instagram is my favorite one because I can express my creativity quite freely. I use the Canva app to create my stories, and Later to plan my posts. (Both apps have free plans)
Linkedin is more on the professional side : I like to share my licensing projects and other collaborative partnerships.
Sending newsletters on a regular basis is also crucial to communicate both to my customers and to my retailers : I use Mailchimp, which is free up until a given number of subscribers (I am currently on the paying plan)
The not-so-fun, not-so-glamourous part (but also so very important!) of the job is accounting and bookkeeping. I have an accountant, but I handle the everyday stuff, such as invoicing my retailers : I use the Kiwili app, which, like Mailchimp, has a free version.
Concerning the B to B side of my activity, I put up together twice a year (=every new collection), a wholesale catalogue : It all starts with a photoshoot whit my talented friend Sylviane Robini, and then I handle the layout with Adobe Indesign 2022.
(You must have noticed by now that I cannot live without Adobe!)
Both my shops (retail + wholesale) are powered by Shopify. It’s user-friendly, fast to install, and there are countless add-ons to personalize your shop.
Trello is an amazing tool when it comes to team work : I use it on a daily basis with Ingrid for each and every aspect of the brand (Com’, planification, inspirations, products launchings, etc.)
Finally, I find my inspirations not only in my Montreal life and my travels, but also on Instagram and more importantly Pinterest, the bible!
I hope I answered some questions that you had in mind about the tools, apps, material and softwares I use every day to manage my brand; maybe it even inspired some of you to start the great adventure of entrepreneurship!