HI, I'M STACIE BLOOMFIELD

Want to make sure this free email course is “worth it” before you sign up?

Here's everything that's inside:

LESSON 1
Mistake 1: Not Adopting The Right Mindset To Pitch Your Work
✔️ Tackle the mental blocks that hold you back from pitching with confidence! Discover how to shift your mindset, stay motivated, and actually enjoy the pitching process.LESSON 2
Mistake 2: Writing Pitch Emails Without A Proven Structure
✔️ Learn exactly what to include while crafting pitch emails to grab your potential client's attention. Save precious time using my proven structure that you can customize for your business and land those licensing deals!LESSON 3
Mistake 3: Pitching Without A Workflow
✔️ Develop a streamlined workflow for your pitching process and say goodbye to overwhelm! Get organized, manage your time efficiently, and make pitching a breeze rather than a burden.LESSON 4
Mistake 4: Missing Out On Collaborations While Chasing The Big Deals
✔️ Learn the importance of collaborations and how to balance them with chasing your dream clients. Use my strategies to find potential collaborators, gain real-life experience, and grow your brand!LESSON 5
Mistake 5: Playing The Short-Term Game
✔️ Last, but not least, understand how to sustain yourself in the art licensing world, ensure your efforts pay off over time, and maintain visibility to keep your career on an upward trajectory.

Hooray! The first email from The Art Licensing Pitch Playbook is on its way to your inbox.

Within the next minute or two, you're going to get an email from me, Stacie Bloomfield!This email contains instructions to get started with The Art Licensing Pitch Playbook, so be sure to check it out!But if you have any questions, don't hesitate to hit reply and let me know — I'll be happy to help! :-)Now go and check your inbox!

P.S. If you don't find the email in your inbox in the next couple of minutes, please check your spam folder...Chances are it ended up there.

Thank you for jumping ahead!

Hi there,

I am so glad to see that you clicked on the fast-forward link!It only means one thing- you’re eager to learn. And I LOVE that energy.Now, it takes about 2-4 minutes for me to get the old time machine up & running to send you tomorrow’s email.But I’ve got some fun stories to tell you, in the meantime!

Building Gingiber

Who knew that a girl who loved drawing puppies with her father on church brochures would go on to build a 7-figure art business while managing three kids in a beautiful house in a city that offers a quaint escape in the Ozark Mountains.

I did (well, kinda). But I am getting ahead of myself. Let me start again...It all began when I was a kid.
And if I am being honest.

I always knew I was going to be an artist.

(Or a professional softball player).
Softball didn't work out, but art did…I was always a studious kid, and in high school when I realized that Softball wasn’t “the option” for me, I knew what I had to do.I was going to be an artist. No doubt about it.I remember someone asking me- “What are you going to do? Have a kiosk at the mall?”
And I was like- “What if I do! I’ll have a great kiosk!”That’s basically been me. I always had a sense of confidence in me, and I didn’t let anyone shake me up. I have my down times, but that’s a whole other story.So right of out college, I graduated with a degree in Graphic Designing & Fine Arts.I had some job offers to work at some Graphic Design firms, but I turned them down to stay with Starbucks (which had better insurance and I was trying to make responsible choices).
Soon enough…

I got pregnant with my first child.

My husband and I had been married for a few years when I graduated, so I stayed on the management track with Starbucks until my daughter was about a year old.But I had some really tiring shifts, and it dawned on me -- I hadn't even decorated a nursery for her because I'd been so busy.And my husband, who was a grad student at the time, said, 'Make some artwork for her nursery because you can.' And I said, 'Oh, OK. I'll try.'"And that’s when I created an illustration of a happy sea horse— Sharpie on manila envelope.And then one day, my husband said…

“Do you know this thing called Etsy?”

That’s when I started creating and putting my illustrations on Etsy (like everyone does, am I right?). And let me tell you, I made nothing for so long!To be honest, I had no clue what I was doing- I didn’t even know how to take product photos.But as they say, if you put in the efforts in the right direction for long enough, you will start seeing results.And that’s what happened to me!

A blog picked up my some of my illustrations from Etsy 🐘

And it kind of just exploded from there. It just took that one mention, like just the little nudge it needed to get people to notice it.The more people purchased something on Etsy, the higher your listings would go on the website. So if I had popular listings, more people were able to see them.And that was one of the moments in my early career when I knew I was going to do exactly what I imagined doing.That was the first milestone of my now 7-figure illustration business Gingiber- a name I found in the Latin dictionary while working on a school project for my design degree. 🖤

Hope you liked getting to know my story a little bit.I’m sure the email has hit your inbox now! Go check it out and come back again for more stories & exciting resources.Can’t wait to see you again 😊Stacie

Hi there, fellow creative soul

I love it when I see someone clicking through these links!If you’re doing this for the first time, here’s the gist.It takes about 2-5 minutes for the next day’s email to hit your inbox, so in the meantime, I share some fun insights into my business, especially my early days so that you get to know the real me. 😊If you missed the last one,

• You can still check it out here!

Let’s continue…

The time I had to make my first “hire”

So, a year or two into my Etsy success, I started to get really busy.I was creating really cute animal print pillows, and I was doing everything by myself!

I would print the fabric on Spoonflower. And I would hand-cut and sew them. And for a while, I was like The Pillow Lady, I was just making handmade pillows left and right.

That was when I decided to get someone to help me with the sewing.

I have to remind you that this was my first time “hiring”, not a full-time employee, but a contractor.And it didn’t go very well…She was a nice lady, but she wasn’t very good.And I was a perfectionist. I still am. But I wasn’t great at giving feedback or having a tough conversation.So I decided to not fire her, instead let her quit. And I would re-do the pillows myself!I would open them up, stuff them again, and close them after she was done.It was crazy!It became better eventually, but that just was a prologue.A while later, I needed actual help.

My real first hire was my sister!

I was at the stage when I had more on my plate than I could handle.At that time, my sister was starting a family and she was looking for a chance to be able to work part-time and also be with her kids.And I was super disorganized with everything— the emails I was getting, processing the new wholesale orders and all the other administrative stuff that goes into running a business.I had no system.And she is built differently than me (though we get along very well).She is more analytical and not as emotional, maybe, as I am.She is kinda the yin to my yang!So I was like, “Crazy idea, Angie! What if you worked with me?” And she was like, “Let’s do it!”She lives in Oklahoma and works remotely (and that was wayyy before this became normal thanks to the pandemic). But what can I say- She was just the right person for the job.We had a real heart-to-heart conversation at the very beginning about how we would protect our sisterhood, and how we would handle work.And I can’t imagine growing my business with anybody else.She is my biggest cheerleader, and I trust her, and I feel super safe with her.

That’s something I suggest everyone to look for…

Especially when you’re hiring for the first time, there are a lot of things you can mess up.The journey is not easy, and there will be times when you won’t know what you’re doing.So trusting the person who is helping you with your business, especially in the early stages, is super important!Fast-forward to today, I have about 20+ employees across both my businesses, I have learnt to give up control and trust that my team will be able to handle most things.I took a sabbatical when I needed to, and it’s all because I was able to take that leap of faith and ask for help when I needed it. ❤️

And there you have it!I hope this story helps you either “just in time”, or “just in case” ;)Now go check your inbox for the next mistake!Hope to see you soon,Stacie

You’re on a roll!

Whoohooo, thanks for clicking on the link. You’re sailing through the course, and I am so thrilled!While you wait for the next email to hit your inbox, I am here with another story to share more about my journey.If you missed the last one...

• You can still check it out here!

Here's some more!

My First Licensing Project

For about 3-4 years when I started, I was just doing Nursery Art.I got recognized on Etsy and was in the stage where I was selling something on Etsy every week, and then some more!My first paid licensing deal came about 3 years into selling on Etsy, with Crate & Kids (called Land of Nod back in the day), but again, I’m rushing through the story.

Let’s start at the beginning.

Before we begin, just a fun fact about me— I have always said yes to everything and then went back to figure out how to do it later.Someone would ask if I did wholesale, and I would say, “Yeah, wholesale!” (And I didn’t know what wholesale was.)And then someone said, “Do you license?” And I said, “Sure, I can license my art!” (This was technically how I ended up licensing my art for the first time on magnets!)Okay, back to the story.So it kinda started with wholesale.And you know, the internet was a lot smaller back then than it is today.And it wasn’t like I could type “Wholesale line sheet templates” and find a million resources.I literally knew of one retailer that I worked with at the time, she was one of my first retailers. And I remember that she did some business coaching for wholesale. And I reached out to her. And after I’d kind of done it myself and just like gotten some orders out the door, I actually hired this lady.Her name is Grace and she is a wholesale coach and runs Pink Olive in New York.I’ve always been really big on if I don’t know how to do something, I find someone that I know who does and I just say hey, how do I do this thing? And I gotta tell you, I’ve had so many big breaks because of that.So I flew out to visit her in New York and she challenged me to…

Make a list of my dream clients to work with.

And Land of Nod was on that list.And I was randomly listening to a podcast wherein Michelle, who was the creative director at that time, was talking and she gave out her email address during that podcast. The question was “How do you find artists?”And she said, “I’m always open to artists emailing me”, and I paused the podcast right there and wrote down her email address, and I sent my first pitch email to her directly.I made a photo collage of my work. I inserted it into an email, and I just sent it to her.That one was honestly not the perfect pitch.Although you can have really great pitches, sometimes just enough is all you need to get your foot in the door.

So I emailed Michelle.

And I wrote something like,“Hi, Michelle. I’m Stacie Bloomfield, I was featured on this blog, and I have an Etsy shop that’s pretty popular. And here’s a photo collage of my favorite work. And I would love to design for you.”It was more eloquent than that, but that was the gist!And she actually wrote back and was said, let’s do this thing.And I designed my first collection for them.I started to feel that that’s how it works! You ask for what you want and you get it.And that’s how I got into licensing!And I am just someone who takes what she gets and makes the best of it!Like that scene in Gilmore Girls about one student (Brad) who goes to Broadway and comes back and says “They wrote in the New York Times that…

Sometimes in my head, I imagine that I am that person!That is also why I talk so much about the importance of the right mindset and attitude.Because even though it worked out for me, it took time.And I know if you gave it time, it can work out for you, too.

Did you get notified about the next email yet?I’m sure it’s there by now!Have fun reading and learning from it.Warmly,Stacie

Hi, youuuu 🌸

Great seeing you here! (again, I hope)If you missed the last story...

• You can still check it out here!

The next email should be in your inbox soon. While you wait, here’s a short one about…

How I found my “Greeting Card” voice

I remember a few years ago, I listened to a colleague of mine on a podcast where she said she’d hit 1000 retailers and I was like, What?I want to hit 1000 retailers!Okay, here’s the truth of the matter. I was on Etsy at the right place, at the right time.I said yes to wholesaling. I figured out how to wholesale.I wasn’t doing it perfectly.But I did know at the time trade shows were really important.And people were doing the National Stationery Show in New York. So when I made that first trip to New York, I worked with a consultant Grace, who is a dear friend of mine now.

I got in as a guest and I walked the National Stationery Show.

I timed my trip so that I could actually walk that show and see what was happening.And it was really overwhelming!I realized that I had a lot of work to do to make products that people wanted to buy because I started to have an inkling that not everyone who was buying my products was a parent.So for a while, I had pigeonholed myself into nursery decor. And then I realized I could branch out so I was doing calendars and screen-printed tea towels.

And then I got into greeting cards.

And “greeting cards” was actually the hardest thing for me.It’s what I sell the most of now, unit-wise, but I couldn’t figure out how to marry my words with my images. And it took me honestly longer than it should have to figure out like what my creative voice needed to be in that industry.But I committed to it. And so I signed up for the National Stationery Show and I put a lot of money into a booth and I did not make my money back.And the best advice someone gave me at the stationery show is that a lot of brands, the bigger brands, don’t buy from you until they know that you’re going to be around for a while and they want to make sure that you have something to say with your products that’s not already being said somewhere else, right?

So I worked really hard to define my creative voice

Because I could draw a really cute elephant, but what was that elephant going to say?You’ve got to think more than what artwork you’re creating.Sure, I’m good at creating cute artwork, but I actually had to learn how to make functional products.It took me years of going to the National Stationery Show before I really broke even, which sounds really discouraging, but it’s one of those things where you don’t want to give up.And I accounted for it in my budget!I knew that I was going to spend money on the show, I was going to build relationships with people, and I was going to meet other movers and shakers in the industry. And I was going to just try to make sure that people knew what Gingiber was.It was my fifth year of doing the National Stationery Show where we finally had the best show ever! We made our money back and then a lot and we just showed up ready to be this distinctive brand.Our booth looked killer!

And our products had grown.

I realized what I do really well is I study what other people are doing & what’s working.And then I don’t just try to replicate it, I try to put it through my own lens of— “how can I do this the Gingiber way or the Stacie Bloomfield way?” So that my products feel like they strike a chord with people and it’s not just being replicated everywhere.The biggest turning point for my success with getting into more retailers really was creating the products that I wanted for myself.And I actually started shifting away from nursery and sweet cutesy animals to creating artwork about things I was thinking about.I drew a hand holding some flowers, and I said, “It’s easy to be kind.”

And something about that felt good because I was trying to teach my kids how to be kind to each other because they were arguing like crazy.So I drew an illustration of it.And I started going to therapy, so I was doing all this deep introspective work.I was just writing things that came to me.And I have this one illustration, it is of bears and they’re facing each other and it says “one failure doesn’t mean that everything’s falling apart.”

And it’s called Failure Bear.I have it as a greeting card and an art print on gingiber.com. That’s when I had realized…That’s how you do it!I had finally found my voice.

You know the drill now — go check your inbox.See you there,Stacie

One last time ⏰

I hope you've been enjoying the emails (and my short stories)!If you missed the last one...

• You can still check it out here!

We're almost nearing the end of the course and while the next email should be in your inbox soon, I have exciting news! (And something more for you to check out, after this is over 🙃)

Introducing the Art + Audience Podcast:
A Dream Come True

I can’t tell you how excited I am to share this next chapter with you. After pouring my heart and soul into building my art business and connecting with so many incredible artists through my courses and resources, I’m thrilled to introduce you to my latest passion project: the Art + Audience podcast!

This podcast is truly a dream come true for me. I’ve always wanted to create a space where artists can come together, share their stories, and inspire one another. With Art + Audience, that’s exactly what we’re doing.

What Is Art + Audience?

Art + Audience is a podcast dedicated to the stories, struggles, and successes of artists from all walks of life. Each episode features in-depth interviews with talented artists who have navigated the ups and downs of the creative journey. We dive into their personal experiences, explore the lessons they’ve learned, and uncover the secrets to their success.

Why This Podcast Means So Much To Me

Starting this podcast has been a labor of love.I’ve always believed that behind every art business is a story worth telling. Through Art + Audience, I get to bring those stories to you, to inspire you, and to remind you that you’re not alone on this journey. Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned pro, there’s something in this podcast for everyone.

Why You Should Tune In

If you’ve enjoyed my email course and found value in the resources I’ve shared, you’re going to love Art + Audience.This podcast is an extension of everything I’m passionate about

Listening to these interviews will not only give you a boost of inspiration but also equip you with practical tools and insights to apply to your own art journey.Plus, it’s a great way to stay connected and continue learning long after the email course ends.

Join the Conversation

I would be over the moon if you would take a moment to give Art + Audience a listen.So, once you’ve finished this email course, head over to your favorite Podcast platform and check out Art + Audience.Whether you’re commuting, working in your studio, or just relaxing with a cup of coffee, this podcast is the perfect companion to keep you inspired and motivated.Thank you for being part of this incredible journey. I can’t wait for you to hear these amazing stories and join the conversation!