Land & Kamp Origin story
Growing up on a hobby farm, the city life was very boring. Once I moved to Portland I needed something to do with all my extra time. I bought a 1920s Singer Sewing machine off of Craiglist for $250 to teach myself how to design and sew handbags. I always joke that I couldn’t continue to just party so I needed to find something legit that wouldn’t get me into trouble.
Raquel of Urbanite found me on Instagram and invited me into the store when it first opened with not much more than a little faith in me and those early designs.
My family and friends are heavily involved in Land and Kamp with almost every photoshoot featuring them. Often lending a hand when projects need to be wrapped up like cutting straps on the floor while I’m frantically stitching together the last pieces of a handbag.
It has been fun to watch all of babies around me grow up through old snapshots from events that I attended like this one at Portland Night Market.
and this one of my little nephew at my first Wool & Whiskey event at Urbanite.
This is Kate of Kyaphotography and Kya Equestrian Photography. She’s been my photographer and biz bestie from the beginning when we were first starting our little businesses. Working on her couch as we are trying to strategize what we are suppose to be doing in a small business.
Crucial piece to the puzzle of building a small business is finding a powerhouse like Andi of Old City Mailroom. She created a gorgeous path with my branding kit to use as I moved forward my little business with a sense of pride when presenting it to the world.
Perhaps the true theme of this origin story is finding something to do, then finding key people to help stitch it together. When people tell you that you have to find something you’re passionate about and go for it, they are full of crap because that is not sustainable. Passion is a barely controllable emotion. You need to find something that you are diligent (showing care) and stubborn (dogged determination) about giving up on. I’m just too stubborn to put it down.
Love-Jessie
