It was a moderate October, and the weather was temperate. Chilly, yet refreshing. Market Collective was getting prepared for a mini outdoor market that we had planned in East Village, and we had received many more artist submissions than we had space for. We were only able to choose 25 from the 100+ applications we had received, and we had to make some difficult decisions. After carefully reviewing all of the applications, we knew that there was something about new applicant Melanie Laurene that would complete the roster nicely. Melanie’s presence was warm and refreshing, which complimented the feel of the day nicely. Her bubbly personality, desire to connect with the community, and thoughtful display was a beautiful touch on the autumn backdrop. On that day, I knew that I had met someone special, and I knew that Melanie would quickly become integrated into the Market Collective family. Now, almost a year and a half later, Melanie is an MC staple. I had the opportunity to chat with Melanie Laurene about her budding jewelry business, her online presence, her entrepreneurial spirit, and about how she successfully sustains a work/life/school balance.
MC :: Something that has always really stuck out to me
is that you are both creative and entrepreneurial. In your life, which do you think came first?
ML ::
Without a doubt, my entrepreneurial spirit has been with me since I was a young child. Before I even knew what a lemonade stand was, I set up a table at the end of my driveway and sold neat looking rocks that I found in my backyard. Shout out to my mom for being my first loyal customer! My creativity was something that I discovered much later in life. Joining Market Collective pushed me to explore that creativity and find my artistic identity.
MC :: How does one drive the other? ML :: I think that a lot of people struggle with promoting
their own work. Putting yourself out there as a creative is impossibly scary and requires some vulnerability. From a business standpoint, it’s important to be entrepreneurial about your work. You could be an extremely talented artist, but if no one sees your work, no one will buy it. It’s as simple as that.
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