Design Glut Exposes Themselves

One of the things that characterizes this new school of entrepreneurship is the willingness, or desire, to see other folks working in our industry as opportunities for collaboration and inspiration, rather than competition. We are unafraid to share our secrets and ask questions because we know that we have alot to learn from other's experiences—and well, it's alot more fun than running around with our collars up and clutching top-secret files to our chest.

No one embodies this ethos more, and has more fun with it, than the young and talented design duo Design Glut. Founders Liz Kinnmark and Kegan Fisher met as Pratt students and have slowly skyrocketed (isn't that what it feels like?) to internet and art-world celebrity with their witty and elegant houseware and jewelry designs. They also host the widly popular blog of the same name, interviewing and celebrating other creative entrepreneurs. I first met Kegan and Liz when they were talking with Brooklyn's Green Spaces businesses—when this website was still just an idea—and now I'm honored to be in the position to turn the tables and ask them a few questions them for a change.

As Design Glut, you have become known for creating stunning jewelry and accessories. Just as impressive, however, is the fact that you also appear to run a successful business. How did you learn the skills for the less glamorous parts of your work—aspects like production, marketing, and bookkeeping?

The crudest way possible - trial and error. That, and asking people who know more than us a lot of questions! And we're still learning every day.  Our bookkeeping was a complete mess until early 2009, when our accountant insisted we get Quickbooks, that was a huge step. We've streamlined our production out of necessity. A big turning point was last fall when we started dealing with Target. To be on par with all of their vendor requirements, we finally got a proper fulfillment warehouse, and stopped shipping the products to customers ourselves. It was a really important step that has freed up our time, and allowed us to focus on the bigger picture.

I could imagine a partnership between two very creative individuals could be both rewarding and challenging. What's it like to working so closely with a friend? Is there a division of labor, or do you both do bits of everything?

When we started working together, fresh from Pratt's industrial design program, we had very similar skill sets. We tried to do the same tasks, and stepped on each other's toes a lot. Over time, as we've learned what goes into running the business, we've naturally fallen into different roles. We both still work on the product design, but that's a small part of our time. Day-to-day, Kegan does most of the logistics - production management, dealing with the warehouse and the books. I do most of the marketing - the website, graphic design, promotional materials, social networking and outreach.

Your website lists over 50 stores nationally and internationally, including the MoMA Design Store, that are now carrying your designs. At some point when you were starting out though, there must have been a day where there weren't any yet -- was there a moment that you can point to as when this all started to feel real? Or a tipping point where you felt yourselves go from 'design school grads' to 'professional designers'?

Yes! Great question. I actually have a draft of a letter saved in my personal inbox that I wrote to myself almost exactly 3 years ago - March 16, 2007. I was just about to put our first product, Egg Pants, into production, and I was terrified. MoMA had put in an order though, so I had to go through with it - you just can't turn down an opportunity like that. I've kept that letter there for 3 years as a reminder to myself of how scared I was, and yet how I figured everything out somehow, and the risk was completely worth it. I think the point at which we felt "professional" was in April 2008, when we both started doing Design Glut full time, and established a dedicated space as our office.

You also maintain a wonderful and heartfelt blog about other creative entrepreneurs. This seems like a wonderful display of supporting and contributing to a larger design community. Can you talk about where the inspiration for this came from, and how this impacts your design work?

We couldn't find anything online talking about the business behind design. As we started to realize how little we knew about that aspect, we decided to interview creative professionals about how they started. The more people we spoke too, the more fascinated we became with entrepreneurialism. All entrepreneurs have really great stories. At this point we've done over 100 interviews and I think it's kind of a compendium of the struggles creative businesses face.  There is a lot of very on-point advice for avoiding common mistakes.

We've also made so many friends from interviewing people. I think that's the main way the blog has impacted our work.  We'll often turn to those friends when we need questions answered. And vice-versa - because of the blog, we're on the radar, and a lot of people turn to us with their questions. It's definitely helped us learn so much about the community.

Right now we're curating a group design show. 16 designers are participating, and most of them are people we first met because we admired their work and wanted to interview them. It's an exciting next step from the blog. It's also another steep learning curve, but one we're really excited about. Info about the show is online at http://uncomfortabledesign.com