Letters on Main: An update!

Hello, friends! I just wanted to pop in and give you a little update about the Letters on Main space. Truthfully, this is a long, long, lonnnnnng story. With many ups and downs and iced coffees and parties and funny stories and breaking down of boxes and barcoding in between. And, the story isn’t over yet. I can’t wait until the day – or rather, I look forward to the day – when I write or tell or blog or whatever about the whole thing. But for now, here’s the short, concise, internet version. :o)

We moved into this space in Sun Prairie two summers ago, and promptly began renovating it. (It was formerly a Quiznos, then sat empty for five years). The initial intent for this space was to use it as our company shipping and fulfillment space, and to be open to the public as much as possible. After renovations were complete and after the dust of Christmas had settled, we moved all of our inventory here. However, the business had grown so much from the time we signed the lease to the time that the renovations were complete, that we quickly realized that we had already outgrown this space – all of our products simply didn’t fit! Furthermore, the space wasn’t ideal for our shipping and receiving needs. (Shipping hundreds of mug boxes out of a front door on actual Main Street in the winter, over the mounds of snow, certainly wasn’t ideal). We also learned that it’s super hard to keep a space beautiful and open when you’re in a constant state of shipping, setting up for shows, painting, mood-boarding, creating new products, etcetera! For our friends that are local, we are so so so happy that you all have wanted to come in – we wanted to have you! – but it was important to the business that we keep our focus on where our business has it’s roots – our online store. At the beginning of 2017, we officially moved the last part of our online inventory to a fulfillment specialist in West Bend. I am overjoyed at this step in our little company’s history! But this also means that we no longer need this space for what it was originally intended for. While we love seeing your faces and meeting new customers, lindsayletters.com requires our complete focus, creativity, attention and love, so we are looking to sublease the space for the remainder of our lease.

Also – and this. is. HUGE. I’m at a place in my life that any free time I have, I want to be with my family, and not behind a counter. Truth be told, so much of my life I have spent doing things the hard way, for the sake of art. “But Lindsay, you’re really going to hand-sew 500 wedding invitations, even though you’re not getting paid for it?” “Yes.” (For example). I have really worked so much of my life by doing the harder, not smarter approach. And it’s been fine, because I’ve always felt that the words “enough time” to be completely relative. Although it wasn’t the main purpose of the space, I wanted a storefront so badly. I wanted to curate a beautiful space, and dictate how it smelled (like Volcano candle) and what people listened to while they shopped (Billie Holiday, Etta James, and the occasional Michael Jackson, mostly). I wanted to get to stare people in the eyes and hear their stories and their ideas and what they did (or didn’t) like about my work. It just sounded… fun. And lovely. And inspiring. HOWEVER, in this season, my family needs me more. And I need my family more. I totally have dreams of owning a beautiful little brick-and-mortar someday. But for now, my heart – and my physical self! – wants to be home. Which – I have to tell you – does not feel sad or like a loss to me AT ALL. It feels like a huge, HUGE win. It’s my goal this year to be laser focused, and to simplify. I want to create like the Lord created me to. I want to have a killer online shop that inspires and delights at every turn. I want to work hard at my marriage, I want to love on my kids in every way possible, I want to go to bed before 1 am more nights than not, and I want to have a business that is way more impressive on the inside than it even looks on the outside, you know what I mean? And this subleasing step is putting me one step closer to those goals. Hallelujah & AMEN!

As always, thanks times one billion for all of your love, prayers and support. And please – if you think about it – pray that we would find someone awesome to sublease the space! Someone who would be so super blessed by it. ??? Okay, that’s it from me for now. Take care, friends, and stay tuned! I can’t wait to show you all the new things I’ve been working on for lindsayletters.com! ? xo, linds