1. What's your name?
Lexie Pitzen
2. What's the name of your channel and what type of content do you produce?
I run a Redbubble and Instagram shop called Glowingly. I design original graphics for stickers, prints, and now masks.
3. Let's get to know you! Tell us 3 facts about yourself
Fact 1: I’m a full-time college student majoring in Information, Communication, and Technology and working for a local newspaper.
Fact 2: Music is super important to me, and playing piano is my favorite hobby besides art. I also love making extremely specific Spotify playlists and designing covers for them.
Fact 3: I’m an introvert and love that both my newspaper job and my art shop allow me to work mostly alone!
4. What inspired you to start your own bizz?
I started posting my art on social media for fun when I was in high school. Then, my senior year, I was inspired by artists on YouTube to set up “Glowingly,” my Redbubble shop, in the hopes of creating a passive income stream to help pay for college. After three months, I was ecstatic to finally make a sale. Over time, after sales really started multiplying, I extended Glowingly into an Instagram shop, and now I sell stickers and other products in person and through the mail too. I’ve always wanted to work for myself, and I’m really glad I’m starting young.
5. Where do you find your motivation?
The main idea behind “Glowingly” is in the name: inspiring people to live glowingly—to live a radiant and enthusiastic life. I’m motivated by that. I want people to feel excited about life, and I want to use art to spread love and optimism. I love the fact that when someone buys a sticker and puts it on their laptop, they’re going to see that message over and over again, and other people are going to see it too and hopefully feel inspired by it.
6. What do you do to feel more inspired/motivated on the days that can feel a little mundane?
The art district in my city is my go-to place when days start to feel mundane. I love to walk down from my apartment and see all of the murals, art galleries, and small businesses. I’m very inspired by other people and how they weave art into their lives and careers, and seeing that in action turns my day around and gets me motivated to create. There are other things that help a lot too—concerts, museums, even just having a conversation with a friend—the key for me is getting out of my apartment and gathering inspiration from other people and places.
7. What are some daily revenue-generating activities that really move the needle in your bizz?
Pinterest marketing! I signed up for Pinterest Business a couple of years ago to promote my art, and it has been a game-changer. I’ve done most of my marketing without paying any money at all—I can rack up a lot of impressions and shop visits just by researching the right keywords and designing products that align with Pinterest trends. Think tie-dye phone cases and vintage aesthetic stickers.
8. What kind of tasks are better to automate vs manually do each day/week?
For me, creative work is done almost completely manually. I do still try to automate certain things to streamline my marketing process. Keeping a keyword spreadsheet is one thing I learned from an SEO class that has made my process more efficient. I’ve tried automating Instagram posts, but I realized I prefer posting manually because I feel more connected with my followers when I write up a caption relevant to the day of the post.
9. If you could give advice to another woman starting her own bizz in the same industry/field, what would it be?
Find mentors. One thing I struggled with at the beginning was feeling like I didn’t know what I was doing. I ended up starting coaching with a mentor, and I also started having conversations with other artists in my city. It’s given me a lot of insight into how other people thrive in this type of work and strengthened my confidence.
10. Share with our community where they can follow you and your bizz (website, socials, etc)
Instagram: @glowinglymade
Shop: glowingly.redbubble.com
