We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Josie & Polly Dinsdale. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Josie & Polly below.
Josie & Polly , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
Although we have been in the design field full time since 2019, we did not find our true purpose until we branched off to start our own business in 2022. Our design career began with a local company in Missouri during college and shifted to be full time upon graduation. This company had grown very rapidly over a short period of time. We were so thankful to be busy, but it soon became overwhelming for just two people. They say that time is money and that slogan seemed to be the new theme for our day to day life. We were both consumed with so many projects that we were not getting time to connect with our clients on a personal level. We were also losing sight of ourselves as individuals and what we enjoyed about our career. We had talked about starting our own business since taking an interior design class our senior year of high school. For two artistic minds who were still undecided on a college major, this class became pivotal. This class was the first step in finding our purpose.
In 2022, we started our own company centralized around art and design. Creating was our first love after all. We were finally on our own schedules and able to connect with clients and build relationships. Many of whom have become our close friends! When COVID took the world by storm in 2020, we noticed that more people saw design as a need, not just a want. People were working from home indefinitely and needed a space that allowed for better work-life balance. A space that felt comfortable and functional for this new way of life. Interior design has not always been viewed as an affordable service. Thankfully enough, we had gained the confidence and courage over the last two years to see what the design world was missing. We wanted to offer a design business that would allow people of all budgets to get what they were looking for. We now commit 100% of ourselves to each project, making sure each client feels as if their opinion is heard and valued. Our original artwork is often featured in many of our design projects as well. It took a few years into our journey to find our purpose and voice, but we both agree that we would not have been able to start our own company without these experiences.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
We are identical twin sisters with artistic minds who have always had the urge to create. Growing up, we had the same interests, mingled within the same friend group, and played the same sports. We have spent a lot of time together over the last 26 years, and we have always enjoyed working together. This aspect is what is so exciting and unique about our business. Although we are very alike in a lot of ways, we both have different design styles and ways of working. This has been something that has challenged our relationship since branching off independently, but it has also allowed us to create a new dynamic within our design process and lifestyles. We have really enjoyed learning more about each other and our thought processes as individuals. At times, they seem to be very different even when aspiring to achieve the same outcome. This time together has allowed us to grow and look at design and art projects from different perspectives. We both agree that we have learned a lot from each other in the last few years.
Our business, Copper Owl, is an interior design and art based company. The name came from our interior design elective class that we took during our senior year of high school. We were partners in class and had to come up with a fictional name for our design firm. Copper Owl was created and we both joked how awesome it would be to have this imaginary business become a reality one day. Today, we have both decided to face this new journey head on and build a brand that we are proud to stand behind, We are striving to create a design business where people of all ages and financial statuses have the luxury of hiring a designer to develop a space that is aesthetically pleasing and functional for their way of living. To us, art and design go hand in hand. We are hoping to use our watercolor skills to produce our own original paintings, home decor staples, and accessories to add touches of originality to the spaces that we design. We have had the opportunity to explore this avenue a bit more over the last few years since starting Copper Owl. We are currently collaborating with a few incredible companies and artists to make some magic in 2024 and we could not be more excited. We are not able to share too many details just yet, but we will be updating our loyal “hooties” as the year goes on!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
There are a lot of ways that we could answer this question, but there are three qualities that were essential throughout our journey. Confidence, patience, and determination are three key traits that have allowed us to grow as individuals and as a partnership. Years ago, we knew that Copper Owl was something that we seriously wanted to pursue, but we would not have been able to start without confidence in ourselves and each other. This is definitely not a trait that appeared overnight for either of us. We started in the design field full time right after our 22nd birthday. This was very intimidating considering our competitors had been in the field longer than we had even been alive! We discovered a lot about ourselves during our first job after college. We learned to work as a team, have confidence in ourselves, and our ability to design. As our company expanded rapidly, we each took on many clients at once. Our confidence grew as so many people were seeking expert advice from us and loving the end result of our designs. Overall, the more experience we gained, the more our confidence grew. Patience and determination have come full force during the entrepreneurial part of our journey. Patience was pivotal during the early phases of product creation and wholesale distribution. There was a lot of trial and error when searching for printing companies that were able to successfully scan and print our designs. A lot of time and money was spent in order to end up where we are today. The same goes for wholesale distribution. Many days were spent driving around sharing our brand with business owners in hopes of introducing our products to their shelves. Not every company wanted our products, or were even remotely interested for that matter. We had created a product we were really proud of, and some days the rejection was a hard pill to swallow. It took A LOT of patience to wait for the right wholesalers to say yes, and even more determination to keep going when our end goal seemed a little too far out of reach. Looking back, all of the failure was necessary in order for us to end up where we are today. All of the setbacks were progress, even if it did not feel like that in the moment.
To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
This question has an abundance of meaning for us, yet the answer is very simple. The most impactful thing that our parents have done for us during this journey, as well as every other phase of our lives, is provide support. Our parents are our best friends and biggest cheerleaders. Before leaving our job and starting our own business, we used to stay up for hours purging through articles written by other artists and designers. We were eager to learn from those who were paving the way for the people like us, the rookies. We read about their successes, their challenges, and where they are today. We found a common thread throughout most of these articles, a sad one at that. Most of the entrepreneurs lacked support from their parents. This was something that really hit home for us. We had never experienced anything other than unending encouragement from our parents, and we knew that it had really contributed to all of our past success. To this day, our parents have not second guessed any of our decisions. In fact, they have been along for the entire ride. We are definitely two lucky girls!
Contact Info:
- Website: Coming soon! www.copperowl.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/copperowlstudio/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Copper-Owl/100088797760554/
- Other: https://www.etsy.com/shop/shopcopperowl
Image Credits
Alyson Kay Photography Photography by Rachel Taylor
