Meet Stephanie Menjivar | Art Business Mentor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Stephanie Menjivar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Stephanie, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
While being the Head of Marketing for an artist-run textile company, I had the opportunity to work closely with artists and designers from all over the world who licensed their work to us. This experience taught me tons of ways that artists can succeed with their creativity that go beyond just consigning work to a gallery or showing at art fairs. The more I saw how these artists were developing their careers online, the more I thought to myself “why didn’t they teach me about these art opportunities in school?!”

At that point my obsession with the art world and helping people reached new levels and I felt like it was my duty to tell other artists about these opportunities. So, one day I sat down and began writing my thoughts on what the art world is missing, what I can do to improve the lives of creatives, and how I can use my knowledge to empower artists to go further in their careers. Once it all clicked in my head, my purpose became clear.

In early 2018, I took a leap into entrepreneurship and became an Art Business Mentor for fine artists. Since then, my mission has been to make artists truly confident about representing their work and building their creative empires.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Menji Media is a creative marketing and business development consultancy pushing artists and businesses in creative industries to reach their highest potential. As an Art Business Mentor I help fine artists build confidence in selling their art independently through deep introspection, digital marketing, and how to use their story as a competitive advantage. My artists learn these concepts and more through personalized online training programs and coaching.

Some of the things I do unlike other business consultants are: pulling proven but often ignored concepts from other industries and adapting them to the arts, doing a deep analysis of what motivates each individual student at their core, finding the student’s source of productivity and laser focus, teaching how to create sudden demand for their work that leads to a rush of buyers, and creating simple systems for delegating and automating everyday tasks.

What excites me most about my business is being able to meet and inspire so many creatives! I feel the most proud when my clients put into practice what I teach and share their success on social media. There’s something so fulfilling about seeing my clients talk about new commissions, launching new collections, and simply showing the world how their art is making people’s lives better.

Although I’m extremely passionate, proud, and positive about my work, it hasn’t been easy to build the frameworks I teach. It has taken a lot of trial and error, getting out of my comfort zone, and being able to understand my customers to deliver the best results and experience for them. Throughout this business journey I’ve learned that you have to be patient with yourself. As an entrepreneur it’s important to take a step back and acknowledge your accomplishments because sometimes it’s easy to feel like progress is at a standstill when in reality you’ve accomplished A LOT.

The one thing I want people to know about me is that I believe that everyone should support the arts because when artists are supported, our society becomes more wholesome. This is why I’ve made it my mission to make the art world more accessible by teaching artists how to share their stories and connect with everyday people outside of the art world.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Anyone who visits Miami with me as their tour guide has to prepare themselves for a jam packed trip filled with lots of sightseeing! Here’s where we would visit:

Day 1: The first day would be a beach day in Sunny Isles. We would rent bikes at Haulover Park, ride around the marina, check out the skatepark, and just relax on the beach. Then we would go to some of my favorite international markets in Sunny Isles (they have some cool Russian, Brazilian and European stores), grab something to eat at Kura, a rotating sushi restaurant in Aventura, and we would end the day with a stroll around Aventura Mall.

Day 2 : We would take a drive down Biscayne’s Mimo District to see all of the historic hotels and make a coffee stop at Cafe Creme located in Upper Buena Vista (This place is a bohemian oasis!). Next we would take a walk around the Design District and end the day checking out all the beautiful murals in the Wynwood Arts District.

Day 3: If I’m your tour guide in Miami, get ready to have at least one museum day! We would check out the Rubell Collection in Allapattah. It’s a private art collection that has an awesome selection of contemporary art. After filling our minds with thought provoking art we would grab lunch at Hometown BBQ (it’s a 5 min walk from the museum). They have the most delicious brisket sandwich and cornbread! After lunch we would take a drive to Little Havana for some ice cream at Azucar.

Day 4: On this day we would admire Miami’s skyline! Our tour of Downtown would start with an electric scooter ride from Museum Park to Bayfront Park. Then, we would take the Bayfront Park metro mover to Brickell and stop at the Brickell City Center and have lunch. My favorite lunch spot right by the City Center is a cafe called B. Bistro. They have the best Nutella croissants!

Day 5: Most visitors know about South Beach because of Ocean Drive but there’s so much more to it. I love checking out all of the exotic plants at the Miami Beach Botanical Gardens, you can see some of the nicest views from the modern 1111 parking garage on Lincoln Rd, and right across the street you can grab some really good tacos at Huahua’s Taqueria. I also recommend checking out the South Point Pier and Art Tech House filled with interactive art exhibits.

After this activity-filled itinerary you would probably need to take a few days to relax. But some other honorable mentions on my Miami sightseeing list are Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, Miracle Mile in Coral Gables, and Coconut Grove.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Wow, answering this question feels like I’m at the Academy Awards! It’s so hard to just choose one person, so here are the people that are at the top of my list:

My mom: She has been the best role model I have ever had! She has taught me what it means to have a great work ethic. Seeing her juggle motherhood while being a healthcare leader has shown me that it’s possible to build a successful career and make time to be with family. Not to mention that she’s the reason why I got introduced to art museums as a child. While I was growing up, she took an Art Appreciation class for college where she had to visit museums. She would take me to exhibits with her and little did she know that I was subconsciously building an obsession for contemporary art.

My partner, Deniss: We’ve been together since high school and from the moment we met he always supported my crazy creative ideas. Deniss always pushes me to be better, is always ready to help me with anything, encourages me to learn topics that challenge me and he’s the best art show buddy. He is one of the biggest reasons why I jumped into entrepreneurship. Ever since I can remember, he encouraged me to start a business and one day I just decided to combine all my skills and go for it.

The online educator, Sam Ovens: His program opened my mind to a variety of topics and gave me frameworks for starting my business. Thanks to those frameworks I saved a lot of time and have been able to build a business around the topics I’m the most passionate about (art, marketing, psychology and education). Learning business and consulting from Sam Ovens also opened my eyes to so many other entrepreneurs that have expanded my mind.

My Clients/Students: Last but not least, my clients deserve a BIG shoutout! They are the reason why I love being an Art Business Mentor. I’m so grateful to work with amazing artists and creative businesses that trust me to help them grow, learn, and push them to be better versions of themselves.

Website: http://menji.co/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/menji.co/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephmenji/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/artistsbuildingempires

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAfb-gYsuCh-xZXL4Zd5rzA

Other: https://www.menji.co/socialmediaguide

Image Credits
Photos by Deniss Jacenko