Female Founders: April Wagner of Epiphany Studios On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder
An Interview With Candice Georgiadis
Use your voice. You have an opinion, make it known. Take a stance and be proud of it. If you’re wrong, apologize. There is nothing wrong with being wrong, but everything wrong with not admitting it…or worse, never using your voice. Your thoughts matter. Holding them back is doing a disservice to the world. I am using my voice right here in this interview, telling you the things I believe in and why they are important in making the world a more equitable and just place.
As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing April Wagner, artist, master glassblower and owner of ‘epiphany Studios’, a certified women-owned business located in Pontiac, Michigan. Wagner began blowing glass in 1993. Graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Art in glass, she has built one of the largest private hot glass blowing facilities in the Midwest where she and her team create artwork for public, private and corporate collections worldwide. Wagner has served on the boards for the Detroit Institute of Arts and the College for Creative Studies and currently serves on board of the Michigan Humane Society.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
I always knew I was different. From a young age my Mom said I have always danced to the beat of a different drummer. I just didn’t see things like other people did, I was always messing around, trying to make things or take them apart. I was stubborn about envisioning things differently, so it was no surprise when I ended up in art school. What is surprising is how successful I’ve been. Glassblowing is a very difficult, expensive medium to master. It’s also male-dominated and physically demanding, but the first time I tried blowing glass, and I mean the very first time, I fell head over heels in love and I knew I wanted to do it for the rest of my life. It was not easy, and I encountered many barriers along my career, but that’s where my creativity and stubbornness paid off. I can’t imagine myself doing anything else. I am living my dream. I own a world class studio where, with my team, I create masterpieces for my clients.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?
In 2007 I was in a major car accident. With several broken bones and a closed head injury, it was unclear if I would ever be able to blow glass again. During the year of physical therapy and two years of cognitive therapy, I thought long and hard about what my purpose really was. Yes, I love blowing glass, but no, I wasn’t happy. I knew the accident was a sign from the universe and I needed to make some big life changes. My husband at the time was also my business partner. And one right after the other I left both. In 2009 we divorced, and in 2011 I bought the business outright and have gone on to triple its size and, more importantly, to make work I am deeply proud of, work that I know brings so much value to the world and is really my true gift to share.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting?
I took out a loan to buy my building with an extra $50K to start the business. The first thing I did after closing on the building was to buy a sculpture that I had always loved. The next thing I did was to put in a landscape around the building…rocks, trees, ten truckloads of dirt…and then I was out of money. I had nothing except this commercial building that needed a huge overhaul, a lot of yard work and a sculpture. I couldn’t afford a place to live so I slept in the building on a futon with a microwave and a camping shower for three years. Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that? Investing in your business is investing in yourself, you just have to invest in the things that will actually help you get to the next level, not the things you want because they are fun. In an interesting turn of events, both the previous owner of my building and the banker who gave me my business loan visited me at my studio during gallery openings. They both told me they never thought I would succeed and couldn’t believe what I had done. I chuckled and then directed them to the pieces for sale, letting them know how they could support me now by buying artwork.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
Cindy Pasky.
I met Cindy when I was in my early 20s, just out of college with a dream and a fire in my belly, but zero business skills. We didn’t learn those at art school. Cindy became my mentor, sponsor and friend. She taught me how to lead, how to think and how to bring out the best in people. She believed in me when I struggled and challenged me to live into my potential.
According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?
Funding and a voice at the table.
Can you help articulate a few things that can be done as individuals, as a society, or by the government, to help overcome those obstacles?
I love the example of when symphonies started auditioning blindly, or behind curtains, so the gender and race of the musician was unseen by the judges. Once this started it opened the world for professional women and persons of color to be judged solely on their talent and not on preconceptions. I’d like to see other fields embrace this concept and fit it to their arena.
This might be intuitive to you as a woman founder but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?
This is a systemic issue. It starts at home, then at school and in the workplace. We need to tell girls they can do anything they put their minds to, and we need to support them when they try. Women inherently know how to build a tribe so no matter where you are in the tribe you give back. Once you get a seat at the table, make room for another minority. Support the things that you want to see in the world, the businesses that are making a difference and upending the long-held thought patterns that don’t serve any longer. Our voices, our pocketbooks, our actions…this is our power. Don’t let anyone take your power, guard it zealously and use it for the greater good.
What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a founder? Can you explain what you mean?
I especially dislike the myth that you must use people to get ahead. We get ahead by lifting each other up and celebrating our unique gifts. There is more than enough space in the market for everyone.
Is everyone cut out to be a founder? No. In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful founder and what type of person should perhaps seek a “regular job” as an employee? Can you explain what you mean?
Some people are born leaders, some learn to lead, and some shrink from the concept. If the thought of voicing your mission and convincing others to join you makes you uncomfortable, you are probably better cut out to be an employee. Vision and leadership are essential to running a team. No matter what your growth goals are you cannot do everything by yourself. You must have a group of people that excel in areas you don’t so you can really shine in your niche. Being a founder means starting out as the CEO, COO, CFO, CMO, CIO and everything else, even the cleaning lady. I’m not good at all of those roles. I am the visionary. I am the leader who pulls the team together to execute the vision. I don’t do it myself, but I am like the conductor. If standing on the stage or competing in the arena isn’t your jam, there are many other ways to live a joyous life, but being a founder isn’t one of them.
Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)
- It’s a marathon, not a sprint. I used to burn the candle at both ends balancing creativity with business and rushing head-on into every opportunity. Now I stop to consider, is this in line with my mission? Will this get me to my big goals or is it a misdirection? When you slow down you can tell the difference.
- The only thing holding you back is you. It’s cliché, but true. I made work I didn’t really love for years after I should have stopped, but I wouldn’t let myself. I thought it was the money holding me in that place of unfulfillment, but really it was fear of change.
- Never stop learning. Just because you received a degree with fancy letters doesn’t mean you know everything. Keep spreading your wings and learning. At every stage of your career, you need a different skillset to grow and achieve. The skills that got you there aren’t going to keep you there unless you learn new ones to get you to the next level. I took the Goldman Sachs 10SB program, the leadership programs offered by my local business hub and then I hired a business coach. Surrounding myself with knowledge and expertise helped me to grow in ways I couldn’t have done on my own.
- Listen to your gut. The niceties expected of us as females do not extend to anyone taking liberties. Know your boundaries and stick to them. If it feels unsettling, you don’t have to do it. You can choose another route. I often befriend my clients after their projects are completed. My large-scale work is site-specific, and it is an intimate process getting to know the client and their needs and desires. If a client is difficult at the beginning of the relationship, asking for and expecting things outside of my scope or being a poor communicator, I know I need to terminate business with them. For years I would make work for anyone, now I carefully choose my clients based off my gut and experience, which makes for better artwork and a smoother process for everyone.
- Use your voice. You have an opinion, make it known. Take a stance and be proud of it. If you’re wrong, apologize. There is nothing wrong with being wrong, but everything wrong with not admitting it…or worse, never using your voice. Your thoughts matter. Holding them back is doing a disservice to the world. I am using my voice right here in this interview, telling you the things I believe in and why they are important in making the world a more equitable and just place.
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
I have served on boards for several years in areas I am passionate about — the arts and animal welfare. I am regularly asked to support organizations with donations of work and have developed a giving policy that makes an impact in my local community. I mentor upcoming glass students at a local college.
I am working on a program to offer glass blowing to the underserved students in my neighborhood who have no arts programming or skillset building programs. Creativity is often rated very highly by employers, as is teamwork, attention to detail and timeliness. Glass blowing teaches all these things, and even if someone doesn’t continue in the field these skills will serve them for life. Plus, I would like to see more diversity in my field and access to a facility is the №1 barrier. I have a great facility and I plan to share it.
At the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020 I started a donation program called #HeartsforHealthcare. Any person could submit the name of someone working in the healthcare industry that they wanted to recognize. Once a week we randomly select a name and send that person one of our handmade glass hearts with a handwritten note thanking them for saving lives and putting themselves at risk by doing so. The mental health fatigue in our health workers is at a staggering high and this is our way of giving them something beautiful, and completely unexpected, that brightens their day and gives them comfort in this trying time.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
I don’t believe in work-life balance. My life is my work and I’m fortunate enough to be able to blend life into my work on my own terms. As the owner of my company, I believe people are good and they do the best they can, so setting up completely arbitrary guidelines about when and how work is done is ridiculous. I’d like to see a liberal policy become the norm. I think COVID-19 is forcing us to look at a lot of the unnecessary traditions around work and I’m excited to see how it all shakes out. Living in a place you love, surrounded by pets and family, if that makes you a better more productive person, then yes, by all means, let’s do it!
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
Martha Stewart. Her backbone is staggering. She knows her market, she offers value and she has rebounded from setbacks with grace. Her business acumen, knowledge set and comportment have allowed her, her face and her name to continue to lead her brand over the many years.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
Female Founders: April Wagner of Epiphany Studios On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.