‘It fell into my lap’: How a woman started a carpentry business in her garage by accident
Like so many other people at the start of the pandemic, Jordan Johnson of Bluffton headed to Home Depot to get supplies for a DIY project.
Only her project didn’t end up abandoned in the corner the next week. It turned into a full-fledged business, Haint Blue Designs.
Johnson, 33, was working as an after-school teacher at Cross Schools, a private Christian school in Bluffton, when everything shut down in March 2020.
“Because the school is private, they don’t necessarily have to pay toward unemployment,” Johnson said. “So, when we all went to file for unemployment, we had no benefits.”
With a seemingly endless supply of quarantine days ahead of her, Johnson decided to make a planter for a friend who gardens. She had dabbled in carpentry since 2013 but never had time to hone her craft.
“Before, I wasn’t selling stuff, I was just making stuff for my mom, my dad, whoever,” Johnson said.
She hadn’t been thinking about a career change, but after that, one sort of fell into her lap.
She started selling different models of planters on Facebook Marketplace and then realized that a lot of people wanted someone to build raised beds.
One early issue she ran into, though, was the rising price of lumber during the pandemic. She also had to stand firm with people who wanted her to lower her prices.
“I’m making this stuff here because I love to make it,” Johnson said. “I’m very proud of it. I’m not just going to sell it for pennies.”
Businesses team up
Johnson has fun with her business, but the stress of being her own boss isn’t always easy. It’s why she likes to collaborate with other local startups such as Lowcountry Picnic, which stages posh picnics for special occasions and celebrations.
“We’re around the same age, and all taking the same kind of risks, so to have that commonality is fun,” Johnson said.
Lowcountry Picnic was started by Parker Lippold and Kara Wuenscher during the pandemic after they saw a market for socially distanced outdoor dining.
“It was so hard to find the right kind of tables for these picnics, so we went to Jordan and said, ‘We have a crazy request,’” Lippold said.
Johnson was able to tweak their requests and tailor the tables to fit their needs.
“She put a handle on it for us to carry it on the beach and really let us be a part of it, which was awesome,” Wuenscher said. “She really thought of everything for us.”
Now, Johnson’s business is booming. She was even asked by Cross Schools to teach a woodworking class.
The best part about all of this, Johnson said, is the instant gratification she gets from telling people who are looking for her husband that she’s the one who built everything. Advice to women looking to venture into a male-dominated sphere like woodworking? Just do it.
“I think if another woman wants to venture out into this sort of stuff, then they’re going to have a lot of support, because females want to support other females,” Johnson said. “What’s there not to love? You’re doing exactly what you love.”
