Today we’d like to introduce you to Amber Zaricor.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in Coldwater, Ohio, after my dad retired from the Air Force at WPAFB. I’ve always been creative to the core, so much so that I used to color on the walls of base housing when I was little because I thought they were too boring—whoopsie! My love for creativity grew into so many different outlets. In High School, I found out that I could actually make a career out of what I loved. When I was 16, I got my first graphic design job at a screen-printing company, where they trusted me to design tee-shirts, logos, and truck wraps for the local speedway. I felt like I was working almost full-time in graphic design before I even graduated high school!
From there, I went to The Modern College of Design in Kettering, Ohio to focus on marketing design. I was able to really hone in on my craft and learn from other incredible designers in the industry. After graduating as the Salutatorian, I jumped out in faith and got my first big girl job at an agency in Nashville, which brought me to where I live today.
To be honest, I did a lot of job jumping from there to different agencies in Nashville and Silicon Valley—never truly finding my ‘dream job’. In September 2016, after a life-changing client interaction, the words “I quit” accidentally fell out of my mouth in a staff meeting, and I left my 9-5 agency career with no backup plan.
While I was building relationships and creating community, I was able to partner with larger agencies across the country that shared my similar vision and values. I began to brand myself as “designing with heart, for people with heart,” and in 2017, I launched my branding agency, Copperheart Creative, where I lead a team of creative-preneurs in building brands through powerful storytelling. It’s been listed amongst The Top 10 Designers in Tennessee, which I couldn’t have done without my incredible team.
My favorite part about the entire creative process is hearing the incredible stories from entrepreneurs that we do branding for. I knew their stories and passion was the heartbeat behind their business. In 2021, I launched my podcast, Small Business Big Heart, to share the raw stories of real business owners. Within every interview, we dig deep into the heart behind each entrepreneur with the purpose of inspiring and uplifting business owners around the world.
Community has had such an impact on me over the years, especially women supporting other women. One of my favorite ways to connect is by serving women through a weekly Wine Night I host in my home. I started noticing how the Wine Nights were transforming the hearts of women in my circle, so I continued to pursue a life of encouragement, joy, and support by creating the Fill Your Cup Conference, a 1-day self-care conference where we pour into passionate, career-driven women who are making space for their dreams and desires as they rediscover their worth, inspiring a positive overflow into their lives both personally & professionally. Our most recent conference was on May 6th in St. Marys, Ohio (my hometown area), and it was truly a dream to be able to pour into these amazing women after these difficult couple of years we’ve all experienced! We don’t currently have any official conferences on the books, but we are looking at Nashville! 🙂 Roadtrip anyone?
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest struggle that I think of right away was in 2018; I was trying to be everything to everyone. At Copperheart Creative, I was saying yes to everything and trying to operate as a full-service design agency. We would create anything from huge WordPress websites, brochures, signage, email templates—really anything that people threw at us. I lost a complete sense of boundaries, and my mental and physical health was on a slippery slope—I knew I had to make a change when started to experience crippling panic attacks.
I made a list of all the things that I loved and all the things that I didn’t. That’s when we honed in on branding, niched down, found our focus and where we’re really strong – and then let everything else go. Without that, I would have run myself into the ground, and I honestly was just really burnt out.
That was also the same season where the seed was planted for the Fill Your Cup Conference, I knew I couldn’t pour into everyone else if I wasn’t taking care of myself first! It’s really been my passion to support other women to take the time to fill their cups first! They can find more information at fillyourcupconference.com
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
After years of agency experience, I discovered my passion for serving clients and connecting people through design. Now I get the honor to serve clients with heart and connect people through amazing design. We believe clients are NOT a business transaction. They are real people with heartbeats. They are trusting us with their baby (aka business). I wanted to create a way to serve them well, so we make sure to really listen and learn about the heart of the business, and not just create something trendy. You can follow along and find us at @copperheartcreative on Instagram and hear our clients’ hearts on our podcast, Small Business Big Heart.
Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
Honestly, branding and design has already changed so much since when I started! BUT I’d say the biggest shift is that in the entrepreneurship world, branding has become so much more important to the local small businesses. Mom and Pop shops are finally realizing that to professionally represent themselves, their services, and what they offer the world that they need to have a cohesive, professional brand. I think social media and the ever-growing online space are going to continue to push that even more! I predict many more entrepreneurs in the next 5-10 years, not only focusing on their business brand but ALSO… their personal brand! How THEY are represented online and in the world and as public figures, speakers, entrepreneurs, and experts in their field. I think (and hope) that will really begin to make huge leaps and bounds!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.copperheartcreative.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/copperheartcreative/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/copperheartcreative
- SoundCloud: https://pod.link/1543988177
- Other: www.fillyourcupconference.com / www.smallbusinessbigheart.com / http://www.amberzaricor.com/
Image Credits
Hunter Berry Photography
Smallhands Creative
Liz Wenning Photography
Katie Snyder Photography
Kendra Gene Portrait
