Meet Savannah Abbott of EZRA&OLIVE

Today we’d like to introduce you to Savannah Abbott.

Savannah, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I have always had a great passion for creating things. When I was a little girl, I’d spend hours bouncing between different forms of art — writing “books,” coloring, decorating, shopping, putting outfits together, you name it. I think what I really loved was finding different ways to express myself, and that interest never faded. I double majored in journalism and English in college, which led me to my first career move on the editorial staff at PaperCity Magazine in Dallas.

I’d always known I wanted to incorporate writing into my life professionally, and to see that dream realized was incredible. When I decided to relocate a little bit northeast to my hometown of Paris, Texas, I continued freelancing and began teaching high school journalism and English. There’s something special about passing your passion along to the youth of your community.

While I absolutely love teaching, I began to crave a creative outlet for myself. In early 2015, I sort of accidentally created a line of greeting cards that, to my surprise, started selling. With that, EZRA&OLIVE Paper Post was born, and an entirely new adventure took off. As E&O continued to grow on the retail side, I searched for a way to connect more with the people who were buying my products.

I wanted them to really get to know who I am as a person and to be able to share my interests with people who care, so I took the leap and launched the E&O blog in December 2016. It’s been a little over a year now with both parts of the business rolling, and I’m here for the long haul.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Technology. Oh, technology. Some would say it is beautiful and magical and helpful; however, I would say it is akin to a tornado spinning through my life, constantly creating chaos and problems! Although I am of the “tech-forward generation,” I am most certainly not tech-forward. Some of the biggest challenges I’ve faced were diving into software and programs and figuring things out for myself. I’d honestly just click, click, click until the right thing happened. That’s pretty much still my method. Pretty savvy, eh?

With any business, big or small, there are countless obstacles — finances, time management, responsibility, the unknown, failure, the list could go on forever; however, I’ve tried to take all of them in stride and learn from every single thing I experience. And when I’m not having a “don’t worry that you just fell flat on your face, you’re learning from it!” day, but rather a “what on Earth was I thinking; I seriously cannot do this” day, my husband is always there to talk me off the ledge and remind me that I’ve gotten myself this far, and that means something.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about EZRA&OLIVE – what should we know?
There are two sides to my business — my online paperie and my blog. I sell my products at several retail locations as well as online at www.ezraandolive.com. I specialize in hand-made greeting cards — all crafted with my two hands with hand-written greetings on and inside of them.

I love nothing more than when I hear a customer tell me that they always purchase my cards over a big box brand because they have such a personal feel to them. That’s what I always strive for, and I think that’s exactly what a card should be. In addition to my line of cards, I have also added art prints, gift tags, and cake and cupcake toppers. I have big dreams for the full E&O product lineup; before you know it, we’ll be making all the pretty paper things and more!

While my products are where I get to create with my hands, my blog allows me to document my thoughts, share stories and write in my own style, which is something you don’t exactly get to experiment with when you are writing for a publication with an established voice. It has been so fun to just be me and write what I want, how I want. On the blog, I share content in the following areas: fashion, beauty, home, food, travel and entertaining.

I also share dog-related things from time to time, fitting since my business is named after my two Frenchies, Ezra, and Olive, and I also have a section called The Edit where I do a monthly book review. I really try to encompass the true meaning of “lifestyle blog,” touching on a wide variety of life’s happenings. In a world of a gazillion bloggers, I simply bring myself to the table. I’m not saying I’m the bee’s knees, but what sets my blog and my products apart from others is simply the little dash of myself that goes into it all. I think my personality comes through everything I do.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
Absolutely first and foremost in the deserves-a-round-of-applause department is my husband. I started this only a few months after we married, and he has always encouraged and pushed me. I’ve invested nothing but our own money into the business, and he has always shown support, often wanting bigger and better things for the business than I was willing to take on at the time.

His entrepreneurial spirit has rubbed off on me and helped me become a little less “safe.” I owe so much of what I have achieved so far to him. I also owe him a lifetime of thank-yous for bringing Ezra and Olive into our life. They are seriously the world to me and had I not needed a birthday card for one of them that I ended up having to make, none of this would have happened.

I am also so blessed by my family and friends. They are my top customers, and any one of them would drop what they’re doing and come help me if I asked. I try not to ask, but it sure is an awesome feeling knowing you have people in your corner.

I would be remiss not to give a great big shoutout to my hometown, Paris. We are a small town located a little bit northeast of the metroplex, and from conception, this town and its people have rallied around EZRA&OLIVE. Just weeks after making my first prototypes, a local store agreed to carry my cards, and I genuinely could not believe it.

Since then, I’ve been shown so much support from people who are willing to come to me for a card instead of Walmart or to purchase one of my cake toppers instead of Hobby Lobby’s or to shop links from my blog instead of one of the other 10 million, and I am grateful for every single purchase made and every single “you go girl” along the way. I am completely aware that without the support of my local community, EZRA&OLIVE might have just been a blimp in the story of my life.

Contact Info:

• Website:  www.ezraandolive.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ezraandolive/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ezraandolive/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ezraandolive
• Other: https://nl.pinterest.com/ezraandolive/

Image Credit:
Audrie Dollins, Sweet Memory Photography, Courtney Mathews

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