MC Design Academy

I've dripped water on this over social media, here on the blog and on the podcast but I thought I'd share some of how it's been going as well as some behind the scenes stuff.

MC Design Academy will be a subscription based platform to teach retailers and others how to create Anthropologie worthy displays through merchandising. 

From floor sets to jewelry cases and tabletops. I will be teaching how to set your architecture on your tables to creating easy and cost effective window displays. I plan on having guests teach what they are known for like displays or other things like open to buy information. I want this to be fun, informative and I want the subscribers to see it happen in real time. I have been filming a lot up north in my client, Andrea's Maison A shop. She is an amazing buyer and has allll the props and contextual elements that you need to create these types of displays. We are also showing real issues like "what do I do with these last 3 items" or "I have too much to fit into this bookcase". Real challenges that will have real solutions. I am not pre-setting and then striking it down only to film the "perfected" version. The merchandising is done in real time, with real amounts of inventory and real challenges that come up. The viewer gets to see how I solved the problem or challenge.

The real challenge has been filming. I can't film in all of my jobs and most of the time, I don't have the luxury of time. I have to be in another location the following day and need to work fast. Merchandising in front of a camera doesn't happen fast. There are a lot of starts and stops, batteries run low, like really fast, sunlight is not right, too much reflection or either the display or myself are facing the wrong direction and you can't see myself or the product because of said reflection.

Because this is being bankrolled by me, things like shade covers or day time lighting equipment I can't afford to purchase right now. I am literally working my ass off to pay for this project. I buy things like the gimble (the thing that steadies the camera when it's moving) when I finish big jobs. I am lucky to have a husband and a friend who were both in the business and understand what you need to do in order to get a shot but sometimes what you need is the piece of equipment that we don't own yet. We own cameras, mics, a million memory cards, 5 charging docs (they really run out fast) , a gimble and some lighting. 

The other challenge is I have ZERO idea what I am doing. Yes, I can teach merchandising with my eyes closed but, I don't know how to build a curriculum or create lesson plans. In typical Michelle form, I say I am going to do something and I just do it, I literally jump. If I don't know how, I will learn (you know I have a podcast right? Same thing happened there).

This is VERY different. Mid way through filming it hit me that this scares THE FUCK out of me. Mostly because I can't fake it till I make it. I have almost quit this 5 times. Cried to Dave in frustration. Why am I working so hard at something when I could just focus on the @theretailwhorepodcast, that is becoming so successful? Why am I making more work for myself?

Well, I'll tell you why. Because no one else is doing it. Yes, there are others who teach merchandising but it's with perfect amounts of product and not in a store environment. Who is going to learn like that? The retailer is sitting in their stores with a million SKU’s and you just showed them what to do with 4 of them. 

I don't want to wake up and kick myself for not doing this, I don't want to go on IG and see that someone else has created this and it's blowing up because retailers are starving to learn and change their stores. I know this because of how many of you reach out to me on my IG, I know because you tell me every day and thank me for showing what my process is.

So, I won't quit. I am bringing on someone that was on the ground floor of Shopify, she has a lot to do with who they are today. She knows retail inside and out, she understands the industry and she knows a hella lot of people. She will also be managing me, why? Because I need to be managed for something like this. As she told me in one of our first meetings "you need to book your project like you book your clients, months in advance and keep to the schedule". And guess what, she's right. I do that but, (and I hate "buts") my work is what's paying for all of this so I need to work. I just need to balance both and be realistic on time frame. I have to laugh because when I made the decision to jump into this I boldly stated it would be out in the fall of this year. HA, try Fall 2023 and even that is questionable. I need to be realistic with my jobs that are on the books and yes, schedule time around them. I also don't need to say yes to every job (see post on people pleasing) I can say no to someone and say yes to my project just as if it was another client. I also can loosen the grip on what I think is an acceptable timeline. I am headed into the busiest time of the year- holiday and show set up season. I need to be gentle with myself, it will get done and god damn it, it’s going to be FUCKING AMAZING.

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