Client Tales: Design Womb on Giving Birth to Your Business Branding

In a small business, you work so hard on developing your brand that you sometimes forget to actually build a brand. By this, I mean that you are working so hard at serving your current customer base that you neglect to do the little things that make you memorable to attract new clients — branding, logos, messaging etc. So many of our Quote Rollers are boutique marketing and design agencies just waiting to do that for you. One of such hard-working small firms is Design Womb. Nicole LaFave and her team are ready to help you develop your brand identity, while you are working on growing your company. Today she gives us a peek at how…

Jennifer Riggins: Could you please briefly introduce yourself and tell us what your business is about? 


Nicole LaFave: I’m the Founder and Principal Designer of Design Womb. Design Womb is a branding and design studio that recently relocated to Chicago, Illinois from San Francisco and provides brand identity, graphic design, package design and web design services. Our focus tends to be working with startups and small businesses in the restaurant, food, beverage, fashion, and beauty industries. I’m very passionate about food and health outside of work and I have a background in luxury women’s shoe design, so it makes for a good fit. We also work in areas such as health and technology, and we partner with larger businesses from time to time.

Design Womb works across the globe virtually or in-person as a stand-in design partner. Our clients are all over the country, and some of them are actually outside of the U.S. We are passionate about helping our clients take their project from an idea to a branded complete launch. Our clients tend to be like family here and we grow alongside them and support them in every way that we can.

Jen: Why did you start it? What makes it unique?

Nicole: 
I was born & raised in Michigan. I went to school for art and graphic design and worked in a few agencies and studios for awhile in the Detroit area. I knew I always wanted my own studio, but several years in, I ended up taking a detour to return to school out in Los Angeles to study knitwear design & construction and footwear design. I launched a luxury women’s shoe company for several years and slowly started doing more and more branding work again. A move to San Francisco landed me back in this field full-time. My passion and interest in the Bay Area food scene put me in a really unique position to begin helping so many interesting startups and restaurants out there.

I think that my background in launching and operating my own startup prior to Design Womb puts me in a unique position to really understand where these startups are coming from. I have a lot of experience on the business side of things, so I can advise clients on the strategy of what their branding priorities should be. My experience in the fashion industry also allows me to really connect well with beauty, skincare and fashion businesses.

Jen: What do you love about being an entrepreneur?

Nicole: 
Learning. Learning every single day and knowing the possibilities are endless.

Jen: How do you envision success? 


Nicole: If my clients succeed I succeed. It’s a win-win, really. l also think for myself, personally, feeling fulfilled and happy as well as challenged and continually learning every day defines success.

Jen: How did you hear about Quote Roller? Why did you decide to try our app?

Nicole: 
I heard about Quote Roller online. After becoming an avid Basecamp and Harvest user, I knew there had to be a better way to manage more involved proposals and estimates. My partner-in-crime web developer was using it and I finally decided to give it a try. Since day number 1, I haven’t looked back.

Jen: How does Quote Roller help your business? 


Nicole: It saves me so much time. I was wasting valuable time with manual proposals. It also helps me stay organized and manage Design Womb’s new business, which at times can feel like a second full-time job on its own.

Jen: What would you tell your friends about Quote Roller? 


Nicole: It will save time. I wear a lot of hats, and this tool helps me stay sane.

Jen: Have you seen any winning rate increases? Any other delightful numbers?

Nicole: 
Clients and new business are continually impressed with the proposals and the ease of information covered. Over the past year, business grows steadily and the types/sizes of businesses that come to Design Womb continue to increase or expand.

Want to star in the next Quote Roller Client Tale? Just shoot us an email at jennifer@quoteroller.com!