what is the whole enchilada?
The Whole Enchilada is my course, developed from my years’ experience as an artist and ethical artpreneur.
What does this mean?
It means I know how to build a business where you can create an ethical revenue stream, stay outside of corporate sponsorships, market without ads – and retain full artistic control of your work.
Sound too good to be true?
It’s not. I have loads of testimonials below – and feel free to contact my students, to ask about their experience.
I am confident they will have nothing but good things to say!
So!
You can read more about the course below.
And you can sign up for my emails here.
If you’re looking to work with me sooner than the course, outside of a group, or in a more intensive, one-on-one basis –
then please read my page on mentorship, and apply through there.
I have a ton of testimonials. You can read (and watch) them here!
I designed this course based on three primary factors:
1. I was seeing a lot of Creative entrepreneur clients for one-on-one sessions and it became very obvious they needed a lot more help than what I could provide in a single session, or even a three-pack.
2. Most my clients would have a hard time coming up with $5,000 to $15,000+ business-building courses.
3. Even if they could find those funds, I've learned my clients aren't interested in a large/generic course, a cookie-cutter course, or a course that delivers templates and generic branding kits.
My Creative clients tend to value:
- Artistic freedom
- Letting their work speak for itself - instead of "selling"
- Getting paid well
- Generous, enthusiastic customers
- Creative control - 100% Creative control
- Hard sales / sleazy sales techniques
- Paying for ads
- Pricing negotiations
- Scheduling social media posts
- Branding deals, affiliateships, ads and boosts
Here is the schedule for my next two cohorts. Pick one, or the other!
If you want something sooner or something outside of a group, then you may want to consider mentorship. You can read more about that, and apply, here.
SUMMER 2023
Wednesdays 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM Pacific
June 7, 14, 21, 28
July, 5, 12, 19, 26
Aug 2, 9, 16
FALL 2023
Mondays 3:00 PM - 5 PM Pacific
Sept 11, 18, 25
Oct 2, 9, 16, 23, 30
Nov 6, 13, 20
COST
$1800 if paid at registration, and $2000 over four installments if paid through a payment plan.
Reserve your spot here.
Here are the questions I get most often:
FAQ
What does the course cover?
Everything! The WHOLE ENCHILADA! But seriously: the course is based off a rigorous business plan (I provide the outline and we go over my own as prime example!) and a cash forecast (a DELIGHTFUL and powerful document)!
My own business course facilitator in 2019 who's been doing this work for decades, told me my business plan and forecast was in the top five percent that she'd ever seen.
So if that's how well I did when I was brand new to business-building - imagine what I am bringing to the table today!
Finishing this work - a business plan and cash forecast - may not sound fun and sexy. But these documents are the smartest investment of your time! I built the whole course around them! This work not only prepares you for a lender or investors should you chose - family, friends, a crowdsource plan, a grant - but you will be astonished how refined your plans are by then and how confident you feel, after putting these together!
In addition, we'll be focusing on key elements that are usually missing from other business programs: in-depth social media strategy, email marketing, community-building, customer care, branding, messaging, value-added networks, client avatars - and your marketing persona.
And another thing: while everyone is creative to some extent, Creatives are a whole type of person and I excel at nurturing and emboldening them! My clients get immediate, life-changing results by working with me and you will be no exception!
How do I know if I'm "good enough" for this class?
This question has been more popular than I would have guessed. I'll cover it in the next section.
Am I too advanced for this class?
If you're worried about that, you should schedule some time to talk with me. I want the right people in the course. I have definitely turned people away after a discussion - when I felt it just wasn't the right moment for them!
You can trust me that I don't want the wrong person in the course - just like you don't want to take the wrong course!
Email me for an appointment and we can talk about it! I'm easy to talk to and I never pressure.
You'll be glad you met with me!
How defined does my business need to be, before starting?
You'll need to pick a focus in our first few weeks together. Buckle in for a wild ride: almost no one has the exact business plan they thought they would, by the course finale! But you'll feel great about the plan you've built and you will be revved up to go!
What tech do I need to participate?
You need:
- to attend lecture and coaching via Zoom (desktop or tablet)
- a Google account
Our cash forecast is built in Google sheets, so familiarity with spreadsheets is a plus. I provide the business plan outline in Google docs.
What assets will help me succeed?
I'm glad you asked! The people who get the most bang for the buck, are those who schedule ALL their one-on-ones with me, those who ask their family and friends for help and support during the eleven weeks, those who participate in the Discord server (both during and after the course) - and those who keep on top of their homework each week!
The more you dive in, the faster you will see real-time, exhilarating results!
I'm ready! How can I reserve my seat?
Reserve your seat here. If you see dates and times when you click through, that means there are available seats - it's that simple. Please read carefully to make your reservation, and set up our first meeting.
MORE FAQ
Can you pick different days/times?
I thought about this a lot, actually. I could never make everyone happy with a class time even if I tried. Your business is an investment, and if you want to build it you will have to commit to some sustained effort. I selected dates/times based on my past experiences - what worked best, for the most people.
Remember - if you'd like to arrange different terms/times - and you'd like to do this any time of the year - you might consider a mentorship, instead.
What happens if I miss a class?
All classes are recorded & attendees will receive links to view the lectures. That said: attendance is mandatory. If you do need to miss a section, you will need to arrange this with me ahead of time. I have a very, very high attendance rate - that speaks to both the quality of my course, and the commitment of my students.
Anything else I should know?
Your ideas are good enough, and I will help you find your market!
Because if all you needed was a great idea and a good work ethic we wouldn't have a small business failure rate of 50% - 80%.
I built my businesses one piece at time - with no loans, funding, ads or credit cards (nothing wrong with those things but I didn't want to use them) - and you can do this too!
More importantly - no one can do it for you!
This is the question I get most often!
People want to know:
"Am I appropriate/qualified for your WHOLE ENCHILADA course?"
Great question!
So, I'm not trying to trick anyone or get people to sign up who aren't a good fit. I really want the right people because otherwise it would be painful for both of us! I don't want a SINGLE student to sign up, and then stress out!
My attendance rate and testimonials are proof I'm good at vetting the right students!
That said!
My two qualifications are pretty simple, actually. And you get to ask them of yourself. You are qualified if:
1. You are ready to do homework, and:
2. You are so so so fired up to create!
Let's address #2 first.
What do I mean "fired up to create"? Well if you are someone who is constantly either wanting to get in the studio or wanting to create your jewelry-making company or paint the things or fire up the kiln or you just keep designing in your mind or making sketches and you just want to make, make, make, and have people take it off your hands by buying it and showering you with money and so, THANK JEEBUS, you can make more things! And watch people compliment on you social and tag you in their posts beaming with their purchase, and for them to say Thank You So Much so you can buy more materials and equipment or afford a bigger studio or more eco-friendly packaging or new lighting etc etc.
If you want that to be your life? Something like that.
Then trust me - your work is good enough.
Because you already have that Creative drive. Your work is already perfect and unique. And if you take my course, in eleven weeks you'll be deeply convicted of that!
And what about the first question I asked, which is equally important: are you ready to do homework?
Well, how much homework?
The course is about four hours a week of lecture and Study Buddy (and you receive all recordings if you miss a session). I provide a formal Business Plan and Cash Forecast document to work on for our eleven weeks, run through a small Discord community where we support one another, share resources, and I host office hours. You will also receive one-on-one coaching session vouchers which - as many of you already know - are priceless!
I hesitate to say how many hours a week the homework will add up to because that depends on your specifics. I will say I've designed the course work to be able to work for someone with a full time job and a family. Because that's what most (not all) of us have in our lives, and that's what both my partner and I had to do when we received our own business educations.
Please don't sign up, unless you plan to go all in, as Hudson enthuses!
But don't stress too much, either.
I promise - it's such a small class, I'll be holding your hand the whole way. That's why I have designed the class to be small!
I'm not interested in making huge revenues off a class churn.
I'm interested in helping one artpreneur at a time - in a focused and personalized way!
Invest in a business course. You'll earn - and save - a lot of money.
But more importantly than that:
You'll save a lot of heartache.
There are so many business courses out there - I've graduated from a few!
And even in the worst of them I always learned a thing or two!
But I also knew something was missing!
In fact, a lot of somethings!
The Whole Enchilada is a love-offering - I'm distilling my absolute best for you.
I don't want you to waste time doing things you hate and I really, really don't want you doing things you're not comfortable with. I want you in your studio, or your garden, or your shop - getting to splash around and play and CREATE!
Put another way: I created the course I wish I'd taken ten years ago! As you can guess - especially if you've been watching my Live videos on Instagram - I'm a little fiend for business programs, courses, and classes!
Trust me that I've built the best one I can - not a single bit of busywork, superfluous material, or malarky!
Here are nine ways my course is different than any other course out there:
Unlike most business courses, the Whole Enchilada:
- has a 100% satisfaction rating from previous enrollees (check my reviews here - and my testimonials, below!)
- is current on social media and email marketing strategy
- will not ask you to compromise your ethics
- understands that most artists don't want to mass-produce or outsource
- understands most Creatives don't want to apply sales pressure to customers
- has no ulterior motive! I'm not trying to grind a large number of students for earnings, to keep grant funding, nor create an "evergreen" sales funnel cash grab. The Whole Enchilada is a small group, working intimately together. You aren't just a number. You are important to me!
- makes sure you get paid WELL, right out of the gate!
- features three one-on-one sessions with yours truly and a whole forum for questions - any time of day or night you can post them!
- connects you with the most nourishing, fantastic peer network you've ever experienced! (people call my community their "favorite place on the internet!")
Don't feel weird looking around in Discord, or writing me back, or asking me questions. I am not going to POUNCE and try to sell to you.
My very aim, is to be helpful for you in making the right decision for where you are today!
A wee testimonial before I go!
While I was writing up these emails last summer, I woke up to a student's fantastic testimonial - in the form of a lovely blog post she published.
I didn't ask her to write me a testimonial - it was spontaneous on her part!
(But I did ask her permission to share):
"This summer I've had the pleasure to be in class with Kelly and a brilliant, supportive cohort of other creatives. The process has helped me craft a rockin' business plan, and elicited a heady mixture of both swelling confidence and abject terror. Oh my god I'm so totally freaked out to be doing this, and thank goodness I'm not trying to go it alone anymore.
I'm so grateful for the means to access this life-changing resource. I would not be here writing this, filled with this much belief in myself, my work and my worth, were it not for Kelly."
- Kirsten Gallagher, from The Urban Lotus / School of Self Study
I have 100% satisfaction rate with my course.
Shortly after the course ends, I conduct exit interviews.
It's important to me not only to do right by my students - but to also continue refining the course.
The Whole Enchilada keeps getting better and better!
Please feel free to click through to read more and listen to more from:
Hudson (landscape architect)
Sabel (fine art quilts)
Virginia (goblincore clothier and mending witch)
Traci (embellishment artist and OPP-finisher)
Ruby (inclusive pattern design, custom sewing)
Jen (pro-social coffee shop and anti-capitalist art business)
Nancy (tie-dye artisan)
Kevin (ethical menswear fabric shop)
Erin (leotard queen and aerialist)
Margaret (high-end caterer, takeout window), and
Jessica (art subscription service)
If you've read this far, that means you haven't been scared off by the amount of work it will take, to properly put your artpreneurship together.
At this point, you're probably worried you can't come up with the funding, or you worry that you'll somehow "waste" this time (and money).
So I'm going to make it very easy for you!
If you have any doubts whatsoever - you can email me with your questions (I never put any pressure on - I'm here to help!) -
or you can just hold off!
I want to work with you, when you're ready.
If you feel butterflies in your stomach and you really want to GET UP AND GET GOING -
then yes.
Yes, we should work together!
You can reserve your spot in my course, here.
If you'd like to talk more about the course - I'll be opening up calls (no-cost) in March 2023. This is just a call to answer any questions you may have. No pressure, a relaxed conversation!
I’m a nonbinary designer working out of Aberdeen, Washington, living with my partner and our always-unschooled teenagers. I am vegan, passionate, irreverent, and next-level skilled at both garment design – and business design!