We had the good fortune of connecting with Hannah Curran and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Hannah, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
When I started whoishan, my two priorities were that my packaging was as sustainable as possible and my stickers were affordable. My business is committed to making art accessible to EVERYONE in the form of stickers. A handful of them have messages centered around body positivity, confidence, and kindness. My favorites are “Don’t Let Your Mind Bully Your Body” and “Note to Self: Stop Worrying About What Strangers on the Internet Think of You!” The more people can spread these messages to others when they have them on their water bottles or computers, the better!

As a consumer, shipping costs can add up, so I decided on a standard shipping fee of $1, (or free if you spend more than $10), and I ship worldwide. Whoishan values sustainability. All of my packaging is eco-friendly in hopes of creating a better future and inspiring other businesses, both large and small to do what they can to help our planet. My envelopes and card stock are recyclable, the plastic bags that protect the stickers are 100% compostable, and each order comes with plantable seed paper! Through these two missions, I know whoishan will make a difference, big or small!

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’m currently a Junior majoring in Creative Technology, and Design (formerly Technology, Arts, and Media) at CU Boulder. As a creative technologist, I love to creatively problem-solve through my work. Through my classes, I’ve been exposed to countless programs from Blender, Arduino, and Ableton to Python, Procreate, and almost all of the Adobe Suite programs! These classes have allowed me to narrow down my interests to graphic design, illustration, video editing, and electronics. Graphic Design is at the front of this list, and without exposure to it, I wouldn’t have started illustrating or whoishan in the first place!

I do all of my art in Procreate and Adobe Illustrator and am learning new tricks every day. The journey here was definitely not easy. When I started out, I didn’t feel like I’d earned my place in the creative world, However, now I can confidently say I have. I didn’t know anything about starting a business, but luckily my amazing mom was able to guide me through the legal logistics, and YouTube was a resource I heavily relied on. Creatively, I would (and still do) get stuck on what to make next. I want each sticker to accurately represent both whoishan and myself as an individual. Sometimes I would start with a design, be happy with it, then come back a few days later and completely change it. However, this is all part of the process, and it’s helped me grow both as a business owner and creative!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If a friend were visiting, these are the places I’ve discovered in Boulder I would take them to! We’d start the day with a morning hike up Green Mountain (it’s less crowded than Chautauqua), and on the way back stop at Lost Gulch Overlook for some cute pics and great views of Boulder. Then, I’d take them to Whole Sol on Pearl Street for a delicious smoothie bowl (my favorites are The Mayan and their Mango Piña Colada). We’d do a little shopping along Pearl, then I’d give them a tour of campus because it’s beautiful, especially in the Fall! There are so many parks and outdoor activities to do, so I’d rent us bikes or Lime scooters (these are everywhere now) to ride around town. We’d finish the day off at Rosetta for dinner (and sit on the rooftop of course), then head to Crumbl for dessert because their cookies are to die for! If there’s a concert at Red Rocks, I would love to bring them there because it’s one of the most unique venues I’ve been to. Other places not in Boulder I’d love to take them to are Horsetooth Reservoir in Fort Collins, Downtown Denver, and Monarch Lake in Granby. As a Colorado Native, there are so many hidden gems and there’s always something to do. One day simply isn’t enough to see it all, so I’d try to convince them to stay a few more to truly experience everything Colorado has to offer!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I wouldn’t have been able to start or continue whoishan without the support of my friends and family. My first launch was back in May 2020 and I was flooded with orders from family members and friends (and even some people I hadn’t talked to in years). It was comforting knowing that even if my stickers didn’t make it across the country or world, I had people in my backyard cheering me on. I specifically want to thank my parents for letting me turn their office into my workspace because it was very chaotic. I had sticker paper, packaging supplies, and stickers scattered everywhere, and my noisy Cricut was going all day. With everyone trapped at home, they put up with all the craziness of me running around the house to get orders shipped. To my new supporters, thank you! Whether you discovered me through Instagram, TikTok, or Etsy, every order, like, comment, and direct message means so much.

Website: https://www.whoishan.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whoishan

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/hannah-m-curran

Other: Esty Shop: https://www.etsy.com/shop/WhoIsHanShop?ref=shop_sugg Work In Progress/Design Blog: https://whoishan.wixsite.com/wipblog/ Personal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hannnahcurran/

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