Meet Sarah Caudle | artist, entrepreneur, dog lover

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

Hi Sarah, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
With a background in product design, I’ve always had a passion to create. After moving to Hawai’i and feeling so inspired by my surroundings, I began painting again. I discovered a new medium that I had never seen artists use at the time, resin, and with it, I was able to capture the depth, color, and wonder of the beautiful beaches. My art began to sell and my first business, Sarah Caudle Art, was formed. Over the years I grew rapidly and was able to hire a full team of assistants, open a collaborative studio, the Sunroom, and give back to my community by also starting a fine art management company, the Sun Collective. I learned so many business skills and found a love not just for art, but also entrepreneurship.

When I moved back to the mainland, I wanted to start a new business, unrelated to art. I have always loved dogs and going on adventures with my own dog, Mowgli. I began making dog collars using EM® (Effective Microorganisms®) ceramic beads for natural flea protection and boosted immunity, and M COLLAR was born! With all my businesses, it is important for me to give back so profits from all sales go to support rescues.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
With all my businesses, especially my current focuses, Sarah Caudle Art (SCA) and M COLLAR, I strive to do something that I am genuinely passionate about, not just something that will make money. For me, happiness comes first, and if you care about something enough, success will follow. I believe what sets me apart from other businesses is that I always stay genuine to what feels right for me and my brand. I also give back to what gives me inspiration such as with SCA creating a space to inspire and guide other local artists, and with M COLLAR, fostering dogs and donating a large percentage of sales to rescues. Most importantly, I create a community with my customers so they feel part of my journey – after all, I wouldn’t be a business without my customers!

And it has been quite the journey! I never imagined I would run a successful art business, much less, open a few others after. Like most artists, I came into it not knowing anything about running a business; I simply started painting and slowly began to grow. Although it has been incredibly rewarding, it certainly has not been easy. Learning by trial and error has led to some costly and timely mistakes.

A few important lessons I’ve learned along the way:

1. Believe in yourself and wash away your fears. If you don’t believe in yourself, love you what you do, and have genuine excitement about your brand, how do you expect others to? I had a very slow start because I was too scared to put my art out there. Once I did, it took off! Once you let go of your fears, you will be able to push boundaries to create something new and unique and learn to grow in unexpected ways.
2. Build a team you trust. As your business grows, you will need some help. Learn to delegate tasks that you don’t necessarily need to be doing yourself. Prioritize your time to what you need to be focusing on in order to grow. Outsource what you can and hire in house what you can, but make sure they are reputable companies or trustworthy individuals. I hired an accounting team that I blindly trusted and for years I overpaid taxes by tens of thousands of dollars. It wasn’t until my husband and I had some free time that we caught their mistakes and are spending years going back to annul and redo all my books. If you don’t hire the right company / brand, the whole point of outsourcing to give yourself more time, can backfire and cause you more trouble in the end.
3. Balance your time. When you first get started, you need to hustle to take your business off the ground. And before you are able to grow your team, you start by doing everything by yourself. It’s overwhelming, but also so exciting, because you are bringing your vision to life! The key is as you get your business going, work/life balance is vital to longevity. I loved my art business so much it didn’t feel like work, and I was always trying to exceed other people’s requests. This ended up leading to burnout and I was forced to close my studio for a few years for my own wellbeing.

After lots of rest, I am back in it again, but this time I am using what I’ve learned from past mistakes in order to have a more fulfilling future. As I get back into painting through Sarah Caudle Art ( prints available exclusively through Lia International on sarahcaudleart.com) and as I grow my new business, M COLLAR (mcollar.com), I am making sure to not overwork myself, even if that means growing at a slower pace. I am also focusing on reminding myself my purpose and reason behind starting my businesses. If I am no longer feeling passionate about it and it no longer feels genuine – I need to pause and reset.

With SCA , I am just grateful that I am able to make a living as an artist and I am excited for new unique original work that I will release in the future to connect with existing and new collectors worldwide. With M COLLAR, I hope to help dogs nationwide with my all natural, beneficial, flea and tick collars, as well as give back to rescues.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I recently moved to Atlanta after living in Honolulu for the past 9 years, so I am still discovering a city that is somewhat new to me! Some places here I would take them are farms in north Georgia to pick peaches (and eat them as you do it!), view the unique exhibits at the High Museum of Art in the city, take a stroll on the BeltLine to check out all the unique murals and pet all the dogs, stop at some breweries like Monday Night along the way, and try out lots of different foods at Krog Street Market food hall!

If you are visiting Honolulu (take me with you!), there is so much endless beauty to see and culture to learn about! Take a surfing lesson in Waikiki, hike Lulumahu falls, explore the art scene in Kaka’ako (where my old studio was!), try some poke or a fish sandwich at Nico’s Pier 38, relax at Lanikai Beach, kayak to hike Chinaman’s hat, go horseback riding at Kualo’a Ranch, have a refreshing açaí bowl at Hale’iwa Bowls, and so much more! And of course, make sure to check out some of my favorite art galleries including Polu Gallery, Magnolia Gallery, Illuminated Art, Lauren Roth Art Boutique, Nick Kuchar Art and Design Co.! Most importantly, live aloha!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I wouldn’t be where I am without the love and support of my husband, Danny! Not only has he always encouraged and supported my crazy ideas, when most others haven’t, but he also does my accounting, helps set up for shows and events, and so much more! He holds down the fort when my businesses are slow and steps in to work extra (on top of his own job) when things get crazy busy. He gives me advice when I feel stuck, never lets me give up when I feel overwhelmed, and learns with me as we both figure out new business strategies. I’m forever grateful for him.

Website: sarahcaudleart.com I MCOLLAR.com

Instagram: @sarahcaudleart I @dogsofmcollar

Facebook: @sarahcaudleart I @dogsofmcollar

Other: TikTok: @sarahcaudleart I @dogsofmcollar

Image Credits
Kiley Shai Photography, Sienna Morales, Janessa Harris Photography