We had the good fortune of connecting with Joelle Reeder and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Joelle, 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?
I own a tiny boutique web design agency in Hillcrest, San Diego. We started in February 2003, when a friend on the East Coast and I both dabbled in web design, creating new and creative looks for our blogs, which at the time were pretty boxy and bland. We started getting requests to do the same for others, and Moxie Design Studios was born. Later that year, I quit my job as a marketing agency production artist to take Moxie full time. By 2007, we’d done hundreds of blog and website designs, spoken at high profile industry events, and even published a book about blogging with a major publisher.
Over time, my friend moved on to another career, but I kept at it. After taking on many author clients over the years, I pivoted my business in 2017 to focus more intently on author websites, which was a blessing during 2020 when so many industries were struggling. Authors kept writing and kept needing beautiful author websites!
Nineteen years is a long time to run a business and there have been moments over the years that have been challenging to set myself apart, especially when I started as a kind of pioneer in a space that now is saturated with amazing talent. A lot of trends come and go, especially on the internet and it’s impossible to speak to all of them. You can’t keep up or you’ll give yourself a crisis of confidence.
I’m a colorful, creative, “too much” kind of person – and I had to reconcile that with design trends and style changes that came and went over time. Being true to myself, to my design personality, is a lot of what has helped me sustain my business as long as I have. Sure, you can know when to pivot or follow industry indicators. You can find a niche and build name recognition. But none of those things are relevant if you drastically change who you are to suit current trends.
Working with creative people, like authors, artisans, and LGBTQ+ businesses and communities has been the best part of what I do. Aim to work with like-minded or like-styled people. There’s a market for what YOU do and how YOU do it.
Can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” – George Eliot
I connected with this quote when I was in my 20’s – at time when most people aren’t thinking about being “too late” for anything, but it resonated. For me, it’s about being open, being willing, reminding myself that I don’t have to stick to the norms, I don’t have stay in a career or a job that doesn’t suit me or that is unhealthy. You can do the thing you want to do, you just have to actually do it instead of talk about doing it. “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.” What might you have been if you hadn’t chosen your current path? This is especially apropos for me now, at 48, as I take my creativity into new areas.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
As a San Diego Native, it’s not going to be Sea World! First thing I usually do is take friends to Urban Mo’s or Gossip Grill in Hillcrest – both clients, mind you, but also friends! There’s nothing like some frozen Palomas or frosé on a sunny patio with pop music bumpin’ and rainbow flags flyin’. It’s a kind of oxygen, honestly.
Next stop would be Balboa Park for a stroll on the Prado, some beer outside at Panama 66 and maybe a pop over to the Zoo. While I avoid most tourist things, the Zoo is a must for anyone visiting. It’s the best!
We’d definitely zip down to Barrio Logan for tacos at Salud and stop at Chicano Park to see all the beautiful art. And then ferry ride to Coronado for a cheap view of the bay.
An evening would definitely be reserved for Barrel & Board Social’s amazing Gold Dust Woman cocktail and boards featuring allllll the cheese. Bring on the cheese. Or maybe a jaunt into Point Loma for pasta at Cesarina.
If it’s a week, then we’d hit a winery in Temecula or Rancho Bernardo… and no trip is complete without a trip to the beach and a California Burrito from Taco Surf (sub crispy hash browns for fries, you will not be disappointed.) Great, now I want one.
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’ve had my business a long time, but I started it with one of my dearest friends, Katherine Lanier. We met via blogging and without her, and a few other wonderful women who worked with us in the beginning, the Moxie brand wouldn’t have had the same trajectory. While they’ve all moved on to other things that bring them joy, it’s that early success and name recognition they helped build that allowed me to continue doing this for almost 20 years. To those women and all the supportive, loving, chosen family in my life, I raise a glass to you. Or, you know, two. Or three. Are these bottomless?
Website: https://www.moxiedesignstudios.com
Instagram: @hello.moxie
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joellereeder
Twitter: @hellomoxie
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heymoxie