The Bud Collective is a curated series of interviews featuring Nikki Holbrook, founder of Flower Buds Creative, in conversation with podcast hosts, as well as interviews with Nikki and her own clients. Focused on the art and strategy behind branding and web design, the collection dives into Nikki’s process, client transformations, and the stories behind building standout online presences for women-led businesses.

In this installment of Flower Buds Creative’s interview series, founder Nikki Holbrook joined host Jon Chan on Life After W-2 which is a podcast dedicated to sharing the real stories of real people who left the corporate world to build their own business.

Jon’s Intro: Jon’s Intro: “I kept getting glowing reviews—but no path to grow. So I built my own.” In this candid episode, designer-turned-founder Nikki Holbrook shares how the pandemic clarified her values and pushed her to leave a stable UX role for mission-driven work with women-owned businesses. She breaks down the leap from billable hours to productized branding + website packages, why value-first outreach wins clients, and the mindset shift from perfection to progress.

When most people picture a “safe” career path, they imagine a steady nine-to-five, predictable hours, and a clear ladder to climb. For years, that’s exactly the life Nikki Holbrook lived…moving through design teams, collecting glowing reviews, and mastering new skills along the way. But even with great bosses, solid roles, and a strong set of digital design skills, she kept feeling the same thing: a ceiling she wasn’t meant to sit under.

Nikki had always loved design (its strategy, its psychology, its ability to tell a story without saying a word). But the corporate world had a way of boxing it in. Meetings filled her days, hours blurred together, and she rarely got the chance to stretch creatively in the ways she wanted. Even when she earned promotions or praise, something was missing: purpose.

And then, during the pandemic, everything shifted.

A Leap Without a Safety Net (and the Universe’s Perfect Timing)

While some people ease their way into entrepreneurship, Nikki’s transition happened swiftly. One part clarity, one part burnout, and a little part YOLO.

She didn’t lay out a meticulous business plan or spend months preparing. She simply made the decision to stop building someone else’s dream, and start creating her own.

The very day she walked away from her corporate job, she sent a DM to a creator she admired, the chef behind Dope Kitchen, offering value first: “You need a cookbook. Can I make it for you?”

The reply came back almost instantly, but not for a cookbook. A paid branding project! A sign from the universe that she was exactly where she was supposed to be.

With a supportive partner, years of connections, and the freedom to choose meaningful work, she stepped into entrepreneurship with one core mission:

Help women-owned businesses feel empowered, confident, and equipped to take control of their careers—just like she did.

Finding Her Niche (and Letting Go of Hourly Burnout)

Those first six months were a mix of exploration and growing pains. Nikki leaned on old contacts, took on hourly work, and quickly discovered that trading time for money wasn’t sustainable. Senior-level designers work quickly, efficiently, and thoughtfully… which meant she was earning less the better she got.

It didn’t take long to realize that the hourly model punished experience.

So she rebuilt everything. Intentionally.

She shifted to product-based pricing, creating clear, high-impact offerings like:

These packages allow her to pour all her creative energy into one client at a time, without juggling, burnout, or endless revisions. And, importantly, they empower her clients to take control of their own brand and website long after the project ends.

For a studio rooted in supporting small, women-owned businesses, that accessibility matters.

The Power of Outreach That Actually… Works

Most designers dread cold outreach. Nikki embraced it.

Not spammy, mass messages…not pitches at all. Instead, she studies a business she truly believes in, scrolls their website and Instagram, and sends a personalized video audit with thoughtful suggestions.

Value first. Always.

This one shift has become one of her most consistent, heart-aligned ways to connect with new clients.

With every few outreach videos she sends, one turns into a meaningful conversation. And many of those turn into long-term relationships—not because she’s selling, but because she’s helping.

The Bigger Mindset Shift: Progress Over Perfection

If there’s one message Nikki repeats to every client (and herself), it’s this: Progress over perfection.

In design (and in entrepreneurship) it’s easy to get stuck overthinking, tweaking endlessly, or waiting until something feels “finished.” But done is always better than perfect.

The moment she embraced this philosophy, everything changed:

She worked more confidently.
She communicated her process more clearly.
She let go of corporate habits that demanded constant output and unrealistic productivity.
She allowed herself to live—go to the gym midday, visit her parents, take breaks without guilt.

It’s a mindset she now brings into every client relationship. Because for small business owners (especially women juggling work, life, and family) perfectionism is often the biggest barrier to momentum.

Design Isn’t Decoration—It’s Strategy

One thing Nikki emphasizes constantly is that design isn’t about “making something pretty.” It’s about creating a brand that communicates, connects, attracts, and convinces.

A strong brand should:

Reflect the business’s values
Speak directly to the right audience
Tell a story instantly
Create trust
Position the business for higher-value clients

This is why she doesn’t offer “just a logo.” Every project includes the strategy behind it. Fonts with purpose. Colors with meaning. Layouts that help people feel something, not just see something.

It’s the side of design the average person doesn’t always recognize… but the side that changes a business completely.

What Nikki Wishes She Knew Before Making the Leap

Looking back, there’s only one thing she would have done differently: Learn more about the business side sooner.

Not the creative part—that she had down. But the financials. The pricing. The taxes. The systems.

Even still, she wouldn’t change the leap she took or the timing of it. Not for anything.

Because every step of her journey led her to Flower Buds Creative—where she gets to support the women who are dreaming bigger, reaching farther, and shaping their own definitions of success.

Want to Work With Nikki?

Nikki specializes in empowering women-owned businesses with bold branding and collaborative, done-in-a-week websites that give founders clarity, confidence, and control.

Whether you're in the early stages of dreaming up your business or ready for a full refresh, she’s the kind of partner who meets you exactly where you are—and helps you bloom from there.

To listen to Nikki’s whole interview on Life After W-2, You can find it in all of these places (and more):

From Corporate Designer to Creative Founder: How Nikki Holbrook Built Flower Buds Creative to Empower Women-Owned Businesses