Name:
Jane Harbison
📍Brisbane, Australia
I help people sew thoughtful gifts for men. I create sewing patterns for boys and men, and I am also a surface pattern designer, creating fabrics to go with these sewing patterns. When I am not designing, I like hanging out with my two favorite men, my husband and my son.
What moment or experience inspired you to start your business? What was your vision at the beginning?
At 40, I changed my career from accountant to creative. For eight years, I taught tween girls how to harness their creativity, teaching them a creative process they could apply at any stage of their lives to seize opportunities. I closed that chapter when I decided it was time for me to harness my own creativity by doing something that brought me joy. In September 2022, I started what is now Jane Harbison Design, selling my first men's pattern—still my highest-selling pattern to date.
What does a typical day for you look like?
My day starts with getting breakfast ready for Harry and getting him off to school—homework done, lunch packed, water bottle full, teeth cleaned, and dressed. I haven't quite mastered the art of getting him to brush his hair, though. We often get dropped off at the corner by my husband, and we walk down to school. After that, I'll grab a coffee and walk home, which takes about 25 minutes. After a shower, I’m usually at my desk around 9:30 AM. Since I’m the sole person in my business, I refer to my weekly planner, which has one or two key tasks I must complete for the day. Each of these tasks is linked to one of my goals: traffic, conversion rate, AOV, or subscribers.
What unique routines or habits do you believe contribute to your success?
Drinking water is key for me. I even have reminders pop up on my phone at 6 AM, 9 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM, and 6 PM to keep me on track.
What's your workstation setup?
My workstation is a big, long desk of white laminate and wood. I can look out at my garden from three sides, so there’s lots of natural light. Along one wall, I have a light grey fabric pinboard where I keep key references like my brand hex codes, fabric formula color types, fonts, weekly planner, strengths assessment results, pattern schedule for the year, and my 6-minute speech that I often draw from. I try to keep my space clean, but that doesn’t always happen. One end of the desk is dedicated to sewing and hand-drawing my fabric designs, so there's always some fabric or art materials lying around.
Where do you go to look for inspiration?
Inspiration is everywhere. It can come from conversations, walks, podcasts, magazines, people I follow on Instagram, my son playing Minecraft, or even from a little app my niece introduced me to called Animal Restaurant. The gamification in it is so amazing that I’m currently thinking about how I can incorporate even a fraction of that into my sewing hub.
What core values drive your business, and how have they shaped your path?
I love what I do, but the moment something feels heavy, I stop and ask myself how I can keep it simple and within budget. There is no business if you’re broke.
What part of your business are you most proud of?
I regularly share wins with my husband and son, even as simple as the little Shopify cha-ching sound. One quality I bring to my business is forgiveness. You never know what has gone on in someone's life or day, so I try never to say, "I mentioned that earlier" or "I've already said that here." I give people what they need right there and then, with the solution they’re looking for, so they don’t need to go searching for it. Take care, and now go create your love story.
What’s a challenge you’re currently working on in your business?
I’m working on consistently hitting one sale a day for my low-ticket items—my sewing patterns. I've been close, but I’m still working on it.
What music do you listen to while working?
I don’t listen to music while working; I can't concentrate with it in the background. But I love listening to it in the car or at night when dancing in our lounge room—Hazza loves a dance-off.
What’s one piece of advice someone gave you that you’ll never forget?
Confidence is when you're in a room, and the air is thick because the topic is tough, and everyone breaks it with awkward laughter—but you don't.
Any advice for ambitious professionals in your field?
Focus on what truly resonates with you and your experiences. Authenticity is key.
