Q and A with Green Bucket Press, an imprint of Markham Bailey LLC
Q: What made you choose this business?
A: I love printing and books, and I am a poet and writer, so being in the printing business is a natural fit. My father started an offset printing company in the basement when I was a young girl, and my mother was the librarian at The Altamont School for over 2 decades. I have an MFA in Book Arts and an MA in Creative Writing so founding Markham Bailey, a commercial print company and then adding Green Bucket Press, a creative products imprint specializing in journals and stationery products, was a natural progression of my life.
Q: What motivates you to work so hard?
A: For me, all of my endeavors rise out of a passion for living that connects me to many different interests, including my printing businesses. I am a mediator and yoga practitioner and I gain enormous energy from my spiritual life and practice. I see life as a circular creative process, from which the business rises, my work as a writer rises, connection with the community, my love of cooking, being a parent and a daughter. And the more I give in an authentic way, the more is offered back to me in terms of core fulfillment.
Q: What do you do outside of the business?
A: Outside of the business, I am a mindfulness meditation teacher, a yoga practitioner and teacher, a visual artist, a published poet and writer and a strong supporter of environmental activism and social justice. I love to cook and to swim. I like going on silent retreats where I can write and be outside in nature.
Q: What is your target client?
A:My target customer is the client that needs custom print and wants high-quality and personal service.
Q: What Brought you to Birmingham?
A: I was born in Birmingham because my parents moved here from Michigan and New York before I was born.
Q: Tell us a bit about your family.
A: My mother was an amazing librarian and journalism teacher at The Altamont School. She gave me a love of art and literature and taught me to write and to read. My father is a businessman who founded a local label company, Southern Label Company. I have 5 amazing children who are moving ahead in their careers. I gain tremendous inspiration from their intelligence, energy and heart.
Q: Can you give us a few business tips?
A: One of my basic tips is to remember the foundational truth of your life, and if you are not sure about it, explore that. Business can be difficult, rough and tumble, and can encourage a competitiveness that can be destructive to the soul. So understanding ones personal touchstone in life is of great importance in terms of navigating ones true course rather than being steered in another direction.