In 2020, Janet Peters was furloughed from her corporate job when she decided to learn a new creative skill. Navigating through YouTube, she taught herself how to pour epoxy resin on furniture.
Impressed by the quality of her work, she began selling her pieces, and very quickly her home outgrew the demand for her products. Seeing his mothers success, Janet’s son Dan proposed that the two of them leave behind their 9 to 5 jobs and embark on a business endeavor together.
“At the time, I was miserable at my job. We were understaffed and there was an intense pressure to perform at a high level all of the time,” he said. “I actually called my mom after a bad day at work, and asked her point blank about starting a business. It was a leap of faith, but two years later we’re still going strong.”
They called the business Epoxy ME, and eventually found a place for rent in Old Orchard Beach to accommodate their growing business needs. They specialize in epoxy resin pours on furniture and tables, offer commissioned pieces, and create souvenirs and other artwork.
Recently, they have expanded their services to kitchen and bathroom countertops, and host weekly classes for those interested in learning the art of epoxy resin.
THE IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY
For Janet, being self-employed means waking up each morning with a sense of purpose and fulfillment that keeps her motivated all day long. Not only is she grateful for the opportunity to be creative for a living, but she feels especially thankful for the opportunity to work closely with her family.
“The fact that I get to work with my son building core memories is incredible,” she said. “Whether we’re bickering or laughing, arguing over whose work is better or working together in harmony, just being in each other's presence means we have it good.”
Five years ago, Janet lost her mother. Three years ago, her niece Stephanie — who was like a daughter to her — also passed away. She said that navigating through grief put so many things about her life into perspective. She believes it was the experience of loss that acted as the catalyst of change, and led her to take that faithful leap into business ownership.
“To lose two of the most important people in my life, whom I loved unconditionally, has brought me great perspective. Unless you’ve seen the dark side, you don’t really know how good you have it,” she said. “I’m at a stage in my life where I now realize that tomorrow isn’t promised, and that realization drives my decision-making every single day.”
Dan echoed his mother’s sentiments, saying that four or five years ago it felt like his world had turned upside down. There have certainly been hard times, he explained, but they’ve always shaped him to be a better person in the end.
A REWARDING CAREER HELPING OTHERS
For Janet, the most rewarding part of her job is making people smile. At her prior job, she managed 125 people and spent most work days being bombarded by negativity and stressed out co-workers and clients. Since starting Epoxy ME, she feels a huge sense of accomplishment knowing she has made her life better, and works to better the lives of others.
“We’ve had people come in asking for a memorial piece, and we’ll take ashes and mix it into the epoxy we pour onto the product,” she said. “They’ll come to pick it up, and start crying because they love it so much. In this job I give people peace, and that brings me peace as well.”
In the end, Janet said none of this would be worth her time if it didn’t have a meaningful impact on others. You can have all the knowledge in the world, she explained, but people won’t care about how much you know, until they know how much you care.
“What my clients truly care about is the piece I’m making for them, and I put all of my heart and soul into making their dreams a reality,” she said. “To paraphrase a quote by Maya Angelou; People will forget what you said and what you did, but never forget how you made them feel.”
