The Shutter Haus Journey: How I Opened A Creative Studio

Business Tips

You know that saying “What if it turns out better than you ever imagined”? Well, that’s pretty much exactly how I ended up opening Shutter Haus – a luxury creative studio in Hawai’i, that I co-founded in June 2023. When I started dabbling in photography in 2021 I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to make a living on photography; I definitely didn’t think a creative studio was in my future!

In honor of almost a full year in business and the new Shutter Haus podcast which launched this month, I’m sharing the story of how a friend’s idea turned into a flourishing business and what’s coming next!

The Key Players – Meeting Mai & Kris

In January of 2022, I attended a Lei Po’o (the art of making lei crowns) event at Aloha Paradise Studios. The owner of the studio, Mai, had opened the workshop up to creatives so they could practice shooting. There were a few other photographers there and one videographer, Kris. I remember thinking Kris was very energetic, a major hype person. Being an introvert at the time, I thought this person is a lot for me and we probably won’t see each other again. Not too long after, Mai invited Kris and I to do a photoshoot for Princess Mae’s Fenty collaboration. The shoot went great and we found we were actually a dynamic-duo. The rest is history! We started doing more and more shoots together and eventually started co-hosting workshops, called Creative Academy. Now, Kris is not only my business partner but a great friend to me and my family!

How Shutter Haus Came To Be – An Idea From A Friend 

Flash forward to May of 2023, Kris and I hosted our very first Creative Academy workshop. We had a small thank you dinner for some of our vendor friends involved in the workshop, including Aloha Paradise Studio owner’s, Mama Mai and Chuckie. At the dinner, Mai and Chuckie leaned over to us and mentioned that the building their loft studio was in had a new space available. Kris and I said something like “Oh that’s cool…?”. They responded, “We think you guys should look into it”!

Opening a studio hadn’t been in our minds at all, so we shook it off. But, they insisted on showing us a video they’d already taken of the space. Even though we’d literally never thought of having a studio, seeing the space did get us excited. We left the dinner thinking, maybe we could use it as a shared office. We did a walk through, fell in love with the space, and decided to submit an application because why not. There was a lot of competition for the unit and we weren’t even sure how we’d use the space, so, our expectations of getting it were pretty low.

On May 31st we found out we got the place and picked up the keys the next day. At that point we were still thinking of it as an office and started working on some basic changes – painting the walls, getting new floors, etc. The more we cleaned up the space, the more we realized we did want to open a creative studio.

Next Steps: From Idea To Execution (Are We Really Doing This?)/The Road To Grand Opening

How Should It Feel

As we decided to actually open a studio, our first thought was how can we create something distinct from Aloha Paradise Studio since we were not only friends with them but in the same building as them. They’d already cemented themselves as an incredible studio for a Boho, feminine, feel. Luckily, being authentic to Kris and I’s tastes differentiated us off the bat. We’re not naturally very boho-leaning. As we talked more our vision took shape. The vibe would be luxury, moody, deep greens, black, and gold. Outside of aesthetics, we knew we wanted to be a one-stop shop, offer equipment rentals, and exceptional service.

What Should We Call It

With the branding coming together, Kris and I met at Dior Cafe (I know, bougie) and started talking through name options. I liked the idea of including “haus” in the name. It’s the German word for home and I wanted our studio to feel like a second home to the creatives that used it. We went through different combination options – Creative Haus, Media Haus, etc. Kris really liked the idea of using “shutter” like the shutter of a camera since the studio would be geared toward photographers and videographers.

I was very opposed to Shutter Haus at first. I thought it sounded like a horror film or haunted house. But Kris was very gung-ho about it. So, we polled our friends on their favorite options. They all liked Shutter Haus, so I said finneee and we went with it. It was the right decision! The name has really grown on me and people get it. So far no one has confused it for a haunted house lol. 

When Should We Open

Once we decided we’d be opening a creative studio, we knew we wanted to host a Grand Opening and preferred it to be on a weekend. So, we started comparing calendars and found our next mutually free weekend was July 22nd – giving us a month and a half to remodel and market a grand opening. Was that smart? I don’t know but we made it work and got the whole thing built in time with help from my husband Devon, my 13 year old son, my dad, uncle, aunties, cousins, and friends. We’ve had so many people help us and we are so grateful to them!

But First, Some Roadblocks

If this story is sounding too smooth and too good to be true, believe me there were plenty of challenges and fears to face along the way.

Fears

There were the obvious fears over finances and imposter syndrome. Can we actually run a studio? Are we sure we can pull this off in time for a grand opening? Will anyone come? If no one comes, can we afford it/is it worth it? We went full steam ahead, despite the doubts, and the grand opening was more packed than I could’ve ever imagined and we’ve stayed booked and busy since!

Challenges

Our biggest challenge was finding the right help. Since Kris and I both have businesses outside of Shutter Haus, we needed a Studio Manager that would treat the space and our clients with as much respect as we would. Originally we offered the position to our friend Devon – a photographer/videographer himself – who lived close to the studio and would come help a lot during the remodel. He turned us down though so we began interviewing other candidates. Eventually, we asked Devon one more time and after some consideration he finally said yes! We couldn’t imagine the studio without him. I also think he couldn’t imagine life without us but you’ll have to ask him 😉 

There was also blood, sweat, and tears…literally blood, sweat, and tears! In order to turn the empty space into Hawai’i’s #1 Luxury Studio, we took on some big projects and some even bigger furniture pieces. For example, we fell in love with a beautiful custom reception desk – a dark green that matched our branding and had gold plating, *chef’s kiss*! It was made out of state so shipping was an ordeal. When it finally got here, it was so heavy it broke Kris’ truck. Then as we were unloading it, Devon cut his hand open on it. So, yeah, we’ve all sweat, several of us have cried, and Devon has bled! Thank god we can laugh about it now because we definitely were not laughing at the moment.

Growing The Shutter Haus Team

In a little less than a year of Shutter Haus being in business, we have grown an incredible team of six people.

The Team

We are so grateful to have a team that is full of creative people with different styles, different experiences, and from different walks of life. It adds so much to our Shutter Haus Ohana!

The Future of Shutter Haus: Where It’s Going 

From an unexpected idea from friends to nearly a year of being in business, Shutter Haus has been a wild and incredible ride! If you asked me a few months ago where I saw Shutter Haus heading I would’ve said moving to a bigger space, offering more backdrop set-ups, and maybe one day growing into a full on venue for weddings or bigger events. 

All of that is still in the cards but in true Shutter Haus fashion, a new and once again unexpected opportunity has fallen into our laps. We officially opened a second Shutter Haus location…Aloha Paradise Studio by Shutter Haus. Stay tuned for more on how that came together and all the exciting things we’re bringing to life at this new location.

Listen to Episode 1 of the Shutter Haus Hawai’i Podcast here