Erin Fitzsimmons
Q What do you do?
“I offer Web Design for Brands and Web Development for Designers with my zone of genius being in Web Development for Squarespace websites.”
Q What steps did you take to get to where you are now?
I started working for myself as a Professional Organizer in late 2019, but then the pandemic hit and I couldn’t work. I also wasn’t loving it and the best part was making my Squarespace website. A friend suggested that I become a Squarespace designer and I was like “that’s a thing??” To me it was obvious that you would create your own website and never thought there would be people who didn’t want to dabble in that area. So I started researching and landed on ilovecreatives Squarespace Design Course and signed up in March 2020.
I had no idea then but signing up for that course was life-changing for me, I was introduced to the whole world of web design. I was always a bit creative and loved fashion, Vogue was my bible growing up I read it religiously every month. I tried out the fashion, entertainment, and film industries but nothing fit until I started doing web design… and then I discovered code. Much to my surprise I’ve fallen in love with code and learned it can be such a creative outlet.
After finishing the ilovecreatives course I went on to TA for the course, I enrolled in multiple courses expanding my knowledge on code, Squarespace, and Shopify and started gaining clients. I’ve had a thirst to learn, meet new designers and be a part of communities that inspire me, and have said “yes” to just about anything that has come my way to explore what I want to do and work on. The past 2 years have been such a fun trip and I am so glad I took a chance and decided to end my short career as a Professional Organizer to go full-on into Design and Development because it feels like this is where I’m meant to be right now. I feel so excited for the future and that there are so many possibilities out there to evolve and learn more.
Q How do you stand out in your field?
A lot of what I do is work with other designers and I’m all about partnership, transparency, and support. Since I’m a front-end developer who loves design I have the skills and expertise to help designers troubleshoot code, bring their designs to life, and give training and support to designers where I can. I want code to be less scary and overwhelming and I’m here to help.
Q What are you working on right now?
I have two Squarespace development projects going on right now, but I’m also taking some time to focus on my business and figure out what I want to do and say as a web designer and developer. I want to lean more into helping other designers with their code problems and let them know they can come to me for help.
Q What’s your style?
I love bold websites with fun animations that are easy-to-navigate.
A few of my most recent examples:
Rosie Li
Champagne Sundays
South Bay Social District
Q Out of all your slashies, which one do you wish you could do more often?
I’m starting to specialize and focus on Squarespace development.
Q What is frustrating you right now?
Clients and designers not sticking to timelines and letting projects drag. I love being the developer on projects but sometimes that means I don’t have a lot of control which I don’t love.
Q If you could hire someone for $20/hour, what would you have them do to make your day easier?
I’d love someone to do my least favourite thing, setting up contracts and invoices.
Q What do you wish you could have told yourself, when, and why?
I don’t have any regrets career-wise. While it took me until my 30s to find something I love doing, it was the path of my teens and 20s that got me here. I’ve done so many jobs in so many industries and I finally figured out the answer was working for myself.
I gained so many experiences and worked with so many people that when I started working for myself I was confident I could make it on my own because I had found out so many people were doing jobs that they had no idea what they were doing and they were considered successful! I think that’s been part of my success is that I’ve brought all my past experiences with me and I’m not afraid to make mistakes, that’s how you grow.
Q If you could talk to an expert to gain more insight on something, what would it be about?
A Canadian bookkeeper to understand more about finances and taxes for sure!
Q What kind of opportunities/projects are you looking for?
I’m always open to custom Squarespace and Shopify builds and I recently launched a full or half day rate which is basically a one-on-one day devoted to your design or development to-do list. I find a lot of clients need help with code or tech items and I can help them get that handled in a day so they can get moving on their sites or we can customize my Celine template to get you a site up and running in one day.
I’m also available to help with small code projects for Squarespace for when you just want to add in a mega menu or some cool animations for example and you don’t have the code skills or time to figure it out.
Q Describe your ideal job/client/collaboration.
Anyone who has seen my past work and vibes with my style, wants to collab and make something fun.
Q What is your rate?
Full day rate is $2,000 USD and half day rate is $1,000 USD you can learn more about what we can get done in a full or half day on my services page www.erinfitzsimmons.ca/services
Custom Squarespace and Shopify builds and small code projects are priced per project depending on the scope.
Q How should someone approach you about working together?
Email: hello@erinfitzsimmons.ca or fill out my form on my site www.erinfitzsimmons.ca/contact
Q Who is a creative you admire?
My designer friends keep me accountable and inspire me with what they create.
Joy Yiu
Avni from Chia Studios
Chynna from Monforte Studios
Q Oh! and… how do you stay creative?
I go by what Don told Peggy (Mad Men anyone? 👀), “Think About It Deeply, Then Forget It, and an Idea Will Jump Up in Your Face.”
This member profile was originally published in August 2022.