Who's That Gal: Elise Benétreau-Bernard, Founder of The Comptoir
Name: Elise Benétreau-Bernard
Age: 30
Occupation: Badass small business owner
Hometown: Bourges in France
Currently reading: Picture books (with my kids!)
Favorite workout: yogalates
Favorite meal: avocado toast
Favorite quarantine activity: embroidery, always more embroidery!
Dream vacation: many places but right now and after almost 2 and half years, I just want to spend some time in France with my family and friends, introduce them to my daughter and meet all their babies and celebrate weddings. Not really fancy, but it’s what I need right now.
I never leave home without____: my phone
You moved to the US from France. What led you to the Boston area?
First, I moved to this country because my husband found a postdoc position at UMD and after 3 years in DC, we had 2 options: Paris or Boston. I spent a year in Paris and it was awful, and we had a visa for 5 years, so we decided to move to Boston because he found another postdoc at Tufts. And it’s the easiest way for me to continue my business.
Tell us a little bit about your career. How’d you get interested in embroidery?
I spent 8 years in art schools, so I’ve been creating art for… I don’t know how many years, let’s say forever! When we moved to this country, I didn’t want to continue in what I studied, set design, so I spent my days trying different crafts. I began sewing a lot, but at the end of my first pregnancy, I was looking for something easier to do with my big baby bump. And then I tried embroidery, and I was just hooked!
Tell us a little bit about starting your own company. What made you want to found The Comptoir?
Having my own business was a crazy and impossible dream for me for a long time. I never thought it was possible for me to do it. And then I met the right person at the right moment, and I believed in myself. I started this business because my English was terrible, and I wanted a job from home to take care of my son. First I sold stuff I sewed. And then, embroidery took more space, and today, it’s pretty much just about embroidery. I wanted to have my own business to be free to do what I want and to be able to talk about what is important for me : women’s rights, freedom of speech, supporting black people, supporting LGBTQ+ people. And now it’s what I am doing everyday.
How did you decide on the name, The Comptoir?
Just before leaving France, one of my oldest friends, Marie, and I decided to create a blog together to talk about everything we love: travels, sewing, cooking, etc. We found this name, The Comptoir, together. After 5 years using the name, I put a real meaning into it. It’s both English and French. Comptoir means countertop and I see it as a place to meet and discuss with strangers to learn from each other. That is exactly what my embroidery work and my moving to the USA bring in my life, so this name is just perfect.
You also teach classes. How do you like teaching?
I don’t like teaching, I love it! It’s an amazing feeling to share something that you love with others. And beginners have a fresh eye, fresh ideas and they give me so much inspiration and push me to always explain better, share more, and consider new ways of doing something. I create classes that are fun and interesting for my students, but honestly they give me way more in return.
Any tips for folks who want to try embroidery or punch needle?
Just do it! You don’t need to buy anything crazy to try it. Of course starting with a class or a kit can help, but if you can’t that’s okay too. Youtube is made for beginners! It’s okay if what you make is not good at the beginning, embroidery can be hard and it takes time and practice to improve. Never worry about making something perfect, you are not a machine! What you make should look handmade, because it is, and that is what makes it beautiful.
How has COVID-19 impacted you personally and professionally?
Personally it’s hard, as all parents of toddlers and babies will understand. It’s hard to keep super energetic kids stuck inside with all the stress. Never being alone to work is hard. I am okay working from home, because it’s where I always work, but usually there’s way less agitation and noise!
Professionally it’s hard and amazing. The day the shelter order started, people were looking for fun to keep their hands busy, so I sold a lot of my embroidery and punch needle kits! It is unbelievable to see that happen, but at the same time it is stressful to order enough supplies (and to pay for them even if you never know if you are going to sell everything), to make my kits and all my providers were overwhelmed so it took forever to receive everything. But I learned more in the past 6 months than in 3 years before that!
It gave me energy to create new embroideries about everything that happened in this country in 2020 and to create new kits to continue share my passion for this needle art. Being able to support small businesses is an amazing feeling too, and now thanks to all my customers I can do it too.
How do you get the inspiration for your work?
My daily life, my kids, the news, discussion I have with my friends or my husband. Inspiration can be everywhere if we take the time to see it. I am also spending a lot of time on Instagram looking at all the amazing art, especially needle work.
We noticed a lot of your work focuses on women and women’s rights. Why is incorporating that into your work important to you?
Many things are important to me: women’s rights, motherhood, ecology, love, respect, justice, art, culture, politics, immigration, etc. But it’s hard to talk about everything and it’s not always easy to feel legitimate. As a daughter, a wife, a mom, a sister, I find it’s easier for me to talk about women’s rights, stories and dreams, which is why they’re so central to much of my art.
Do you have a favorite piece you’ve made? Tell us a little about it.
Picking a favorite is hard. But some of them were longer to make and I am really proud of them. Two come to mind. My first master piece I made early 2019. It’s the most ambitious piece I made. I spent 6 weeks working on it. I mixed beads, embroidering and punch needling and on the middle of it there is a picture of “le violon d’Ingres” from Man Ray. I made this one just to be pretty and I see a lot of different things in it.
The second embroidery is Breonna Taylor’s portrait which I made in June 2020. I spent hours on this piece, looking at this beautiful woman, listening to podcasts, learning about who she was, learning more about my privilege and what I can do to be more supportive. It was very intense for me to make this piece.
What’s the best thing about starting your own business?
I am so grateful for all the people who support my art and believe in me enough to give me their business. Freedom of speech with my needles and doing what I love to do for a living -- that’s the best feeling ever.
What’s the hardest?
Being a full time mom while working full time is really challenging. Taking only 10 days for maternity leave was really hard. The stress of if I am not working, I am not making money while we still need to pay our bills and food and everything it’s really hard. Finding a balance between family and working time is really hard. But even then, I love it and I am feel so lucky.
What skill is most important for you to be successful? Why?
Being authentic is really important. Never fake anything. People see when you’re not honest and that’s the best way to ruin what you’ve built. People who are supporting small businesses want to know who is behind the brand, so show who you are, your process, and how you make whatever you’re making.
Any advice for other professional ladies?
Believe in yourself, no one is going to believe in you if you don’t. And never wait for recognition. When something great happens to you, take it for what it is, be grateful and repeat! And when something hard happens, take time to deal with it and then use it to make your business better. Failing is hard but it's the best way to improve.
How can JUGs readers support you and learn more about your work?
Follow me on Instagram @thecomptoir to check out my work. Talking about my work to people you know can help a lot as well. And of course, if you can and if you want to learn this amazing craft, you can check out my kits and workshops on my website https://thecomptoir.com/.
Love reading about inspiring women?
Lindsay Gardner is an Instructional Designer living and working in Boston. You can follow her on Instagram @lindsaygardner09.
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