In our latest installment of Military Spouse Small Business, meet Jessica Benard, owner of J2M2 Designs. What started off as a pandemic hobby for her and her husband, their business flourished into rings, laser-engraved military pens, and various 3D printed items. Read on to learn more!
Name: Jessica Benard
Hometown: Wheatland, Wyoming
Branch of Military: Navy
Current Duty Station: Bangor, WA
Q: Tell us about your business.
We created J2M2 Designs during COVID. My husband needed a hobby and after two months of convincing him to buying a ring-making kit, he agreed. He made all 6 rings in two days. We primarily focused on rings for the first six months, then he asked what I thought about pens. I said let’s do it! Turns out he enjoyed making the pens and I loved making the rings.
We are a team with this business, and I couldn’t be more excited to share about it. J2M2 will always hold a special place in my heart and since our kids love helping us, we wanted a name that stood out and really showcased us as a whole team and family. J2 stands for Jessica and Joshua, and M2 stands for our children whose names both start with M.
We have been in business for three years now. We have made a name in the local community and always enjoy seeing our customers happy. Josh is behind the scenes and still is the main pen maker when he is home. He is amazing at prepping our military pens for me before he leaves so all I have to do is finish them. I focus on all the business aspects and pretty much everything else besides the pens.
We sell rings, ink pens, and 3D printed items. We are looking to expand even more and start laser engraving the military pens we do and even bring in more projects.
Q: What made you choose this type of business?
It all started with a ring-making kit off Amazon, including six different types of wood and tools to make the rings. We started doing a lot of research and asked our friends and families what they thought and if they would buy handcrafted items. We both fell in love with wood turning so we just started looking for other items we could bring into the business and that is how we got into pens.
After months of searching and a full year in the business I was able to finally find a supplier that had military-affiliated pens. We make Navy pens both for Surface and Submarines. We can do some ranks but not all. All of our military pens are made with wood and finished with a polish to get that authentic wood feel.
Q: What motivated you to start your business?
My sailor and I do not do bored well together, and when COVID hit the lockdowns were driving us crazy. We wanted a hobby and something that would be different and something we can both do together.
Q: How do you manage the work/life balance as a military spouse?
With our business I do a lot of vendor events during the summer so I have to rely on my circle to help with my kids. I use deployments/patrols to spend time with our kids and think of new things we can do for the business. When he gets home he normally expects a lot of things to do.
Q: Any advice for fellow milspouses who want to start their own business?
Chase your goals. You never know what will happen if you do not try. Choose something that brings you joy and that you can travel with from duty station to duty station.
Q: Favorite thing(s) to do in your current duty station?
We have so many fun things we like to do. We love going to escape rooms, kayaking, and exploring the area.Kid wise we love Ahoy Kitsap Playland, Defy and the Children’s Museum in Tacoma.
Q: Where can we support and learn more about your business?
Facebook: J2M2 Designs
Etsy: J2M2Designs