By Lindsey Murray | ISU Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship
CYstarters Spotlight: A 14-part series highlighting student entrepreneurs pursuing their business ventures as part of the CYstarters 2024 summer cohort. Through this program, students have the unique opportunity to prioritize the development of their own startup or business idea. Each individual receives $6,500 and access to resources such as mentorship, networking opportunities, and educational sessions on entrepreneurship and business startup.
Spenser Leise: Songbird Music Decor
Spenser sat in his dorm room last fall dreaming about what he would hang on his walls to make the space feel more like home. As someone with a rather obscure taste in music, Spenser was failing to find music posters online that fit his aesthetic. Most were cookie-cutter designs, and occasionally, the artists he liked didn’t have any merchandise at all. So, he took to his computer to design a few music posters that he loved, and Songbird Music Décor was born.
Initially set on attending CU Boulder, Spenser Leise had a change of tune after a visit to the Iowa State University campus, encouraged by his grandfather, an ISU alumnus. “I really liked all the faculty and the facilities at ISU. I understood pretty quickly that if I went to CU Boulder, I would just be another number. But at ISU I felt like they cared about what I wanted to do, which was really cool,” Spenser recalls. This visit sealed his decision, leading him to pursue a major in advertising with minors in digital media and data science as an Iowa State Cyclone.
Spenser’s affinity for graphic design, paired with his passion for photography—particularly film photography—proved early on that he had a gift for creativity. But entrepreneurship wasn’t a planned part of his path. “I always thought maybe I could start a business but definitely didn’t think it would happen while I was still in college,” he admits.
The creation of Songbird Music Décor was almost accidental. When Spenser began designing custom posters that resonated with his aesthetic, showcasing his favorite music artists and albums, it was only a personal project. But friends and family saw his creations and loved them, prompting requests for custom designs for their own spaces.
Encouraged and surprised by this unexpected demand, Spenser decided to turn Songbird Music Decor into a business. He entered a pitch competition with the Iowa State University Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship, which landed him a second-place finish in the preliminary round at the College-by-College Pitch Off. Spenser secured $250 in funding, allowing him to launch his Shopify storefront.
Spenser hopes to transform cherished musical moments into personalized visual art for his customers. “Think of a song you have a connection to. Whether it’s a song that you play every summer or a song with lyrics that are really meaningful to you and remind you of a specific point in time, there are very few options on the market for putting that song or those lyrics into poster form,” Spenser explains. His posters feature waveforms (graphical representations of a sound wave) of songs, creating a visual representation of the song. One recent project was a poster of “Sweet Caroline,” the song synonymous with Iowa State sports victories, adorned with a map of the ISU campus in cardinal and gold.
Songbird Music Décor addresses a niche in home decoration, providing aesthetic, personalized music prints with a range of customizations. Spenser envisions expanding beyond posters to encompass a broader spectrum of music-themed decor.
Despite the excitement, Spenser acknowledges the challenges that come with running a solo venture. Procrastination and the difficulty of maintaining motivation while in school are constant battles. “When you’re the only one in the business, nothing happens unless you’re working on it which is kind of hard,” he admits. However, the structured environment of the CYstarters program, with its weekly accountability sessions, has been incredibly valuable and he is already seeing growth in his business.
Spenser set several goals during CYstarters that he hopes to achieve by the end of the summer. He aims to have 50 posters ready for sale, launch his website, and establish a baseline of sales through focused marketing efforts. Personally, he hopes to strengthen his time-management and project-management skills, learning better ways to hold himself accountable once he exits CYstarters.
For those wanting to support Spenser and Songbird Music Décor, posters and custom designs are available at songbirdmd.com. Follow along on Instagram (@songbird_md) for the latest products that Spenser is creating!
Join the Iowa State and Ames community for CYstarters Demo Day to support and celebrate the progress and achievements of all the members of cohort 9! Demo Day is on Tuesday, July 30 from 3:00 PM – 6:30 PM. The event is free and open to the public and you can register to attend at www.isupjcenter.org/event/2024-cystarters-demo-day/. We hope to see you there!
