Planning for Joy: Inside the Mind of Studio Tigress Founder Sara Fritsch

Some people have a way of making you think differently about the everyday things you might usually rush past—like time, routines, and the small rituals that shape our days. Sara Fritsch is one of those people.

As the founder of Studio Tigress, Sara creates always-beautiful, never-boring calendars and creative tools that turn planning into something meaningful (and genuinely enjoyable). She’s also a seasoned advisor to creative businesses, known for pairing big-picture thinking with operational rigor—someone who thinks just as deeply about business models and efficiency as she does about design, pattern, and joy.

In this interview, Sara shares how a homemade, one-page calendar sparked what would become Studio Tigress, why Portland continues to shape her work and values, what it was like to land on Oprah’s Favorite Things (!!!), and the advice she returns to again and again when helping creative businesses grow.

Can you share the story of how Studio Tigress first came to life? What inspired you to launch this creative business?

Oh hi. Thanks for asking. Studio Tigress is a creative venture committed to offering always-beautiful, never-boring products (calendars and more) and services that enrich our connections to one another and to time.

Over 15 years ago, my husband and I had a realization that we spent far more time making strategic annual plans at work than we did at home. That felt backwards. So we decided to apply some of our professional planning skills to our real (non-work) life—and we’ve never looked back.

A very obvious theme of our annual planning sessions became time and our relationship with it: how finite it is, how fast it passes, how fondly we look back on it, and how it keeps moving whether we’re ready or not. A homemade calendar featuring a full year on one page became central to that process. That early prototype eventually became the foundation for the calendars I now create at Studio Tigress.

Beyond products, Studio Tigress also offers advisory services for creative businesses and people across industries. My work is customized for each client and built on decades of experience in business, product, manufacturing, and leadership. I’m a mechanical engineer, an artist, and a good listener. I love being a thought partner to ambitious, visionary people—and I firmly believe there should be a business model in every business model.

Are you a coffee person? What does your morning ritual look like?

I am coffee adjacent. I drink tea (sorry!). I love a warm cup in my hands. I love slowing down and sipping—by myself or with people I love.

I also love having a beautiful Ratio Eight coffee maker on my counter so that all of the coffee people in my life feel seen, loved, and taken care of.

Studio Tigress calendars have become a beloved annual favorite. What themes or inspirations do you always return to?

I believe deeply in visual management, and I think hanging a calendar makes a statement about our awareness of—and gratitude for—the time we have.

I’m not a designer myself, so the calendars are also an excuse to collaborate with some of my favorite Portland-based graphic designers. Every Studio Tigress calendar includes a full year on one page. Every calendar is art and function.

This year, I introduced a Lunar Phases Calendar into the assortment, and it’s already a bestseller. In a world full of chaos and uncertainty, isn’t it lovely to know we can count on the moon to do what she says she’ll do?

Portland plays a big role in your story. What is it about the city that continues to shape your work?

Portland symbolizes love at my house in a way we didn’t fully grasp when we moved here 20 years ago.

My husband deeply loves action sports—skiing, surfing, wing foiling—and truly needs the mountains, ocean, rivers, and wind. I love cities: culture, art, architecture, coffee shops, great restaurants, urban biking. In our mid-20s, we made a very deliberate decision to move to Portland. It was also a compromise for both of us.

Portland isn’t  the best place for skiing or surfing, and it isn’t the biggest, busiest city—but it turned out to be the perfect blend of access to everything we needed to become our best selves. Over time, we’ve learned that love is compromise.

Portland has changed. So have we. Despite its challenges, we’ve consistently believed in this city. When you live somewhere that enables you to be your best self, you’re well positioned to do your best work. Our gratitude for this imperfect place motivates us to give back as much as we can.

2025 was a huge year for Studio Tigress, including a collaboration landing on Oprah’s Favorite Things. What did that moment feel like?

The Oprah effect is real, and I still can’t believe it happened.

I’ve given myself permission to ride the Oprah high for as long as I want—it simply cannot be contained to a calendar year. For a teeny tiny business, making Oprah’s list may be the pinnacle, and I’m very okay with that. 

Can I top Oprah in 2026? I mean… it’s OPRAH. Probably not. But I can find other meaningful, distinct ways to make 2026 a memorable and successful year.

You’ve known Ratio founder Mark Hellweg for years. What advice have you shared with him about building and scaling a brand like Ratio?

It’s a joy and an honor to have a seat on Mark’s Ratio board.

I often remind him that building a company feels hard because it is hard. We do a good job reminding each other to have fun, to laugh, and to keep work in perspective alongside family, health, and life.

We talk about quality, customer obsession, manufacturing, supply chain, colors, marketing, leadership, trends, and strategy. We’ve opened our networks to one another in ways that have been mutually beneficial, because we both believe relationships and people are what business—and life—are really about.

From your perspective, what should creative businesses focus on more—and what do they often overlook?

In my experience, businesses need to do four things to be successful:

1. Have a clear mission and rally around it

2. Be nice and listen to people

3. Plan: make a plan, work the plan, communicate the plan, adjust the plan

4. Make more money than you spend

I hope people still hire me now that I’ve revealed how easy it is.

Color, pattern, and playfulness are central to your work. Why do they matter so much?

Our work and products are evidence of our values. Life is so short and so fun. Color, pattern, and general unseriousness help remind me of that.

Finally, what are your predictions for 2026?

Oh fun—okay, five things:

1. Nobody will read this deep into the interview.
   
   
2. Ratio will listen, be kind, have a plan, and make more money than they spend.
   
   
3. Teenagers will be our best teachers—tune into them.
   
   
4. Boring will be boring. Avoid it at all costs.
   
   
5. Joy will be our best form of resistance. Lean in and laugh your way through 2026.

Visit Studio Tigress 

Instagram: @studiotigress