Behind Driftwood's Custom Designs: A conversation with Daniel "Driftwood " Goss

In 2002, South Haven Native Daniel “Driftwood” Goss, took a road trip to Springfield, Oregon, and came back to his hometown six years later with a new calling. Initially a landscaper and forester by trade, Driftwood took his love for the arts and nature and channeled it into building his business, Driftwood’s Custom Designs. A company that offers one-of-a-kind, custom wire-wrapped jewelry crafted from a variety of gemstones and fossils found across the country, as well as sentimental items such as ashes or family heirlooms. Driftwood’s Custom Designs also offers handmade furniture from repurposed driftwood. 

Driftwood said that he started the business as a way to take a break from his day-to-day life, and over time, it evolved into a full-fledged business.   

“I started doing art for survival, and it ended up transitioning into where I had a house there [Oregon]. In the beginning, I wanted something I could step in and out of, but through time, that energy shifted to full-time.” 

After moving back to Michigan, Driftwood returned to his roots and worked in tree removal in addition to running his jewelry and furniture-making business. However, in 2022, he left his 9-to-5 job behind because balancing two jobs and being a present dad was becoming too much to juggle.

“I couldn’t do both and have family and daily life and be fully committed. So at this point, things have changed to where I can commit and have 100 percent respons

ibility in being independently successful as an artist and still meet those goals where I have room for growth.”

He said that taking his small business on full-time allows him to take control of the jobs he accepts, while also having the ability to travel, meet people in the artistic community, and enjoy more creative freedom. 

“This pays me more internally. I could make that money, I just choose not to. I choose to do what I want to do. I can put 100 percent effort and not be time consumed somewhere else, or be obligated somewhere else by my word….I’m just in a position in life where I can make that choice and still be comfortable.” 

Currently, Driftwood’s work can be found in Dimitridon Studios Rock Shop and Bahamma Mama in South Haven, as well as on his website. However, his favorite way of selling his products is attending family-friendly music festivals and community events around the Midwest because it helps build community and connection.

 In addition to selling his art at festivals such as SugarTree, Wheatland, Gambit, and Bonnaroo, among others, he also hosts art-making workshops at these events, where people can learn basic wood burning, hand carving, and crystal wrapping techniques.

“They do art with

some glue and wire, sun catchers, things of that nature that they can do in an hour and take home and keep. It’s something that they can sit down and do with their family and participate. It’s more hands-on for them, and they kind of enjoy it because it’s outside and they don’t have to be there at a certain time. It goes on throughout the day.”

Driftwood’s son is also involved in the business. At just 13 years old, he helps his father manage his social media accounts and his website, in addition to helping keep track of inventory, assisting with building furniture, and creates artwork of his own. His son also attends events with him. 

“He’s about 70 percent involved in what I do, and he enjoys what I do because he sees what I do. He likes to see the booth, the workshops, and participate. He’s also way more familiar

with the day-to-day aspect of digital living, so I also learn from him.” 

While Driftwood is happy with his decision to move forward independently, he said one of the most significant stressors he faces with the business is maintaining the drive to move forward when he does everything himself. He didn't sugarcoat the struggles that he, and many other small business owners, particularly those who make the majority of their sales at events, face, such as mechanical breakdowns, show cancellations, or bad weather. 

“It can be depressing. Things don't always work out.  Things change on a dime. You could do your part, and last minute, something could be canceled, so it could ruin your whole month of things that were lined up because they branch from each other. And sometimes that little skip causes a major ripple in things.”

He added that what drives him is holding himself accountable for his decision to become a business owner.

“In my world, I don’t have a boss, I have me. I’m expecting me, I’m driving me because of the decision I made….I have to keep in mind that I’m the cheek that’s coming. If I don’t get out there and push and do the legwork of what I want, it’s not going to get done—that’s what pulls me from the negative part of things.” 

Dedication and desire to stay independent aside, he said that he wouldn’t rule out the possibility of financial backing if the opportunity arose, but having such would alter his ability to be creative and hinder his independence. 

“I like being able to have that direction that I choose, and I think that’s a big part of being an independent business owner— being able to have your own sway in where you want your business to go and how.”

Moving forward, Driftwood said he would like to become more involved in his local community. In the past, he has collaborated with other local artists to create artwork that was donated to fundraisers to help his friends and acquaintances. However, he would now like to contribute to addressing the city of South Haven's waterfront safety issues in any way he can. 

“We all have a right to be safe on the waterways….anything I could do as far as the lifeguard aspect, maybe donate some of my artwork to a safety entity, I would be more than happy to volunteer.”

Additionally, he said he would like to attend more events, host more workshops, continue to build and expand his horizons within the artistic community, and learn how to balance work and life stress better

Driftwood is also taking steps to bring his business into modern times. While he has always relied on in-person networking and word of mouth to market his products, he has officially introduced e-commerce on his website and has a new Driftwood Custom Designs Facebook page. Even though he would love to be back in Oregon permanently someday, he has recently purchased a 20 x 30 ft. finished workspace where he will now conduct all his glass blowing, jewelry making, and woodworking. Before establishing a dedicated workspace for himself, he had been renting spaces or working from home, which hindered his creativity. For Driftwood, having a workspace separate from the home is the key to making his business thrive.

“Every business owner needs a storefront, a workshop, or a physical workspace to be creative… being in the home is your home, but it’s not your business. Once you have a physical space to have your business, to make your decisions, it’s just a better feeling and it’s a step up from what I’ve been doing and there’s a satisfaction in knowing that it’s yours”. 

For more than two decades, Driftwood has been building his business, and in that time he has learned the joys and hardships of owning a business. He said that the advice he would give to an aspiring business owner is to follow your calling in the way it calls you and, when interacting with other small business owners, recognize them as individuals, not just their products.

“To truly support one's business is accepting them as a person, not an entity, not a storefront, not a brand. Show up for them and accept that their heart and soul are going into this.”

To learn more about Driftwood Custom Designs or how to custom order, go to their Facebook page, email Driftwoods.customs@gmail.com or check out our most recent podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.