Throw back Thursday - Lessons for Entrepreneuers

This is a blog post I wrote when I was pregnant with my first child back in 2010 (four years ago - oh the free time I had!). I still come back to it for business advice, so I thought it was worth sharing again. I am delegating a lot more these days and have brought in help (entrepreneurial), but I'm still primarily running the show at Freshie & Zero (self-employed). I have not yet sought out a mentor but I am connected with many peers that I can bounce ideas off of and we all give each other advice (and opinions) - it's great! I'd love to hear which camp you fall in - are you an entrepreneur or a self employed artist?

Enjoy!

originally posted in February 2010

buttons by dada dreams

I went to a lecture last night at my Alma Mater, Harpeth Hall, to hear two business women (also alumnae) discuss what it takes to be an entrepreneur. The first speaker on the panel was Olivia Mullin who started her own stationery business 15 years ago, Olivia Mullin Co. With over 1,000 retail stores and a very distinctive look, it is a very well known and respected company in my opinion. I was very surprised to hear she had just closed it in December but her reasons why made sense, but that's a whole other topic. The other speaker was Allison Wills Brooks - she started Calypso Café with her husband Phil about 22 years ago. I eat at Calypso Café often and even worked there for a couple of weeks (shortest job I ever had!) - they're known for fast, affordable, and healthy Caribbean food. There was also a moderator whose name I can't remember - he seemed like a small business/entrepreneurial coach who led their discussion.

I don't really want to re-hash the entire lecture, so I'll just mention a few key points that struck me.

An entrepreneur's first decision is "Do I want to do this or delegate this?" Are you someone who enjoys doing something or are you someone who can recognize talent in others, nourish it, and keep them happy as employees?

This was very interesting to me because I have always skated this fine line between artist and businesswoman and after hearing it put into terms like that, I think I really fall more on the artist side. I don't think I'd ever want to delegate out the making of the jewelry and just design it - I enjoy making it, selling it, promoting it, etc. I enjoy everything about running Freshie & Zero - except maybe calling for credit cards and dealing with disgruntled customers. It would be hard for me to delegate out certain aspects of my business, which is a lot of the reason why I haven't seriously considered bringing in help yet.

"Salary" is not an entrepreneurial term.

Basically, what's left after you pay your bills and your employees is your profit and what you take home. That makes me feel a lot better, too since I really have no idea what my income actually is until I file my taxes at the end of the year. I thought after 2008 I would have a better understanding, but since I spent so much on wholesale shows in 2009, my expenses went up by thousands of dollars and I was afraid to "pay" myself. I just spend money as needed and put money in my bank account when it's low. It's "very gray" as a friend of mine put it, but it doesn't really bother me doing it this way.

True profit is what you make after you hire help, and it's obviously a lot less than what you make when it's just you.

Yuck - another reason I haven't wanted to hire anyone. Luckily, I've been able to get a few necessary things done here and there for trade, which is definitely my ideal situation!

Don't let your ego get tied up in your business.

Allison said that they have closed a location or two of Calypso because it wasn't profitable and they couldn't worry about how it would look to consumers. Their ego wasn't so tied up in their company image that they had to keep a store open just to save face.

multitask journal from See Jane Work

Start out knowing you can't do it all.

That's tough - especially when I pretty much am doing it all! I recently got someone to write a press release release for me, and it's embarrassing that it took me about 5 years to get that done. I felt like I could do it because I knew it wasn't rocket science, but I kept putting it off because I really just didn't want to do it. I should have known 5 years ago that I needed someone else to do it for me.

Many entrepreneurs start by asking themselves "Why can't this be better? Can I do something to make this better?"

Both Allison and Olivia took calculated risks - they saw a need for something and thought they could fill it, i.e. make it better. They tested their products, did a lot of research, and did not take out loans to start their company much like myself. Allison said that what they spent on their first year in business was basically like paying for a year in graduate school but with a much better education - even if they failed in business, they would have gained an immense knowledge and they wouldn't really have lost anything!

Seek out a mentor.

When asked if they had mentors they each had to think long and hard and both named their fathers as inspirational since their fathers were both entrepreneurs. But they both suggested that if you want to be an entrepreneur that you seek out a mentor.

It was a nice lecture - I don't think I yawned once which is saying a lot! I am personally asked all the time for advice and tips about being a small indie business, and let me tell you - I am SO over me. It was such a relief to listen to other women talk about it who are way more established than myself. It was also great that they were so forthcoming with information. The handmade jewelry business can feel a bit cut-throat especially when a stranger out of nowhere emails you and asks you pretty detailed questions about where you buy your supplies or even just an open ended question such as "how did you get started?". Ummm... forget about my lack of free time to type out an extensive email - do you really think I want to freely give out advice to someone who could become my competition? I think a lot of people who want to start an indie business are so starry eyed that they don't realize that there is a reality of always watching your back and being on the lookout for your competitors. Luckily, the longer I'm in business, the less I care about the copycats out there, and the less it stings when customers tell me that so-and-so is copying me. So what? They may try and mimic the product, and they may try and sell it for less, but they'll never be you, your brand, or your heart. And of course, they'll always be one step behind as they say!

paperweight by Vilmain

All in all, I don't know that I would even classify myself as an entrepreneur. I don't have dreams of building up this big company and sitting behind a desk all day delegating responsibilities and employees. That sounds a lot like management, which I can do but that's not why I started this business. I think I prefer self-employed artist, thank you very much.

How to Organize a Successful Photo Shoot

Once a year now, I call up my buddy and amazing photographer Sarah Beaty of Eyeris Photography, and she and I hash out a plan for a Freshie & Zero photo shoot. I used to photograph everything myself and use my friends as models, but as the business evolved I had to step up my game! Some of my photos I took of my friend Kelley in my mom's backyard are still some of my favorites, but my photography skills were just not as professional as I needed them to be:

She's adorable, but my photography left a lot to be desired (mostly my inability to focus on the model and the jewelry at the same time). This one is from 2008 - my friend Kelley was the face of Freshie & Zero! She had an exuberance that really came through in the photos, but my photos needed to portray a more polished image. Here are some tips I learned to have a successful photo shoot:

1. Define Your Goal 

My goal was to have really fabulous professional photos. Often in the past, the hair and makeup (and wardrobe) was an afterthought, so this time I needed to make that a priority.

2. Hire Talented People

I needed a pro for every aspect of the shoot. Fortunately for me, there are loads of talented people in Nashville I can turn to for help to! I used an agency to find the right model. Sarah's friend Sharla Pruitt Higgins just so happens to do hair and makeup for the stars and was available the day of our shoot. I now had a team of creative pros!

3. Make a Mood Board

Next I made a Pinterest mood board to develop the theme of the shoot - can I say that this is my new favorite use of Pinterest? I pinned the hair, makeup, outfits, and overall attitude that I wanted to portray - which evolved into casual and simple beauty. I sent this board to everyone involved with the shoot, and that was pretty much all I had to do! Everyone "got it".

4. Gather Props and Wardrobe

Making a mood board also helped me figure out what our model would wear. She brought some of her own clothes and looked to this board for inspiration. I used the board as inspiration to play stylist and get the wardrobe we needed on approval. Why I had never thought of that before? Since I knew the clothes were just on approval (pretty much what real stylists do), I had an unlimited budget, and I was free to pick exactly what I thought would look great!

I also liked the way some of my inspiration photos utilized props like drinks and hats to draw attention to bracelets and earrings, so I collected similar items as well.

5. Find the right location

We held the shoot at my house because it was free, there are a lot of blank walls since I just moved in, and I live in proximity to lots of green space and even some wheat fields which would be perfect for outdoor shots. It was also ideal because if it rained, we could stay inside and shoot there, which is exactly what happened!

The talented team!
You can see how I shoved my kid's play area to the side to make room for our set. Mommy needs to work, kids.

6. Be organized on the day of the shoot

I cleared a table near an outlet so there was plenty of room for Sharla to lay out her makeup and curling irons (she's no joke - she had three cases full of stuff!). I laid all of the jewelry out in sets, so at any given time I could make a decision about what pieces I wanted with which outfits. The wardrobe was hung up neatly in a nearby bathroom. My friend Krista came as an extra set of hands, because you never know! Staying organized and having a friend ready to assist me really helped the shoot be more successful.

Sharla did her hair and makeup beautifully.

Primping

7. Have Snacks

Seriously - you can never go wrong with offering people a little bit of food to keep the energy up. I laid out a little snack bar with cheese, crackers, trail mix, and grapes, which was much appreciated by all. I also had sparkling pink grapefruit juice. Yum.

8. Be Flexible

The day of the shoot, the weather sucked! It was overcast and drizzling and not what we were hoping for, but we made it work. Sarah (the photographer) brought fancy lights and backgrounds and the shoot took a direction that was more fashion-y than I had expected, but in a good way.

Act like there's coffee in that cup! Sell that bracelet!

By the end of the day the rain cleared up, so we hightailed it outside and got some beautiful shots in the afternoon sun. Instead of being bummed that we couldn't shoot outside, we focused on getting great shots inside and when the opportunity came to go out, we took it! We didn't go to the awesome nearby wheat field, but there's always a next time.

Catching that pretty afternoon sun!

Working the light in my driveway.

That pretty much sums it up! On a side note, our model Tiffany was fierce! Her (natural) red hair is GAWgeous and the jewelry looked fabulous on her. She was also pretty nice, too, and it turned out that she and the photographer sort of knew each other as did the stylist. Oh Nashville, I love how small of a town you can be! By the end of the shoot, they were all exchanging numbers and planning on working and hanging out together in the future.

Tiffany, me, Sharla, and Sarah

The First Show

It's 2013, which means its been 7 years since I registered Freshie & Zero as a business and started dragging my then boyfriend (now husband) to craft shows to sell my jewelry. I would like to share a little story about how it all began...

I remember my first craft show well. I was so excited! My glorious tent was so shiny & new. I had practiced setting up my clean, non-scratched display tables in my apartment, and I had crafted many unique display pieces out of dowels and plastic sushi grass. I was ready to sell my jewelry to the craft show hordes that would surely amass in my tent. I was a full blown rookie. 

Everything was so clean!!

I should have realized being set up right next to port-a-potties was a very bad sign.

The first day we were supposed to be open at 10 am but a storm in the area prevented us from setting up on time. It was the first of many irritating set up experiences, but I was unfazed. We were still set up by noon - the show wasn't over until 10 pm that night anyway, so I still had 10 glorious hours to sell my jewelry, plus all day on Saturday (literally - 10am to 10pm again - these are show hours I avoid like the plague these days).  I was READY.

On day one I sold a single pair of earrings.

I started to think I had made a very bad business decision. I don't remember what I sold on day 2, but it didn't get much better - maybe ten things? I realized that maybe selling my jewelry was not going to be the walk in the park I thought it would be!

I still laugh about that show. It was really more of a beer festival than a crafts festival - they should not have allowed crafters to participate but hey, they wanted to make money off our booth fees. Oh the memories - the constant complaining from the other crafters, the drunk festival-goers stumbling in and out of the port-a-potties (that whole 10 pm thing). If I had any real craft show experience, I would have seen the warning signs on the application (for example, listing our area as "arts & crafts" and allowing a first come, first served admission process). But I didn't know any better - I was such a freshman.

Today, I feel much more like an upper-classman, flush with years of real-world experience, and luckily I have come SUCH a long way from that day next to the port-a-potties! If I had let that awful show determine the course of my career, things could have turned out very differently for me.

The reason I am relaying all of this to you is because sometimes I still find myself at a show where the tumbleweeds are blowing and sales are not cha-chinging. It's annoying, but not the end of the world. Unfortunately, for some people, it is the end of the world. I have met crafters who change the entire course of their career based upon one miserable show. I think this is a grave way of thinking. We all have to start somewhere. We all have to pay our dues and learn the hard way.

We all have to be freshmen sometimes.  

Luckily, I had many things going for me at the time.  I had a supportive boyfriend who laughed that show off with me (and many more dreadful shows I attended that first year). I had supportive parents who believed in me. And I had gut feeling that I was doing the right thing; that making jewelry could realistically be my future. My success definitely didn't happen overnight. I did everything by myself for the first several years. Slowly, I made baby steps towards my current situation like hiring a photographer, an assistant, and moving my studio out of the house.  It's been seven years, people. It's been a long road, but a good one.

Are you feeling like a freshman? Or do you feel like you've earned your spot in the senior house?

Brush up on your resume and interview skills

Print by Suzanna Anna

*I am writing to you from the trenches of hiring an assistant, but I decided not to post it until I had firmly made a hire.

I recently posted a position for a jewelry assistant on craigslist and thought that maybe I'd get 3 or 4 resumes, but I received dozens - over 40 in one week! I've been sifting through resumes, cover letters, and emails, and it's been difficult to narrow them down, because there are so many good ones in the bunch! I proceeded patiently and during my hiring process, I learned quite a bit about what it takes to make a good impression on your new potential boss, and I'd love to share my thoughts with you!

While looking through dozens of resumes and cover letters, I tried to pick out something that made each candidate stick out (Sound familiar? I hear my college career counselor rejoicing). Number one was jewelry experience, but after that, I wanted to get an overall vibe of the person based on where they worked, how long they worked somewhere, and their additional skills such as Quickbooks or Photoshop experience. I needed to know if they could write well and pay attention to detail by studying their cover letters/emails (and checking their spelling). Want to know what works and what doesn't? Read on.

Resume Tips:

* It doesn't really matter if your resume is beautifully designed. The prettiest/coolest resume I saw was literally too difficult to read. Stick to a basic layout - the person reviewing it will appreciate it. Add some color or some simple graphics for each header if you must, but keep it simple and legible.

* Do not write an overly fluffy cover letter. Do not get philosophical, do not get metaphoric - just be natural yet professional. I do not want to read a bunch of b.s. of how you are a butterfly just coming out of your cocoon to go on a job seeking mission. On the flip side, do not write a super short, overly simplified cover letter. Also - do not talk about your personal life unless it is relevant to the job (but it probably isn't).

* People who are hiring notice your typos. This may seem like a no-brainer, but spell check your resume and then ask a friend to spell check it, too. Print it out to do this - it's much easier to notice spelling mistakes on a piece of paper than a computer screen. ALSO check for typos in your email/cover letter/subject line. Excited about a job and want to send your cover letter immediately? Great! Just take the time to spell check before you hit send! I saw so many typos and it is definitely a strike against the candidate because it relates directly to their lack of attention to detail.

* Include where you went to high school. Who knows, the interviewer may have attended your high school or their best friend or husband may have gone there and then what do you have - a personal connection to the interviewer! Score!

* Do not make it necessary to use a magnifying glass to view your resume. I know you want to keep it short, but try not to make the font too tiny in order to achieve this.

* Do NOT submit more than a 2 page resume. It doesn't matter how much experience you have, keep it to 2 pages. Edit out the jobs you didn't have very long or didn't like very much. Major gaps in your work time line aren't necessarily red flags, so don't think it will reflect poorly on you. If you are just dying to tell more about yourself, put it online and include a link to it in your cover letter.

* If you are responding to a job posting by email, it should be just as professional as your resume. It should also include everything the job posting requested, or an explanation of why you had to omit it. Keep all of your communication professional - don't use a million !!!! or ???? or ALL CAPS to get your point across.

* Finally, think about what you want someone to take away from your resume. Do you want them to know you are a people person who loves a fast paced environment? Do you want them to know you are a diligent worker who loves a more mellow environment? Try to think of words and adjectives to get you across when describing your duties at each job you held. This is where you want to stand out. If you list that you know Excel, Powerpoint, Photoshop, Word, Blogger, Twitter, etc - you are letting them know you are multi-faceted. The software skills you mention are important so try not to leave any out - even if it's a random program! Think outside the box - the person reading your resume will notice. Have you been to a foreign country to work or travel? Have you done any volunteering? Mention it! Make the interviewer want to know more about you. Try to be more than your piece of paper.

Print by Able + Baker Design

Interview Tips

Lucky you, your resume was noticed and you've been selected for an interview! Sweet! Do some online research to get prepared for those behavioral questions that are all the rage these days. Beyond that, here are some do's and don'ts:

* If you are picked for an interview and you really want the job, find out more about the company. There is nothing worse than the interviewer asking you a question relating to this and you have no idea what to say. If the company has a blog, read it! Mention something you read in it during your interview.

* Look the interviewer in the eye. You don't have to stare them down, but looking at the floor the entire time is not a good idea.

* Don't fidget. Sit still, be engaged, and if you find yourself picking at your fingernails or shirt hem, etc., stop!

* Don't be late. If you're late, apologize profusely.

* I know we've been told there are no stupid questions, but in an interview, there are. Don't ask a question that could have easily been answered if you had done a tad bit of research about the company. (For example, don't ask a web-based business if they have a website. Believe it or not, someone I interviewed asked if I had a website.)

* Be yourself, albeit a professional version of yourself. If you have no rapport with the interviewer, don't fake it. You may just not be the right person. You do not want to get hired under false pretenses and then be miserable after two weeks at a job working under someone who irritates you.

I really hope that these tips help you! It's a tough job seeker's market out there - do everything you can to stay on top of the pile!

Listing shows on your website

I received a book called 500 Tips for Marketing Your Crafts for Christmas last year and every now and then I pick it up and flip through its pages. It's a bit pricey for a paperback, especially one that isn't even that thick, but it is full of information ranging from taking photographs of your work to prepping your car for craft shows. Most of it I already knew, but some tips are new to me, like this one:

Don't list your craft shows on your website.

Really? Their reasoning is that your competition will apply to all of your shows, get into some of them, and take your space or half of your money.

I guess I forget how cutthroat this business can be. I have always listed my previous shows on my website, going back to 2006...until today. I took them all off except for my next three upcoming shows. I see no need to not list the shows I am already in since the application deadline has passed and I can take them down once the show is over. This is going against their advice, however.

I don't know. Is that good or bad advice? What do you think?

Lessons for Entrepreneurs

buttons by dada dreams

I went to a lecture last night at my Alma Mater, Harpeth Hall, to hear two business women (also alumnae) discuss what it takes to be an entrepreneur. The first speaker on the panel was Olivia Mullin who started her own stationery business 15 years ago, Olivia Mullin Co. With over 1,000 retail stores and a very distinctive look, it is a very well known and respected company in my opinion. I was very surprised to hear she had just closed it in December but her reasons why made sense, but that's a whole other topic. The other speaker was Allison Wills Brooks - she started Calypso Café with her husband Phil about 22 years ago. I eat at Calypso Café often and even worked there for a couple of weeks (shortest job I ever had!) - they're known for fast, affordable, and healthy Caribbean food. There was also a moderator whose name I can't remember - he seemed like a small business/entrepreneurial coach who led their discussion.

I don't really want to re-hash the entire lecture, so I'll just mention a few key points that struck me.

An entrepreneur's first decision is "Do I want to do this or delegate this?" Are you someone who enjoys doing something or are you someone who can recognize talent in others, nourish it, and keep them happy as employees?

This was very interesting to me because I have always skated this fine line between artist and businesswoman and after hearing it put into terms like that, I think I really fall more on the artist side. I don't think I'd ever want to delegate out the making of the jewelry and just design it - I enjoy making it, selling it, promoting it, etc. I enjoy everything about running Freshie & Zero - except maybe calling for credit cards and dealing with disgruntled customers. It would be hard for me to delegate out certain aspects of my business, which is a lot of the reason why I haven't seriously considered bringing in help yet.

"Salary" is not an entrepreneurial term.

Basically, what's left after you pay your bills and your employees is your profit and what you take home. That makes me feel a lot better, too since I really have no idea what my income actually is until I file my taxes at the end of the year. I thought after 2008 I would have a better understanding, but since I spent so much on wholesale shows in 2009, my expenses went up by thousands of dollars and I was afraid to "pay" myself. I just spend money as needed and put money in my bank account when it's low. It's "very gray" as a friend of mine put it, but it doesn't really bother me doing it this way.

True profit is what you make after you hire help, and it's obviously a lot less than what you make when it's just you.

Yuck - another reason I haven't wanted to hire anyone. Luckily, I've been able to get a few necessary things done here and there for trade, which is definitely my ideal situation!

Don't let your ego get tied up in your business.

Allison said that they have closed a location or two of Calypso because it wasn't profitable and they couldn't worry about how it would look to consumers. Their ego wasn't so tied up in their company image that they had to keep a store open just to save face.

multitask journal from See Jane Work

Start out knowing you can't do it all.

That's tough - especially when I pretty much am doing it all! I recently got someone to write a press release release for me, and it's embarrassing that it took me about 5 years to get that done. I felt like I could do it because I knew it wasn't rocket science, but I kept putting it off because I really just didn't want to do it. I should have known 5 years ago that I needed someone else to do it for me.

Many entrepreneurs start by asking themselves "Why can't this be better? Can I do something to make this better?"

Both Allison and Olivia took calculated risks - they saw a need for something and thought they could fill it, i.e. make it better. They tested their products, did a lot of research, and did not take out loans to start their company much like myself. Allison said that what they spent on their first year in business was basically like paying for a year in graduate school but with a much better education - even if they failed in business, they would have gained an immense knowledge and they wouldn't really have lost anything!

Seek out a mentor.

When asked if they had mentors they each had to think long and hard and both named their fathers as inspirational since their fathers were both entrepreneurs. But they both suggested that if you want to be an entrepreneur that you seek out a mentor.

It was a nice lecture - I don't think I yawned once which is saying a lot! I am personally asked all the time for advice and tips about being a small indie business, and let me tell you - I am SO over me. It was such a relief to listen to other women talk about it who are way more established than myself. It was also great that they were so forthcoming with information. The handmade jewelry business can feel a bit cut-throat especially when a stranger out of nowhere emails you and asks you pretty detailed questions about where you buy your supplies or even just an open ended question such as "how did you get started?". Ummm... forget about my lack of free time to type out an extensive email - do you really think I want to freely give out advice to someone who could become my competition? I think a lot of people who want to start an indie business are so starry eyed that they don't realize that there is a reality of always watching your back and being on the lookout for your competitors. Luckily, the longer I'm in business, the less I care about the copycats out there, and the less it stings when customers tell me that so-and-so is copying me. So what? They may try and mimic the product, and they may try and sell it for less, but they'll never be you, your brand, or your heart. And of course, they'll always be one step behind as they say!

paperweight by Vilmain

All in all, I don't know that I would even classify myself as an entrepreneur. I don't have dreams of building up this big company and sitting behind a desk all day delegating responsibilities and employees. That sounds a lot like management, which I can do but that's not why I started this business. I think I prefer self-employed artist, thank you very much.

Crazy Show Season, part 1

Where do I even begin? I feel like I've been whirled around inside a pressure cooker for the last three weeks of my life!

I'll go back to Chicago, June 26th when we left for the Fountain Square Art Fest in Evanston, IL - it took us over 9 hours to drive there due to many annoying traffic jams. We set up in the middle of the street, and had to make fast decisions about how to maximize our set up where people could come in on either side of the booth. Then, we had some tasty dinner at the misleadingly named Flat Top Grill - doesn't that sound like a place to get a panini or a burger? Turns out, it was one of those Mongolian Grill type of places and it was really good, but a little difficult to make my own stir fry after I was so fried from our extremely long day.

Anyway, the Fountain Square Show in Evanston that weekend was great. It was what craft shows are supposed to be like - lots of great people, great weather (except for the scary wind gusts blowing everything around), and great sales! I find that my most successful shows tend to be street festivals like this one, but of course that's not always the case.

in the booth, slightly different setup that worked great

I knew that the Atlanta Gift show and the San Francisco Renegade Craft Fair were rapidly approaching, and I was feeling a little like a black hole was getting closer and closer to swallowing me up! I kept telling myself "Get through the Chicago show" and then I could focus on my next two big shows. So when we returned home Monday night, I only had one week to prepare, plus a day and a half between the two shows to get ready for San Francisco. Getting ready for a wholesale show is intense - you have to have one of everything made. You have to have the right number of catalogs, order forms, pens, tools, postcards, business cards, signage, etc... And then you have to be very certain how you are going to display it all once you get there.

We give ourselves two days to set up our display at the show, but some people take 4 or 5 to set up their temporary display. Some of these displays get really inventive and elaborate, but that takes $$. Even my simple canvas displays made with felt and paint cost almost $400. For canvases and felt, I tell you! That doesn't even include the cost of the jewelry supplies, the foam core wall, the floor, the chairs, the catalogs, order forms, promos, etc! The first wholesale show I did cost me about $7000 before the hotel, advertising, and not including jewelry supplies. Seriously people. This is what it takes to bring Freshie & Zero to the masses. And then I get to spend about 4 or 5 thousand more each wholesale show I do. Fun, right? Who wouldn't sign up for this?


Anyway, I'm bitching a little but it's really just the money part that is kind of staggering. So when people ask me for a discount at a craft show, my first reaction is to school them on how much money I have paid to be standing before them. Then I just smile and say "I'm sorry, I don't offer discounts at shows". But that's a whole other blog post all together and wholesale accounts never ask for deals (well, almost never).

I digress. We miraculously got prepared for Atlanta on time (many late nights of hammering and lots of help from Greg!) and set up was pretty easy, except for the fact that there was a huge air duct obstructing my ceiling, which I knew about beforehand but I did not realize that it would obstruct my track lights I brought. So I had to pay the floor rate ($200!!!!) to rent 6 track lights. Sigh.

I really wanted this show to be a big success, so I spent a little more on advertising this go-round. I did a pre-show mailing to every business that had ever contacted me, which was the least expensive form of advertising I did. Then I rented a little floor space in one of the Mart buildings where you can set up a "vignette" display of your products. It sounded a little steep ($672 for 9 square feet) but I took a deep breath and booked it. Then of course, I had to buy a table, fabric, displays for that space but it was all worth it. A very healthy amount of customers came into my booth who said they saw my display. I am 80% sure that I would book it again. I keep going back and forth - I'm trying to gather a tally of how many sales were directly or indirectly related to the vignette. And if I did it again, should I revamp it a little and change it up? Mo money mo money?

I also took out my ad in the Market Magazine again, which is the best advertising dollars that could ever be spent. So worth it every time. It's over $1000 but if your ad is good, it will more than pay for itself, and quickly too!

Greg prepares our morning coffee in our little booth.

You never know who you'll be next to at the show, either, and the vibe of your aisle can really affect your show and your sales. In January, I was across from a very corporate booth that held many sales meetings for their reps across the country. It was a little distracting, and they were really rude to their neighbors, which was totally unnecessary. So I got myself moved to a different spot this time and I loved it! The aisle was really narrow, so people had to get close to your stuff. And my neighbors were awesome! I met Leigh and her mother Susan of Leighelena, who makes beautiful enamel jewelry and who was also heading to Renegade San Fran. Then Karin and Kat of KBD Studio who were also very cool and sold me some of their groovy handmade clothes. I also met Caroline Pate who is another jewelry designer living in Nashville. It was her first wholesale show and she experienced all the mart has to offer - meeting nice people and fending off nasty comments from naysayers. I also chatted with Maria of Lua Chea again and she's a total sweetheart, and her jewelry line is so fun and made of recycled materials! I met many more wonderful people, too many to list here!

So after all of my preparation and advertising, I ended up selling less than I sold in January! What??!! You have to look at the big picture, people, and overall, it was more successful. I opened up mostly new accounts, when in January a lot of my sales were reorders. Freshie & Zero is now officially in 24 states (once I get all of those orders shipped!). I got a lot of solid leads, and Greg and I learned so much about marketing and how many things we were already doing right, but also some things that needed improvement. We even went to a couple of seminars to try and become better business people! We left the mart totally happy and ready to tackle new ground.... and then we had to get ready for San Francisco in two days... to be continued...

Marketing Thoughts

business card by oh young designer

I've been trying harder to promote Freshie & Zero these days after a slew of unsuccessful shows. I've recently updated my Trunkt portfolio, as you can see in that groovy widget above. It's a pretty cool site but if it had a better search engine and a more user-friendly uploading style it would be perfect. I paid for it and have never directly gotten any sales from it, but maybe someday...

I've also delegated the maintaining of my facebook page to Greg. I added a group a while back, but then decided a page would be better, but for some reason it's hard for me to figure out how to run it well. Greg (my awesome husband)
is a facebook/internet master and he will be so perfect at helping me make the most out of it! We may eventually do some facebook ads and see how that goes... In the meantime, become a fan (pretty please!)!

I was also talked into joining this website called FGMarket - only because the salesperson on the phone was so good, I literally could not say no. So far, it's been a big waste o' money and I should have known better - look at this listing, for goodness sake - tons of distracting text ads on the side, and I've singled out my listing but it really gets lost in the searches. I tried to search for "handmade jewelry" and not one thing came up. Their website is really disorganized - there's no jewelry subheading under "Artisan" - HELLO!

Anyway, all to say I've spent all this money on shows, marketing, and other pursuits that I should have known better were not going to pan out. That's becoming the phrase for this year - "I knew better than that!" Sometimes you forget to listen to your gut, and I've learned the hard way the past few months. It's made me a little more careful in how I spend my cash on the biz. I've been looking at some things I'm paying for that may not be necessary or ways to save on them - not really something I do by nature. My philosophy has always been the more I put out, the more I get back but that may not be so true any more...

Opportunities for Creatives

Here are some upcoming shows for those of you looking to fill your calender with venues to sell your creations! Know about a cool show still seeking artists - please let me know!

First Annual Lost River Fine Arts Fair - Bowling Green, KY
Saturday, October 4th 2008 10:00am to 5:00pm

This annual fair showcasing fine original art in all mediums is the first event of its kind in the Bowling Green area. Only original, one of a kind, or very limited edition works are welcome. http://www.artworksinc.org/ For more information contact: Mark Whitley at mark@mwhitley.com or Donnie Firkins at df122347@bellsouth.net


Rock N Roll Craft Show - St. Louis, MO
November 28 - 30, 2008

The original St. Louis alternative art, craft, and music event. Deadline is September 8th!
http://www.rocknrollcraftshow.com/


Decatur Holiday Marketplace & Cafe - Decatur, GA
December 5 - 6, 2008

Clairemont Elementary School, is hosting its 16th Annual Decatur Holiday Marketplace and Café on Friday and Saturday, December 5-6th, 2008. The event, a fundraiser for Clairemont PTA, showcases more than 90 artists and craftspeople selling their wares in a festive setting during the holiday season. I've done this show for the past two years and really enjoyed it and sold a lot, too! http://www.decaturholidaymarketplace.com/index.html

Buzz buzz buzz

this is where I've been for the past week - the Angel Court booth at the Gift Show!

My head is buzz buzz buzzing with information. I just returned from the Atlanta International Gift Show to see if I am ready to take the leap to a major wholesale show. If you've never been to a wholesale trade show, it's pretty insane. The Atlanta Mart is a gigantic multi-building, multi-level space where retailers come to buy merchandise to fill their store for the next several months. In short, they are basically on a shopping binge. They spend thousands and thousands without blinking an eye. All in an effort to please you, their dear customer.

The benefit of this is that you take your product to one show and take thousands of dollars in orders from multiple stores over a few days and then you're basically slammed for the next few months. (especially if you're like me and you make it all yourself) It's a sizable investment to do it - not only do you have to pay the booth fee (over $3000), you also have to have samples of everything you're going to sell and have a pretty fabulous display (more money).

I must say I got pretty pumped up to do it - not only were my friends for whom I was helping in their booth (Angel Court) super supportive, many other surrounding exhibitors were very encouraging as well. I met the fabulous faces behind Ollie Sang, Starr Luna, Shalla Wista, Jane Marvel, Papaya, and too many more to name! Whether their product was hand-made or manufactured, they were so very creative and we bounced ideas off of each other all weekend - it was great! It's another reason my head is buzzzing with info - I have so many new jewelry & display ideas I feel like my head's going to explode.

Lauren (of Ollie Sang) and Starr (of Starr Luna) try to decide which Jane Marvel bags to buy.

What I heard over and over again from all of the retailers that I consulted with was something I had known all along but had kind of been looking the other way - my prices are way too low. I don't know why I have been in denial of this. The price of silver has basically doubled since I set my prices (not to mention gas prices!) and I've raised a few pieces a few dollars, but that's really not enough and it isn't really good business sense. I was told by these retailers that I have adopted the craft show/etsy mentality where the trend is to kind of price as low as you can go... which I have to admit I am guilty of. I feel like I am constantly throwing money at shows and supplies and I am making money but I'm not really getting ahead.

Angela chats with Deb from Curious Sofa - she has been a sounding board for retailers since starting her blog, and this was a great night of networking and brainstorming!

So after much mental debate, I decided to raise my prices somewhat significantly. I didn't raise them as high as some retailers suggested (about $20+ dollars retail a piece!) but I am raising them fairly in relation to the time involved (it's not just the creation of the piece; it's the website editing, photographing, bookkeeping, etc) and the cost of my raw materials. Some of my gold filled pieces are actually going down a little in price, since I felt that some of them were a little too high.

As I raised the prices on my price sheet, I kept having mini break downs because it was so painful!! I guess my fear is that no one would pay that much for it, but I'm not sure why I feel that way, since my jewelry is handmade from the best materials I can find and it's not like I'm asking for hundreds of dollars. I had to keep taking computer breaks because I was getting heartburn. Seriously. Such a wuss... It's going to take me forever to update all of my website prices, so don't worry - if there is a piece you've been considering buying - now is the time to get it before I start staying up all night to edit my website! I know this will all be worth it when it is over and I won't be undervaluing myself or my product any more. Hooray!

Courtney, the designer behind Angel Court was also told her prices were way too low. So she tripled her prices and tripled her sales!

So if you're cruising around my website or see me at a show and your favorite piece seems slightly more expensive than you remember it, that's because it is. And if you're guilty like I was of underpricing yourself (80% of etsy sellers, he-hem), stop it right now! Charge what you think you're worth, not what you think someone would pay for it. One thing that happens to me over and over again is that I'll see something on etsy and think it's cute; then I'll check the price and think "there's no way - that's too low!" and in my mind, I immediately devalue the item and I don't buy it because I assume it is junk, or I assume that the creator does not value their creation or time. Knitters seem especially guilty of this. Just something to think about all of you buzzing entrepreneurs...

More resources to get your brain buzzing too:
Atlanta Gift Marts
American Craft Council
Philadelphia Buyer's Market of American Craft
Crafts and Craft Shows by Phil Kadubec (my all-time favorite craft fair book)
500 Tips for Marketing your Crafts by A.B. Petrow (this is on my reading list)
The Basic Guide to Pricing your Craftwork by James Dillehay
Making a Living in Crafts by Donald Clark

A must for every artist of every kind

This is a link to the free Artist's Survival Kit by Keri Smith, a writer & illustrator who rocks my socks. I highly recommend you download every page, print it out, and keep it close by at all times. I love that the acronym for it is "ask". Here's just one of the cards that you can cut out:


She also wrote these books:



She also writes & draws neat things like this:


Don't you just love her?? She also just had a baby so she truly is an inspiration to anyone who thinks you can't have it all.

I need your opinion!

Help! I need the advice of my trusty blog readers about trying out something new. I decided to try out the Sampler after months of thinking about it. In short, the sampler is a groovy indie service that sells goodie bags full of designer samples to eager indie shoppers. I had never been able to think of a cost and time effective way to participate, and my solution wasn't really either but I really like what I made. Take a peek...


It's a sterling silver "Sweet" pendant on a white silk string with a little hook & eye clasp. Surprisingly, they're not much less expensive to make than the sterling silver chain (although sterling prices keep going up & up so that could change this year) but I think they turned out really pretty! I just don't know about the durability of the silk string, since I've never really worked with fabric materials. I've ordered some more silk to experiment with and may try and sell a few in my etsy shop.

Anyway, my question is - does this idea of a necklace appeal to you? Do you like the mix of the sterling pendants on the soft silk string? What would you think about different colors of silk? (I've ordered navy, yellow, green, & turquoise) Please post a comment and tell me what you think! Thank you!!!

Photographing jewelry with Gemmafactrix of etsy.com

This is a great video posted by etsy about photographing jewelry. In it, Brooke Medlin of Gemmafactrix shares her secrets of taking great jewelry shots with the world - I definitely followed some of her advice for my own jewelry pictures! Quoting from their video post: "Brooke Medlin visited us at the Etsy Labs in March 2007. She taught classes on jewelry making and photography. Based in Ohio, Brooke also ran her Etsy shop Gemmafactrix.etsy.com out of our Brooklyn homebase for two weeks."

So, if you've ever wondered how to take quality photos of small items (such as jewelry), you should really take a moment to watch this video - it's well worth your time!

Click To Play

The girl is good - she's sold over 2600 items on etsy!! AND she has 100% positive feedback. That's pretty darn impressive. Here's a great example of one of her beautiful photos below. She really makes me want to get a better camera, or at least one I understand how to use properly...

I personally take photos with natural light like she does - I set up my jewelry shots right next to a window in my apartment but unfortunately this means you can only shoot them in the daytime when it is sunny out. I recently bought a light box but it just did not give me enough light to really pick up all of the little details of my jewelry. When it gets warmer out, I may try and take the light box outside and see if diffusing the natural light works better than trying to use the little lights that it came with...

budding designers who want free advice

This is for all you budding designers out there... Here's the deal: I run a home-based business of creating jewelry, selling it online, selling it to stores and also at craft shows. I designed my own website and do all the photography. I order supplies, materials, and pay lots of bills. I travel across the country to craft shows. Business is good. Life is good....and very very VERY busy. I often get emails from people asking me for advice on how they should go about doing exactly what I have done. As much as I would love to have all the time in the world to answer these emails, it's just impossible for me to answer questions like these in a thorough, well thought out manner.

So, here is what started as an email I sent to one of my friends who is a local jewelry designer who asked me for such advice. It's mostly about doing craft shows, because that's what her question was, and that's a lot of what I do, so if you were looking for some free advice, this is what I got... I do up date this from time to time, so check back if you want more tid bits. AND good luck and go on with your bad indie business self!

Hi Jane! I think your website looks great! I don't know what I'm doing either - completely self taught on the website, on adobe photoshop, etc. Learning as I go, and really taking baby steps along the way.

A pretty good website for researching craft shows is http://www.craftlister.com/. You can search shows by distance, if they're juried or not, and so on. Each show has a place to leave feedback, too, but not many people leave feedback. Of the bad shows I've done, when the feedback is bad, it's right on. I've learned that seasoned crafters, or "craft carnies" as I call them, love to bitch and moan. When the show isn't going so great, such if customers are scarce or whatever, just sit back and listen to all of the whining. You'll hear people ten tents away arguing so remember that if you have a comment, say it in your quiet mouse voice if you don't want anyone to hear you. I HIGHLY recommend a book called Crafts and Craft Shows. This book really prepared me for how to act at a show (how to sell, how to deal with other vendors), what you need for your booth, and so many other things. I actually read it twice and I should read it again. I've bought some other books but this one was the most useful - I feel like I've been totally prepared at every show - except for the one where there was a heatwave and we had to go to Wal-Mart (gross) to buy a big ass fan.

If you want your display to look good, you're going to have to drop some cash. I got my EZ-up tent at Sam's earlier this summer, and it's great but it's not leak proof, which is only a big deal when it's raining really hard. I would try to buy one there, though, b/c they're really cheap and they're pretty much the standard (you definitely want a white one). Think long and hard about your displays, too. Don't be scared to spend a little money on them - the better your presentation, the more seriously people will take you and the more sales you'll have. Also think portability! I met a girl who built her own displays for a recent show I attended and they were huge wooden tables that were so heavy and cumbersome to move around, plus they looked ridiculous. I googled jewelry display over and over again until I found something I liked.

While you apply to shows, I would try to visit shows and look at how other people do their displays and how they weight their booths, etc. I haven't really been impressed with too many displays but it's nice to look, and after you have been surfing displays on the web, you'll recognize them at the show. TACA is weird, though b/c those are more high-end crafters and their displays are a little more intense (usually). The most important thing is that since you have jewelry, you want to raise your table height up to above people's waist b/c nobody wants to lean down to look at something, and you also want to keep it out of reach of small hands.

Another way I've found shows is to enter a specific city and then "craft show" or "festival" on yahoo. You pretty much don't want to do a show in a small town, so I enter Knoxville, Louisville, Franklin, etc. Every small town show I've done was a waste of time - even Clarksville - but we do live in the South where these small towns don't really understand craft, or why they should pay anything more than Wal-Mart prices. My first day of my first show (in Clarksville), where I was there from 12-8, I sold one pair of earrings all day. A PAIR OF EARRINGS!!! Boy was I a little concerned about my decision to become a crafter!!! Fortunately, shows have kept getting better and better. Also, if the show wants the crafters to stay til 9 or 10 at night - that's usually a bad sign. You'll just end up being tired and cranky, and people typically don't do a ton of buying when the sun goes down. Although I was at a show in Paducah where I was open til 10 but fortunately, I was right by the stage so people kept coming in the booth to look. I didn't have tons of sales that night, but several of them came back the next day to buy.

Another benefit to doing shows is that you interact directly with your customers. While most of them will probably try your patience (I've been asked if my earrings were real... uh... no they're imaginary, do I take money orders.... huh?, and if a large red glass bead was a ruby... yes and i'm selling a $30,000 stone in a tent in a park...) but some of them will give you some great ideas on how to improve your line, and you'll see what sells out quickly and what you need to make more of for next time! And if you're like me, it's an exercise in patience, which isn't all bad.

Wow - too much information? My last piece of advice is to take your time! While you are applying to shows, get ready for them by buying your displays and supplies (www.storesupply.com for bags, boxes, etc). By the time you're accepted and have one to go to - you'll be ready!



On a side note... if you want to sell things to a store, the best and most professional thing to do is: call and introduce yourself, ask if they sell local jewelry on consignment (or are more interested in doing wholesale) and then ask if it would be alright if you mailed or emailed them images of your work. Follow up with a phone call or email to see if they had a chance to see them and to see if you could set up an appointment. Never ever ever walk into a store without an appointment! If you're shy, you could send an email (introduce yourself, who you are, what you do, and why you are emailing the store!!!) with jpegs or a link to your website or etsy page, and your prices. Again, follow up if you seriously want to be in the store with another email or phone call if you don't hear from them. Stores don't necessarily want to meet with you blindly without seeing a single image of your work. It's very hard for them to say no to you in person, so they will be reluctant to make an appointment with you if they have no idea what you're going to show them. If you show them images and they take an appointment, you're as good as gold.

You also need to build your image and "brand". Come up with a good name (NOT "Julie's designs" or "Unique Creations" - in fact, skip the words "unique" or "designs" altogether - they are really overused) it should be memorable like these brands: "Artafacts", "Verre New York", "Free People", and "My Olivette". If you really want to use your name, use your full name and be done with it, like "Jeanine Payer". Simple, effective, classy. Tag all of your jewelry with your logo (it's important to create a "brand" that people recognize), and make sure the tags aren't too small or too big. I suggest attaching them with 'stretch magic", a clear stretchy string that disappears in displays - they sell it at Michaels. I used to make all of my own tags, but now I have them manufactured by Gift Box (1000 for about $120 for a small, two color string tag). If you are at that level, you should be able to find a retail store packaging/gift wrap representative in your area (such as Nashville Wraps) who will work with you to create a custom string tag.

I hope this information is useful, and I wish you well on your journey towards success!!! For more information on setting up a business, just search jewelry/indie message boards online with your key words like "photographing jewelry" or "selling wholesale". Also, Pamela Barsky has an ebook she sells on her website - I imagine she was inundanted with these "free advice" emails waaaay more than I am, and she is smart to put her experiences into a sellable product. I may have to buy it one day soon to learn more for myself!

UPDATE 1/14/08 & 1/27/17Etsy shop advice: You can learn SO MUCH about promoting your shop through the Merriweather Council. I highly recommend her Etsy courses! Learn more HERE. Also, give out a million business cards and have your etsy shop on every one of them. I would check out the forums on etsy for all kinds of newbie advice, too. Commenting on treasuries and posting forum comments also lets people here know you exist. Also, Instagram and Pinterest are your friends! You can earn a lot of followers (i.e. letting people know your shop exists) by sponsoring a post on accounts like Makers Village.

Also, try and find sellers who you think complement your work, and ask if they'll trade business cards with you so that they can include them with their orders and you can do the same. Say, if you sell burp cloths for babies, you might want to trade business cards with people who make diaper bags or baby clothes. If you make jewelry, trade cards with people who make jewelry travel rolls or earring holders or other girlie accessories.

I am not a big advocate of coupons. I think they are great from time to time, but if you offer them once a month or more, people will be less likely to buy your product at full price.