Читать книгу Crafting a Successful Small Business - Joanne Dewberry - Страница 4

The UK handmade market is currently riding high as our attitudes to shopping changes. With this comes a new wave of local manufacturers.

Are you are a producer of handmade products and wondering:

 Whether you could turn your hobby into a small business?

 Where to find information on where to sell your products on and offline?

 How to price your products, including wholesale and sale or return options?

 How to develop a unique and recognisable brand that will enable you to stand out from the crowd?

 Where to start with visual merchandising?

 How to use social media to market your business, building up an excellent PR portfolio but spending little or no money?

This book not only takes you through these points in no-nonsense, plain English, but also has quirky craft activities to complete along the way, highlighting hints and tips from real-life crafty small business owners in the know.

I am not naturally crafty – when I started Charlie Moo’s in 2008 I had not used a sewing machine since textiles at school – but I soon discovered a love for sewing, and how therapeutic it can be. Along the way I have learnt lots of new business skills which I am passionate about sharing with small business owners, and in particular business mums or ‘mumprenuers’. With three children under five myself, I understand the constraints on mums in business. I believe my passion and dedication enabled me to earn the title of Dorset Business Mum of the Year 2010, along with numerous other business accolades in the past few years.

No one can deny the craft market is taking the UK by storm. Arts and crafts is having a huge revival and consumers are increasingly looking for unique, one-off items for themselves, their children or as gifts. People are breaking away from mass-market living; shunning the cloned society where we all dress the same and raise our identically dressed children in our matching houses. Consumers are starting to take more notice of where and how products are made. For years we have found ourselves shopping in out-of-town superstores for our clothing, furniture and food, but in recent times more and more people are breaking away and going back to the high street, looking to support independent local businesses.

Our lifestyle habits are also beginning to go full circle as consumers (and the government) are trying not to be such a throwaway society. For example, seamstresses making keepsake teddies from your child’s baby clothes, or pillowcase dresses which will grow with your daughter from dress to top are both incredibly popular. Arts and crafts really are leading the way in recycling, longevity and uniqueness.

When I started Charlie Moo’s I never really set out to be a ‘crafter’ and to be honest I still do not really class myself as one now. This could be because I have steered clear of conventional craft-selling avenues, such as Etsy and MISI, or traditional craft markets. I can sew fabric party bags but that was really born out of necessity. Really, this is where my craft talent ends. The bulk of my business is handmade party bags and I sell these in large quantities, so I have never looked at increasing my hand-crafted product range; with three children I just would not have the time.

As a small business owner my real talent lies in PR, marketing and developing brand awareness. Making regular appearances on local radio, in local and national newspapers and in magazines has been the driving force, whether that be as Charlie Moo’s or as myself discussing small business information and development. I only have television left to conquer!

Along the way I have met some incredibly gifted artists and craftspeople from all manner of disciplines. It has become apparent to me that many of the ‘craft’ businesses I have spoken to grew from a hobby, often making items for friends, or as gifts; in contrast to my journey where I had to learn a ‘hobby’ in order to start my business. There is no right or wrong way to start. If you already have a hobby that you are skilled in, you can build on orders from friends and family and grow it that way. Or you can do your research beforehand, find out where there is a gap in the market and learn a skill that fills it.

“Odds & Soxlets began after making various sock monkeys, along with illustrated hand-crafted cards for my friends and family as gifts for birthdays and other special occasions. I had such an amazing response that I decided to launch Odds & Soxlets as my first business venture, so my sock creations and illustrations will be available for all to love and enjoy!”

– Erica Martyn (www.oddsandsoxlets.co.uk)

Whilst researching this book I came across a whole host of craft businesses (and a variety of disciplines, motivations, prices, sales techniques, etc.), enabling me to share with you an incredible wealth of resources.

Here are my pros and cons to starting a craft business.