1. Make Some Decisions – You need to decide what the general topic of your show will be. Since you’re reading a craft site, I suspect that it will be somehow crafty… but will it be general? Or do you want to get specific and focus on a particular craft? Will it be a “how-to” type of podcast, or a podcast where you give industry-related news? Will you interview people or will you  just give your opinion?

2. Decide How To Record – You can record yourself for free with a computer microphone headset and the free software Audacity. If you want to record interviews, you can use Skype and the Pamela plugin. I also enjoy Audio Acrobat, because it will host your audio for you on their site. Audio takes up a lot of room and if you have a lot of downloads, you may exceed your bandwith,which means you’ll end up paying your website host extra money. The service also makes it very easy to put your podcast into iTunes.

3. Take Action! The above info is the “basics” – the stuff you need to know to get started. So go for it!

Here are some extra things you may want to take note of… but you don’t need them to get the ball rolling:

• A Theme Song – Create one yourself with royalty free loop music (Google that term and you’ll find lots of websites to peruse), or hire someone to make one for you.
• Custom Graphic – If you put your podcast in iTunes, you’ll probably want to create a custom graphic. This will be displayed along with your podcast and it will help your podcast look more professional. If you’re not gifted with graphics, hire someone to do it for you.
• Flip Video Camera – If you want to venture into the world of video podcasts, I suggest getting a Flip Video Camera. They are easy to use, affordable, and uploading your videos is a snap!

Now, let’s talk about that 1st impression with setting up a booth at a craft fair! We all know the saying, “You never get a 2nd chance to make a good 1st impression”, right? Well, it rings true in selling as well! First of all, if you follow some of these same checklist items as mentioned in the “What to Bring With You” post, you’re already half-way there because you are ORGANIZED. Have your booth set up well in advance before the show begins. That way you are not scrambling at the last minute while customers are now beginning to just walk on by.

Keep your prices clearly marked. Remember my “car sales” approach? Trust me, customers want to see the price immediately and not have to guess what the price would be because some will simply just not inquire.

If possible, you may want to consider making some of your items right in front of the customers. If you are selling jewelry for example, demonstrate the process you go through to make a particular piece. This method can work in many different areas of crafting and others may truly enjoy watching! And just think, you’ll be able to get something done at the same time! But be careful not to ignore the customer while working on your project. Be flexible enough to set it aside to answer questions, visit with the customer, and showcase some of your best-sellers.

Be positive! There is no doubt that you will get some who may come into your booth and you may hear whisperings of comments such as, “Ooh…I bet I could make that myself…” or “That’s nice, but she’s asking WAY too much for it. I could get that cheaper here….” Keeping positive and upbeat will create such a great feeling in that booth and both you and the customer wins when you can maintain a pleasant and courteous demeanor….no matter what. Be a professional- you will always, always get the “nay-sayers” but more often than not, you will find customers who are just excited to be a part of this whole experience and they will appreciate the extra effort you go to in being genuine in your approach to each of them. And smile!

Cover tables with floor-length tablecloths. This makes great storage space for your extra items and keeps the booth area look nice and neat. A solid color works best so it does not distract from your hand-made items. 

Dress professionally. As mentioned before, you are a professional. Wear comfortable shoes. If you have a company name on a shirt or jacket, wear it! If not, just keeping a modest and higher end casual style in your clothing choices will make you feel even more confident and approachable.

*What other tips might you have for making a great 1st impression? What has been you experience in implementing the suggestions mentioned in this post?

CraftBoom! is featuring another inspiring crafter,  Robin Lemon of Pillows of Lavender.

What is your art or craft?

Lavender Comfort Pillows for aroma and/or heat therapy

How did you get started and what made you realize it could be more than a hobby

I fell in love with lavender the scent and color;)

I made 2 pillows as gifts for my mother and mother inlaw in 2006 and they told 2 people, and they told 2 people, and so on…

Well, not exactly but that is sort of how  it all started.  They showed them to their friends or they bought some for friends and then their friends did the same.  I was keeping pretty busy with orders in addition to being a candle distributor at the time and wondered if I could indeed turn this into a business of it’s own. I always wanted my own gig instead of buying inventory from a company.   Orders continued to flow so I took the steps to become a business with it’s own affiliate program  in September 2008 .

How do you come up with your ideas for your projects?

A lot of designs and styles are born from customer feedback and requests or from me just playing around with my sewing machine.

How do you decide how to price your work?

I have a formula I use to cover my cost of supplies, labor and commissions to my “personal sales team members”. (I mean my affiliates.)

Are you using any websites like Etsy, Artfire, eBay, Twitter, Facebook, etc to promote your business?

I have  etsy and artfire accounts but I haven’t used them for my pillows yet.

I do have my own website with a shopping cart and blog.  Stocking all of these places with my items is one of my business goals.

I promote my business on facebook daily, I love facebook and it has proven to be beneficial for my business.  I update my status when I am working on something and now my personal FB friends are gaining interest in my items.   I twitter too!

What’s the most challenging aspect of your business and how to you conquer it?

Labeling makes me scream, not kidding ask my family.  I am a perfectionist when it comes to this  part of the biz. If it doesn’t sit well with me, I can’t use it.  The frustrations of printing with poor equipment and not having the proper software to work with is very discouraging to me.  So, I haven’t conquered it…yet.  Possibly one day soon I will purchase what I need to run things more smoothly or I’ll just give in and outsource it until then I just keep on screaming.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of your work?

Swimming in lavender lol seriously how can you go wrong being surrounded by the scent? Just knowing it’s all natural makes it all the more enjoyable.

I have no trouble relaxing or sleeping.  Also, the customer testimonies,  I love to hear the oohs and aahs.

I am very excited for this call! Jennifer is the host of Craft Lab and Stylelicious, seen on HGTV and DIY Network, as well as a founding member of the Austin Craft Mafia.

This call will be a GREAT learning experience, as Jennifer shares her tips on what she’s learned from her business (and helps you avoid mistakes!)

I hope you can join us for this AMAZING call! And bring your questions! This is your chance to interact with Jennifer and get feedback!

The call starts at 9pm Eastern. If you can’t make it, don’t worry. I’ll be recording it and will have the Mp3 recording ready to send out tomorrow.

You do need to be registered for Summer Biz Sessions in order to participate, and if you haven’t done so yet, you can register here: http://www.indiebizchicks.com/summer-biz-sessions.html

** P.S. The price says $14.95 but this week you will only be billed $10! So definitely grab this while you can!

Customer service is crucial in any line of work. But I’d also add that customer appreciation is a key ingredient in providing the first. Today I am going to share just a few, simple ideas of what you can do show appreciation towards those who give you business as well as why showing appreciation to those who work with you is also of great value.

And to help guide us through, I’m going to give a simple acronym that will mean a lot more by the end of reading this post. When it comes to customer appreciation, I say, “GO & DO!”

G- GENUINE APPRECIATION: One fact of life is that everyone appreciates being appreciated. And when that appreciation is genuine and sincere, then it can move mountains. Not trying to be overly dramatic, but I say this because it can’t be over-emphasized too much.  Being very specific in your comments helps the other person to know that you really noticed something special and you wanted to share that with them. Chances are that because of what you have shared, the customer, co-worker, or employee will be that much more likely to continue doing great things because they know that YOU know them.

O- ORGANIZE A SYSTEM: You want to organize a system in your business which puts customer service and appreciation your #1 priority. You can have the best marketing system in the world in place, the greatest products, etc…and yet, if customer service fails, you will fail. Gaining a reputation in your industry of superb customer relations will leap you to the forefront. So do whatever is necessary to make sure that you can manage a great system of service with a smile.

and now…. DO!

D- Deal Effectively: The dictionary tells us that the word effective means “adequate to accomplish a purpose; producing the intended or expected result.”  Another meaning includes, “producing a deep or vivid impression; striking.” I like what both of these definitions say when it comes to customer service.  No matter the circumstance, it is always important to put yourself in “someone else’s shoes.” When dealing with an issue that comes up with a customer, always take a deep breath and think for a moment, “What would I do if I were in their position? How would I feel?” Then find out what may have gone wrong and do everything you can quickly and effeciently to help resolve the issue.

It reminds me of a time when a customer was very upset and wrote to YouCanMakeThis.com about a problem she was having with a download. The email sent was, let’s just say, “less than nice” in every way. Kim, the owner of YCMT, rather than being on the defensive side, decided that a phone call to the customer could be an effective way of helping her. Sometimes email can be very ineffective because of the time lapse and misunderstandings through writing. At the beginning of the conversation, this customer was extremely upset. Kim listened. She asked further questions. She helped her resolve what was occurring and even offered her a free product for the hassle it had caused her. I sat back and just admired the way Kim handled the entire situation….and I learned a lot from it. By the end of their phone conversation, they were both laughing about “mom stuff” and an hour later, the customer was sending photographs to Kim of her new babies! Talk about effective.

And finally…

O- Opportunities All Around You! Indeed, there are opportunities all around you to show your appreciation! Take advantage of every one of them! Offer discounts or other special offers to repeat customers. Write a personal email to thank them. With those who work for you, perhaps make an “out-of-the-blue” phone call to let them know what a great job they are doing and ask them for their input with how the business is going and what ideas they might have to help. Send a thank-you note in the mail along with a giftcard to ice cream for their family at the local ice creamery. What a fun surprise! No need to wait for a birthday or other special occasion…just do it and the smile will last for days for both you and the person on the receiving end!

So what do you think? I’d love to hear your thoughts as well as other ideas you might have for showing your appreciation!

 A Friend: First and foremost, bring help with you! Don’t think for a minute that this is something you can do entirely on your own. Running a booth is a constant juggling act, so having your “right-hand man” is key to having not only success, but everything is more enjoyable when you can share it with others! Having a 2nd person to take payments is a great asset so that you re fully available to answer questions and show your products. It’s also valuable for transporting items, being able to take a restroom break, or even grab a lunchtime meal.  This person also becomes your “cheerleader” to help support your efforts throughout the day! I promise, you will be so grateful if you can find that special friend or family member to help you on the big day.

 Your Products: How many you ask? That is a good question. Bring what you can, but make sure you have a sign-up list available for those who would like to special order.

 Bags for Customers: Shoppers need bags! There are a number of resources on line of how to obtain bags, but one of the best resources may be in your very own area!  Before doing a show several years back, I went to our local drugstore as I knew their bags did not carry the individual store’s name. Instead there was a rose and I figured if I could get them at a good price, it really didn’t matter what was on the bag! So I went in and asked the manager if I could purchase some bags from them and indeed they did let me! The cost was unbelievably cheap and I now was ready to take my bags with me to the booth!

 A Possible Credit Card Machine: If this is doable, you may want to seriously consider opening up this method of paying to customers. By doing so, you are offering a convenient service to them. If you don’t, you may lose some potential buyers. I say this not to scare you, but perhaps intrigue you by looking into this option more seriously. It not only makes your booth look even more professional, but it is also a much safer route to go rather than accepting personal checks. You must obtain a merchant account in order to offer this, so be sure to check with your bank on how to do this. Taking credit and debit cards can really boost your sales!

 Your Money Center : Some craft fair organizers provide these for you and some do not, so be sure to check into your options. The small table is a great place to set up your money center. Along with this, don’t forget your calculator, a receipt book, a sales tax chart, cash box or machine, and the credit card machine if you go that route. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to bring change! A copy of your sales tax certificate and your business license to hang up in your booth is also a nice touch.

 A Small Cooler: Bring some snacks and bottles of water to keep you at your peak performance all day. You may easily get worn down if you wait too long before taking a break. Sometimes a small snack is just the right energy boost you need!

 Office Supplies & Other Misc.: These include: pens, stapler, tape, a garbage bag, sales tax chart for your area, extra price tags, markers, business cards and brochures, tape, your cell phone, a camera so you can document this fun day, and possibly some candy in a bowl. Don’t believe for a second that the candy is just for the children! The grown-ups love it just as well!

 Any Hang Tags or Care Instructions: If you’re offering any item for sale that requires special instructions, be sure to include those attached to your products. Your customers will truly appreciate your efforts.

 Tissue or Newspaper: If you have any items that are fragile, you’ll want to be sure to have these on hand to help package the items in the customers’ bags.

 Shelves: If possible, see if you can find some shelves that you can put onto your tables. Keeping items at different levels is more pleasing to the eye. So lift! Keep the booth interesting by doing this. Crates and stacks of blocks also work well with linen cloths draped over.

 Company Name Sign: Make it big and make it something special. If you have a website, be sure to include that on your banner as well.

 A Sign Up Sheet: This will help make future contacts for your business. A name and an email is a perfect way to contact interested customers in the future and keep them updated of new products and upcoming shows.

What items do you take with you when selling at a craft fair? Did I leave anything off the list that you would suggest?

I LOVE being able to work from home. For me, there’s nothing like it. But doing so presents some challeges as well. That is, that there are certain times during the day when I need to be at the computer or on a conference call. Because of this, I am always on the look-out for fun activities for my children to do right beside me.  

And whether it’s answering an email or just loading the dishwasher for the upteenth time, we all need ideas on how to keep our little ones busy while you are too!

So today I’m going to share an idea with you that your kids will love! It involves SCISSORS! Just be careful that they don’t love it too much, that a locke of hair comes off!

It’s real easy, too. Ready?

Compile some old magazines together that I’m sure you have lying around your home! 

Give your child a pair of blunt-ended scissors. I always make sure my children are sitting down when using scissors and I watch carefully.

Instruct your child to find pictures of faces in the magazine. You want them to find a mouth on one face, some eyes from another face, and even a nose from a completely different face! Oh, they’re going to have fun with this!

Carefully cut out each one and then glue onto a separate piece of paper.

And that’s it! Here are a couple of end results from my children when they did this activity!

Isn’t that fun? They’ll have a ball trying to find all the different body parts to make their “new” person!

Having your children cut with scissors is an important skill to learn. The hand-eye coordination it takes to maneuver the cutting motion is often taken for granted and so this is a great way to give them an experience with scissors.

Children also enjoy cutting out objects that they like and making a collage. My 6-year-old loved just making a simple collage from pictures of trucks, basketball hoops, and his favorite foods! Even my 2 1/2 year-old can be entertained for quite a while by simply cutting paper.

I’d love to hear any ideas you do with your little ones when you’re busy!

Here are a few ideas:

1. Offer a wide range of price points. Make sure everything is clearly marked. Potential customers want to know immediately how much something costs. I like to call it the “Car Sales” approach. I don’t know about you, but one of the things I don’t like when I am looking for a car is not being able to find a price front and center in the window. If I see the price at first, then I immediately know what is within my budget and what is not. If I don’t see a price, it is a rarity that I will actually find the sales person to inquire about the price. I want something fast and easy. The easier it is to find a price, then the more likely I am to become more interested. Offering items at different prices that are clearly marked will bring more consumers into your booth. They are less likely to “just walk on by” because it is obvious if they’ll be able to find something in there that fits their price range.

2. Combine items. Pair items together that, if sold separately, would individually be priced a little higher. But be sure to advertise to customers that if the items are sold together, the price is lower. Customers will feel they have received great value for their purchase. And they should, too! You’ll make more money with a higher transaction value. It’s a win-win for both the buyer and the seller.

3. Get creative with your sales! Here are just a few ideas of what you can do to boost your sales!

• Include a small, free gift with a minimum purchase amount.
• “Buy one, get one at 50% off” sales.
• “The more you buy, the more you save” kind of sale. For example, if they purchase $50 worth, then they could receive 10% off their entire order, or if they purchase $100 worth, then they may receive 20% off their order.
• Offer free personalization whenever possible. Many are coming to these shows for that one-of-a-kind, unique gift to give. Personalizing something shows exactly that. They won’t be able to find that at a big chain store! So if possible, personalize! You might even think about taking pre-paid orders for items to be personalized at home later for pick-up.

Pricing can be tricky, but each time you sell, you will learn so much. Ask friends and family for objective and honest opinions. Keep an open mind and don’t be defensive. Talking with them can be very helpful. Discussing these things with fellow crafters both online and around your community can also be beneficial.

What are some ideas that have worked for you in helping to move your product line?

The first part of this series is: How I organize myself in my Craft Business: Part 1 – Paper work.

I think one of the trickier things about running your own business is finding a working balance for your time because there’s never enough of the stuff!! Because a lot of you work from home you are saving loads of time (and money) not having to commute to work, but working from home and being your own boss can have the effect of making you far more lax with ourselves than say a grouchy boss or floor manager would be. So it’s up to us to enforce a bit of discipline and management upon ourselves. Doing this will increase business efficiency, give us focus, and free up time for ourselves and our families – blimey! it sounds really quite good doesn’t it?

Various Craft Business Tasks

• Marketing – Social media on the web, contributing to forums, blogging, creating promo stationary, newsletters, and submitting to sites/magazines/blogs.
• Inventory – designing inventory, building up stock levels, obtaining supplies to build inventory, processing inventory for your shop (photography, uploading to site etc. etc)
• Customer Care – answering enquiries, emails, phone calls, letters, etc.
• Admin – paperwork and accounting
• Selling/processing Inventory – packing orders, selling through craft fairs/parties/shops

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In an ideal word we would all have paid help to assist us with these different tasks, but as a majority of us are one man bands we have find ways to effectively divide up our day/week/month to get these jobs done. This is how I try (my darndest) to manage my days/weeks/months:

A typical U-Handbag Day:

• AM (8-9.30) – BIG mug of coffee, computer on, check emails and flag the most urgent ones (my inbox has fangs and I can only cope with so many a day, but I do try my very best). I answer the most urgent emails and make To Do lists from those emails as appropriate.
• AM (9.30 – 11) – Process any new stock or put new deliveries into my shop. Taking photos, photo editing, pricing up items and creating product descriptions for new items. Unpacking deliveries for the shop and adding them to stock inventory. Have a bit of a fight crushing all the boxes in the yard…
• AM (11- 12.30) – print out invoices from shop orders and pack orders.
• PM (12.30 – 1.30) blogging and social media. I try to blog most days (I know I haven’t been doing so on this blog so here are my wrists…). I blog because I love it, it’s a great marketing tool, and to be honest I do feel a bit lonely for crafty company at times. Once you start blogging and social media it is something that should be maintained on a regular basis for it to be effective.
• PM (1.45 -2.15) – Lunch – usually a bowl of soup and a crappy afternoon soap
• PM (2.30 – 3) – Check inventory stock levels and create supplies orders if necessary. Order supplies if necessary
• PM (3 – 4) – Another hour of answering emails.
• PM – (4 -5) – Print out invoices from shop orders and pack orders (if there are anymore) and take orders to post office to catch last post
• PM (5.30 – 6) – Tea and cake and admin (what joy!)
• PM (6 – 6.15) – another tea and housekeeping; tidy up office and store room, check that we are OK for stationary and packing materials.

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A typical U-Handbag week; in a week I would have hoped to have achieved:

• 6 blog posts between my 2 blogs (yes, I know, I know, I promise I will be here more often)
• To have selected around 8 items in the shop to be on special offer for the week
• Posted and packed all customer orders on the same business day. We pride ourselves on doing this
• Research and development for at least 5 future project ideas: for items to sell in the shop, for future blog posts, for future bag designs for magazine submission, for future bag designs to model new product in shop. It doesn’t matter if most of these ideas don’t see the light of day; I just try to think of new ideas to focus myself and to try to better understand my market, and I like doing it!
• At least 3/4 of my inbox dealt with (in varying amounts). It never is 100% empty (waaah!) I have given up stressing out over that.

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A typical U-Handbag month; in a month I would have hoped to have achieved:

• Stocked 4 -8 new and different product lines in the shop
• Submitted a bag design and tutorial to the magazine I write for
• All month-end supplier invoices paid
• Items which are not selling so well, or end of line items, or 2nd quality items moved to the Clearance section of my shop
• More work on my Research and Development

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My Time Management Top Tips:

• Try to drink the best quality tea and coffee you can afford and then drink less – all that time spent making and drinking tea and then you end up eating more Krispy Kreme donuts…baaad!
• Try to attend to one task at a time until the task is finished. You’ll be more thorough, focused, and make less mistakes. Didn’t a wise beardy old man once say “the man that chases two rabbits won’t catch one”?
• Try to group similar tasks and then try to attend to them in a day or parts of a day. For example you could have a admin (urgh!) and a housekeeping day, or a stock take and supplies ordering day, or a marketing, blogging, and social media day etc. etc. etc.
• Try to set up an ACHIEVABLE to do lists or a daily/weekly schedule and tick off the tasks as they get done. If you are a nice boss you can treat yourself to a tasty Maple Krispy Kreme when you complete your tasks. Do this even if you think there is very little to do otherwise there is a good chance that even your few jobs won’t get done because you have ended mooching about on the internet (yes, am guilty!)
• Try to set yourself reasonable time limits for your tasks and stick to them. This will help you stay focused on your task until completion (and hopefully prevent you from mooching on the internet….).
• Try to impose working hours on yourself. I find this one very tricky because I LOVE my job. When your working day (or working time slot) is over, then it’s over. Try hard not to sneak back to your computer, or make a little something, or do some R & D for your business. Working out of hours may seem largely harmless, but it’s not very good for you in the long-run. You need to treat yourself, have time with your family and friends, and get some rest. Doing this will make you and all around you happier and you will find it easier to stay fresh and focused when you are working

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We should all be at it! Saving time is soooo important. Great Scott! Even Doc is doing his bit!

So to start I am going to tackle Craft Business organization. I am going to do this in parts because there are a few organisational areas of running a business that need looking at in turn (at it will make it all look less scary). Spend a bit of time each day staying organised and it will only benefit your business, help you to remain focused, and far less stressed out!

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Yep! Like; I’m on top of it!

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Different types of business paper work & what to do with all:

• Invoices/receipts for all of the materials that you buy for your business - and this means every single thing you purchase to run your business; from a pearl button to a laptop, from a weaving loom to the phone bill. Be absolutely strict about keeping every one of your receipts. Keep all unpaid invoices in date order in one place to help you plan and prepare your budget to get them paid. When they have been paid store them in date order newest first. A big lever arch file is great for this job because after you have sorted them in date order they won’t move around and become unsorted. As for book keeping I can’t say much about that because I’m a maths dummy so I have a nice friendly account to do all of that for me
• Invoices/receipts for sales you have made in your business - because my business is online sales only I have access to all sales receipts from day 1 to the present day. I usually don’t need them to work with them, but every now and again a customer will call up and say ‘x was missing from my order can you check it out?’ so I can look up their invoice and fix the problem. It’s good to keep hold of sales invoices (at least for 3 months) because besides helping you to tally up your weekly sales figures, they include useful information like the customer address (so you can with permission include the customer in a newsletter campaign), you can also read through your sales to get a feel for what products are popular and not so popular in your shop.
• Supplier catalogues and price lists- sometimes these things are flipping hard to get hold of, other times you get sent a forest of them! Get organised and store the ones you use in a file or a magazine rack, store them in order of materials type, and throw outdated catalogues away.
• Business cards – staple the suppliers card to the relevant cover of the supplier catalogue. As for the other cards try writing a little note the back of each business card stating why the person is important to you and then store in a Rolodex in materials type (or business) type and in alphabetical order.
• Sketches, product development, and craft business ideas - it is on scraps of paper that ideas which will rock the world are born, but only if they DON’T get left in your jeans and put in the wash. What I do is carry around an A5 sized Moleskine with me wherever I go. Should a flash of inspiration occur on the train or at home I can record all of my bag designs, all of my ideas for moving my business forward, blog post ideas, business to do lists all in one place. And no, I have never ever mislaid my Moleskine; it’s not an option. I have gotten through 8 of these books now and I keep them all safe because I look through them every now and again as often the old ideas are just as important as the new ones. Store all sketches, inspiration images such as magazine rips, photos fabric swatches, design notes, and other material samples in a way that makes sense to you. This might be on a big mood board, all a big sketch book, or in a folder. Then you can leave part-developed ideas and return to them later to then develop them to fruition. This is all vital because we all spend so much time designing, day-dreaming, and researching and if we you don’t store all of these plans properly we are wasting a precious lot of time and maybe mislaying ideas which could have had the potential to become business dynamite!

• How to take and edit professional looking photos of your craft products tutorial
• Ways to create buzz about your craft products on the big Craft Websites
• Crafting Heroes interview with Alicia Paulson of Posie gets cozy
• 10 things you’ll need to start selling your crafts online
• Crafting Heroes interview with Amanda Soule of Soule Mama
• Starting up your craft business – Feel the fear and do it anyway
• What to do when people say your handcraft is too expensive
• Ways to market yourself & your craft (on the cheap)
• Hellooo I’m Here!!!! Ways to market yourself and your craft (for free)
• Copyright – ways to protect your content from being stolen
• Crafting Heroes interview with Amy Butler
• Crafting Heroes interview with Amy Karol of Angry Chicken
• Fabulous links and books for your craft business

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I couldn’t think of suitable pic to go with this post so I thought this one would do as a close 2nd . Yummy

This time the I’m featuring the lovely Amy Butler. I think it would be fair to say that for most all of you this amazing lady needs no introduction, but just in case there are one of two of you who do; Amy is an incredibly talented fabric and pattern designer and she also is the author of several hugely popular craft and design titles. Known for her friendly and clear pattern writing, Amy has helped make sewing hip and accessible to a whole new generation of sewists and her gorgeous fabric designs have a huge and loyal fan base. However, for all of her all talent and success Amy remains very warm, helpful, and generous to work with. Amy lives and works Ohio with her husband David, and her two beloved cats Pete & Birdie. In our interview Amy shares with us her experiences of starting up and running her own Craft Business.

I hope you enjoy the interview. The picture captions are all Amy’s words.

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“I’m sporting a vintage find from my favorite clothing store “Foot Loose” here in Granville. The color is delicious. “

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CraftBoom!: How long have you been in craft business?
Amy: 8 years.

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CraftBoom!: Where/how do you sell your items, and do you work from home?
Amy: I have a wonderful group of retailers and distributors who sell my fabric and sewing patterns as well as my paper crafts with K & CO.

My pattern business has grown and grown! We’ve literally run out of space in the lower level of my house. It was getting a bit tricky reaching over the cat boxes to secure batting for a quilt project! Everyone was patient, but we finally found the perfect home for Amy Butler Design. We rent a beautiful 1850s greek revival house in the heart of our village. It’s a 10 minute walk or 5 minute bike ride from my home. We moved my business in July and it’s been a terrific change for all of us. I still keep my home studio as does Dave. It provides me the time to concentrate on designing and stay focused.

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CraftBoom!: What made/inspired you to go into craft business, and what were you doing before?
Amy: I’ve crafted all my life, it’s something I’ve always loved doing for myself and I’ve always enjoyed making things for my friends and family. My business in craft started through my efforts as a contributing editor for Country Living magazine. I had designed and manufactured 2 sewing patterns and sold them through the magazine for a couple of years to accompany the ” how to ” stories I produced using my fabric collection. At that point I didn’t realize that I would turn the patterns into a business, I thought my sewing patterns would be a side project to compliment my illustration career. ( little did I know! )

After a couple of years, the magazine ended their fulfillment service and I was left with a strong demand for my patterns but no way to get them to customers. I researched avenues for marketing and selling my patterns. I asked several quilt shops and fabric stores where they would go to purchase patterns and similar products and they suggested I exhibit at the International Quilt Market. I rented my first 10 ‘ x 10 ‘ booth and ever since then everything has fallen into place.

“The Birdie Sling is a great beginner project.” New pattern available soon

David and I have had our Art of the Midwest studio since 1992. Our business started out of necessity because we wanted to move back to Ohio to be with our families. Prior to our move home I was a creative director at Hallmark Cards for their paper entertaining products and Dave was an art director at River City Studios. When we moved home and started our studio we each did a lot of different jobs to make ends meet. Dave did freelance graphic work and I picked apples and painted surface designs that I sold through an ex- Hallmark friend.We had one vehicle and Dave needed that to get into the city while the only job I could get in walking distance in the country was at the local orchard! At night I painted and sewed.

Over time Dave wrangled me into doing drawings / illustrations for his projects and we ended up doing a lot of fine art exhibits together and my confidence in illustration grew. Through the years that followed we built up a graphic design and product development business where we built product collections and the marketing support for various brands. All the while both Dave and I had secured a national illustration rep and I began to do illustration full time. We began buying and renovating homes and getting heavily into gardening. That’s about the time we met Country Living and we started producing freelance lifestyle stories for them around 1997.

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“The customisable Laptop Case is very simple and super functional. I love using mine. The audiophile in me had to have an mp3 case too.” New pattern available soon.

Every life and working experience has led me to each step that I needed to take to find the career piece that truly makes me happy. For me, my road started 20 years ago in art school and I’ve been in graduate school ever since! I always encourage everyone to respect and appreciate all of your experiences. You begin to learn more about yourself and how to make yourself happy. You learn to trust your instincts and follow your passions confidently.

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CraftBoom!: How did you finance the start-up of your business?
Amy: We started with the money in our pockets when we moved from Kansas City back to Ohio. I believe we had $ 1,000. We squeaked by month by month for a couple of years as we slowly built up our resources. There was one instance when we had to borrow money from Dave’s Mom Vert. We were strapped and didn’t have the $400 to fill the propane tank! She loaned us $ 4,000 to help us cover our bills for 2 months and we paid her back $ 5,ooo a year later! We’ve always been a cash business and we used our sweat equity and talents to continually reinvest in the studio. A greater percentage of all the money we made and still make goes back into the business. It’s always served us well.

“This is the cover for my NEW sewing book ” Little Stitches for Little Ones “with Chronicle! The little fella on the cover is sporting the kimono style PJs project. Little Stitches will be available in September 08. It’s chocked full of fun projects for Mom and baby 0-12 mos.”

“Cheeky Monkey Laundry / or Diaper keeper. Cute- cute!”

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“This is a wonderful dress and cute bottoms set. Super easy to make!”

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CraftBoom!: What things do you do to market your business?
Amy: The avenues for marketing my business have evolved over time. One element never changes and that’s our drive for putting ourselves out there. Dave helps me with all of my promotional materials. He does my photography and designs my collateral. We’re a great design duo. I love making every piece of my business sing. Every detail matters, especially how I share my products with others.

The internet had been a huge component in the growth of my business. The web site is an incredible tool for me. It’s a great platform for sharing my brand story and my products as they develop. It’s most important because it’s an incredible vehicle for inspiring others and making a connection with folks who enjoy craft as much as I do. Another huge component in marketing my business has been exhibiting at an industry trade show. The international quilt market has been pivotal in the making connections with my retailers and their customers. It’s been a very powerful vehicle for promotion. There’s nothing better than meeting your retailers and getting the opportunity to share my products with them. No one promotes you, better than YOU!

I’ve had some incredible press opportunities that have helped me find my audience and have helped me get to know my community. From the get go, I’ve tried my best to be helpful and work alongside editors in both trade and consumer magazines. My experiences over the years have given me a few advantages in terms of working with magazines an editors. It’s that one thing leads to the next scenario again! Staying in the flow of things and paying attention to opportunities that are a fit is key.

“These images are from my new promotional pieces for my fabric and pattern launches. Dave and I worked on these together for Quilt Market initially and we’ll be able to incorporate them on our web site soon. Midwest Modern is my new quilting weight fabric and August Fields is my new home dec collection (Jul 08). I’m also super excited about releasing my ‘ solids’ lines for both home dec and quilting fabric!”

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CraftBoom!: What things do you know now that you wish you knew from the beginning?
Amy: I don’t really have anything that I’d change. I think my experiences have all been positive whether they be challenging or not. I’ve needed to go through them in order to grow and learn. You have to experience everything first hand to make the best, most educated decisions. Sometimes you hit the mark and sometimes you don’t. That’s part of doing business and it keeps things interesting! I’ve made plenty of mistakes, but I feel they happen for a reason so that I can learn to make better decisions in the future and become a better person. Struggles help define who you are, build character and help you appreciate your life. Through the process, though, I have learned that it is important to let go and not take things too seriously or stretch yourself too thin. Save time for yourself to nurture your creativity. If you fulfill yourself, you’ll have lots more to give to everyone else… giving is the best part!

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CraftBoom!: What do you love most about running your own craft business, and what do you like least?
Amy: As far as my studio and business goes, I love the creative freedom I have in both working for myself and working on products that allow me to explore my passions and share them with others. The most challenging aspect for me has been balancing creative time with business.

“A promotional piece for my fabric and pattern launches.”

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CraftBoom!: What advice would you give to newbies who want to start their own craft business?
Amy: The first step is to focus in on one or two projects / products that you feel strongly about, projects that you feel you have a passion for. Often these jewels are right in your lap, just look around your studio and pay attention to what you spend most of your time on. Then make up actual samples or prototypes and share them with friends and family to get their feedback, take it a step further and show your product to local shops. There are blogs like U-Handbag’s blog that support creative communities where you can share your projects with other like minded folks, swap ideas and build a network.

Try starting out by creating a simple on line shop like an etsy or ebay store. This is a great way get an immediate response and to start to establish a strong customer base. If you are interested in selling your products wholesale, it would be helpful to research wholesale trade shows and find a market that fits your products, search for a sales rep or set up a booth yourself. I found that exhibiting at a major wholesale show made all the difference in the world as far as getting exposure and meeting retailers and distributors who would potentially sell my patterns. You also receive the most bang for your buck in terms of expense. Trade shows are an investment, but truly the best way to get the most exposure for the minimum cost. These shows also expose you to loads of resources and it’s a great way to meet peers in your industry whom you can swap ideas with.

Everyone has their own unique way of approaching their business. However, know that whatever you decide to do is just right for you and that’s the most important thing to remember. There is no black and white way for sure, so much of how I have built my business is by trial and error and trusting my instincts. I think that every experience you have is valuable and you learn so much as you go. Being true to yourself will naturally establish your unique voice. That’s the biggest piece of advice I can give you. Don’t be afraid to be yourself. Everything will fall into place and evolve naturally. Be consistent from how your products look and feel all the way to your web site, advertising and marketing material. Everything you do should feel consistent in every way.

Set about your goal, don’t worry about set backs, focus on only the things you can control, don’t worry about people who dissuade you or don’t understand you…move on to the next! Be honest in EVERYTHING you do and you’ll never have to worry about yourself or your business. And if it stops being fun, do something else, even if it’s for a short respite. With your passion and creativity, you can make anything happen. It’s really true. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you lack passion, confidence and drive
the road to a fulfilling creative life is short. It’s all about loving what you do.

“This is my window at the Mikasa showroom on Madison Avenue in NYC! I just launched my first tableware collection with Mikasa two weeks ago during the Tabletop market. It was an incredible experience! The entire line will be available this fall.”

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CraftBoom!: Are you satisfied with the income that your craft business brings?
Amy: Yes, it’s been incredible to watch our business grow! For David and I our focus has always been about creating and the cash has followed. We’ve always known that we’d be ok and all the funds we need will be in place. With this in mind we’ve tried to make sound financial decisions and respect our resources, not take them for granted. From the get go we always believed in what we were doing and our faith and responsibility has never failed us. Seriously, if you build it, they will come. It’s that sincere affirmation and conscientious decision making that will always support you.

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CraftBoom!: What are your plans for future growth?
Amy: I don’t have any long term goals in what I want to achieve specifically. I want to grow conscientiously while I’m building relationships with other companies to crossover into other design and product categories. I’d love to see this grow as well as my core business focus, my patterns and fabrics with Rowan . I want to keep designing, enjoying and sharing the process, and along the way continue to evolve sustainability in the products I make or work with.

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Thank you so much for your interesting and informative interview Amy. It’s so obvious that put a lot of love into what you do and that has been a big factor in making your business grow. Best of luck with everything that you do. We’re very much looking forward to your August visit to Twisted Thread in the UK. Woo! Amy’s visiting the UK la la la!