♥ Heart Felt Thoughts about Handmade...

This is the busy production time of year for both Calico and Bittersweet. It's also my favorite time. After Christmas, I begin working on new spring creations for both small handmade companies.

It feels as though my winters have been spent creating forever. In fact, I can't recall when I didn't entertain the idea. I guess 14 years of making stuff for a living would be considered a long period of time. I am very fortunate to have such a soulful occupation. I try to count my blessings each and every day.

I was thinking the other day about how I've always been so easily bored doing the same thing. I have never had a long attention span. Although I'm kind of doing the same thing, creating the new spring lines. I never get bored  because I'm allowed to design new ones!

I began to think about how each year I contemplate the ideas and how I employ and implement each one.

A considerable amount of time goes into marketing of each item as well as packaging.
In fact, packaging, presentation and marketing are definitely the top three ingredients for making or breaking your sales.

Everything I make needs to stand out from the crowd, so to speak. Price points are also important.  Depending where you live, pricing can be tricky. I live in the Midwest.
I became more aware of price points after owning a shop for 5 years.

Living in the Midwest does have its downfalls when it comes to selling handmade.
Handmade just hasn't gotten the respect it deserves in my part of the world. Those are personal thoughts, but ones I believe to be true from experience.
So, how do you combat such nonsense? What are some tricks from the trade?

I would say the top three components in running a successful handmade business must include the following.

Passion, No 1
Persistence, Always
Perseverance, Never give up, EVER!
There are going to be times you think you should, but that is when you should begin seriously thinking about not quitting.
I forgot a very important component!
Always listen to those little voices and trust your judgment. If you make a wrong move, which you will, then you learn from that experience and move on. Don't dwell on it.

The experience will help you to make wiser decisions on down the road.

There you have it. My personal advise for running a successful handmade business.

Enjoy caring and sharing winter days.

Jill 00