Online Seller Experience, Small Business Success Stories
… I sell stationery items and craft supplies like; washi tape, stickers, paper, and other ephemera used in scrapbooking and journaling. I search for unique items but I am drawn to vintage looking supplies. I just started designing my own washi tape and I draw my designs from vintage cloth patterns, floral elements, or antique books and paintings.
… For the past few years, I was making cards for friends and family. The reaction was always “WOW, did you make this card?” The feedback was more than positive and most of my friends encourage me to start selling, so I decided to give it a try. In the begging selling on Etsy was more like a mini income from my hobby. Now is a side-job, which I hope someday I will able to turn into a full-time job.
… Mercer Leathers was created out of a passion for luxury goods. When the opportunity to purchase a large inventory of beautiful Italian leathers came to light I immediately jumped at the chance to get in the business. I have always been involved in Home Design and leather is one of the upholsteries I have used in my homes over the years. I believe your home should be your sanctuary.
… I do ship internationally and charge just enough to cover the postage. It can take up to 3 weeks for a parcel to arrive in America so it’s a slow process. The majority of my business is in the UK and for that, I do not charge postage. The packaging is key to a good buying experience so I take care to make my packages unusual and beautiful.
… Cocktail Critters focuses on hard enamel lapel pins, fashioned from gold/silver/black-plated metal. All of the designs are my own, from sketching to illustrating, to prototyping and approvals with my manufacturing team. My products focus on a unique combination of popular modern and traditional cocktails, with animals from around the world.
… I sell handmade Moroccan carpets, they are made by hand and natural wool with 100% natural materials such as saffron, henna, and natural colors such as Indico, a naturally blue color …. and also herbs and all of this. Wash it three times and work in the sun for five months more or less, and after that, it is ready for the market and sale.
… We sell hand headed mask lanyards. The materials we use are a 7 strand beading wire, seed beads, and xl large lobster clasps. What makes us stand out is we offer a variety of colors (over 50 options) and we use an extra-large 21mm clasp that easily fits over the straps of any mask straps and is very easy to manipulate. We also thought the larger clasps would make it much easier for younger children to use.
… We only buy and sell hand-woven Turkish and Anatolian rugs. They are all hand-knotted, made from organic wool, mohair, and cotton. All the products we buy and sell are woven at least 30 years ago, which makes all of the vintages. We cannot say that these rugs are our creations, however, preparing them for sale, washing them, cleaning them, repairing them could be seen as a part of the creation process.
… Hand-crafted products are expensive to make because of the time that goes into making them. In addition, the UK guidelines are really strict in quality control of wood products, so we can’t and don’t want to cut costs there. But we hope when volumes increase we will be able to cut some of the other costs such as transportation and storage etc.
… I’m actually retired on disability. I am able to spend as much time as I want developing my store. Currently, I spend my day evaluating new fashion design programs and I believe I found one that I want to purchase next year for my store so that I can expand my clothing line and into jackets and other types of clothing and accessories. I manage my time by setting short term attainable goals for my business.