Well, LOTS going on for the business. I know I have been lack on the finance front - there will be an update at the end of the month.
I buy a ton of fabric - I mean a whole lot. I use fabrics in my quilts, fabrics in my bags, fabrics in pretty much everything I do.
Well, up to now, I have been paying retail for all my purchases. Yesterday, I got to thinking as I was about to make another purchase for fabric, that I should get a wholesale account for my favorite fabrics.
As I got more into it, for the ones I really like, there are beginning purchase amounts - $250 to $1,000, then no minimums after that. So, I would have a TON of fabric up front, but then could just buy what I needed after that.
Then, I figure I have to buy the bolts - there are 8 to 15 yards on a bolt. That is a lot of one kind of fabric. People are always asking me where I get my fabric though. What if I buy what I want for my customers, then sell what I don't use?
Hmmm, interesting.
So, I talk to a friend that is a quilter - like competition winner quilter. She thinks this is a great idea, but that I need a large on-line presence and to make sure I have different things than one local quilt store. They are more traditional, but do have some modern fabrics.
I am not at the level of going to a full on fabric store. This would be selling what I have left over from my work - at least at first.
This friend suggested I do Etsy, but I dislike Etsy A LOT. I have a website with a store and could easily put these fabrics on there, but how do I get people to go to the website?
Interesting things to think about - the other thing is if these companies sell less than a bolt, I may be able to use all the fabric without getting into the selling of fabric thing. It could just be there just in case.
Business is such an amazing, organic thing - constantly changing and growing and shrinking. I have heard that if you have a nervous feeling in your stomach, then you are doing the right thing. Well, I am having a controlled nervous pit in my stomach - not too much, but lots of excitement!
I have been in pain for the past couple of days, so I have mainly done research and plan out the fall. I need to get to work tomorrow and finish a quilt, then make 3 pillows and start building up inventory for the next show. Busy, busy!
one husband......four kids......debt......sewing...... saving......cooking......yoga......sweet......chaos......life......
One way to bring traffic to your website would be setting up a business instagram. Take pretty shots of the fabrics and quilts, then use a ton of hashtags. I was against ig for a long time, but decided to turn my hobby into a business, and recently started an instagram account. I hate hashtags, but I'll admit, my traffics and sales have doubled in the 30 days since! Just a thought. :) Curious about why you're against Etsy? That's where I'm currently set up, but I've been considering branching out with my own site.
ReplyDeleteI have an instagram account and did not think about that. I use the hashtags in a comment and that seems to be a good way to have them without clogging up the post.
DeleteMy beef with Etsy is not a strong one - just too much competition and I don't want to pay any more than I have to in order to make a sale. I have friends who have gotten the life sucked out of them on etsy - bad reviews for nothing, etc.
Since I am taking it slow - just selling what I don't use, I am ok with the website and Instagram. I have a good Facebook following as well. Plus, I have 7 shows coming up that I can market the sale of fabrics as well.
business instagram is a really good idea and also a facebook page for your business. social media can draw people to your website and sell from there which saves you listing fees.
ReplyDeleteI have had a Facebook Business Page for a couple of years now. I have a good following, but for the fabric, I need a different following. Instagram, I am only in about 6 months. It will come. The build is a slow one!
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