Refine Your Crafty Business to Get the Life You Want!

We have been blogging a bit about the state of the brick and mortar craft store and it is fair to say that times are changing. There was a time when a creative individual with a passion for knitting/beading/scrapbooking/etc. could open up a store with relative ease.  I opened my store that way...I loved to bead, wanted to spread the love, had a tolerant husband and some friends who were willing to go into business with me. Voila!  I was a retailer.  The rent was reasonable, customers were plentiful, competition was non-existent.  Life was GREAT!

...until it wasn't.  I lost my motivation.

Several competitors popped up and many were much better financed.  Customers became more demanding as the craft world became larger and the choices more plentiful.  My partners and I started squabbling. Internet stores began to appear and I recognized that the competition would  be an additional burden. The business took too much time away from my family.    My husband became less tolerant.   I felt frazzled and frustrated.  I was busier than ever, but seemed to be accomplishing less.  I was burnt out. My partners were burnt out.  Sound familiar?  It wasn't working any more and the bead shop was sold.  It was a happy day for all of us ---a great burden had been lifted from our shoulders, but only one friendship survived.

Running a successful retail business is not easy.  It takes a wicked amount of time, energy, focus, and money.  It is hard.  It is getting harder.  It is no longer enough to have a well stocked shop and a knowledgeable staff.  Today's Crafty Retailer must  master Social Media (if you are not on Facebook, GET on Facebook!), design inspiring classes, have an interactive e-commerce website,  plan promotional events, send out weekly newsletters, and more.  It is exhausting just thinking about it.

Many retailers are deciding that the personal sacrifice is no longer worth it.  I had an opportunity to speak with Kim Schweitzer, who recently made the decision to close her bead shop, EmMi Beads, in upstate New York.  Kim was a savvy retailer...she has a business background as well as a creative streak.  She opened her store 5 1/2 years ago and watched her business expand and grow over the years.  She was lucky to have a wonderful support team.  Her husband did her books, her artistic and bead loving daughter worked at the shop, and her mom was her right hand relative to operations..  She recently took on a larger space and business was good.  Unfortunately, life happens and Kim found that the demands on her time were growing exponentially.  Her daughter's interest understandably waned as she entered college, her father grew ill and her mother's focus was required elsewhere.  Kim believed that she was no longer able to be the mother/daughter/retailer that she wanted to be....her plate was beyond full and she "felt as though [she] was not doing a single thing well."  I absolutely know where she is coming from and I bet that you do, too.

The loss of her father was an awakening...we all experience that "Aha" moment where we come to grips with just how finite life is and Kim knew that something had to give.    She missed having lazy moments with her young son, longed for the joy of creative discovery, and  missed her life....so she decided to make different choices.  Kim conducted a priority triage and determined that the store was no longer a good fit for the life that she wanted to live.  She has no regrets.  She learned from her experience and has moved on, acknowledging that she simply "can't do everything and that walking away is a viable choice."

She is dead on!  One of the lessons that I learned after lots of bumps and bruises is that just because you CAN do something, it doesn't necessarily follow that you SHOULD.  Sometimes the smartest life decision is to close the business and feel good about it!  I was tickled when Kim reported that yesterday was eventful for her:  she had the time to paint her toenails and had learned to knit!  She was exhilarated by  her crafty accomplishment and said that it was a joy to feel the happiness that her customers felt.  Congratulations, Kim!

While some retailers are closing the doors, others are opting for Retail Lite.   Consider renting booth space in a store.  Jewelry Designer Sheryl Stephens of Cool Moon Beads has chosen that option.  Sheryl made the stunning necklace pictured at left and has experienced success in selling her designs, as well as bead inventory, by maintaining a booth at a local antique mall.  While she does not earn enough to support herself, she is able to contribute to the household income, and is fulfilling her creative desires, without sacrificing her life.  Way to go, Sheryl!

Others are sticking with Brick and Mortar, but are defining the terms.  I know one crafty retailer who closes the store on the spur of the moment to deal with a sick pet or to attend a child's school play.  It certainly annoys customers who have driven across town to make a purchase, but she is training them to call before they make the trip.

Life changes and the crafty retailer will transition to accommodate it.  My business has been in a state of flux for years!  Young children...my business needed to change.  Seriously sick dog...my business needed  to change.  Husband involved in a  new business...my business needed to change. Fortunately, the ability to choose something different is one of the coolest things about being a grown up!   I find that I am continuing to evolve.  While sales for my wholesale business have flattened with the economy,  I am getting more teaching opportunities, as well as more requests for retail kits.  Moreover, Swarovski recently asked me to join their Create Your Style Ambassador team, which is totally cool and provides wonderful exposure. It is all good.....the timing is excellent....my youngest child is heading off to college, my husband's business is growing, and I have more control over my time. 

Although I am no longer interested in brick and mortar retail, I am drawn to something more "Retail-Ish"  and am working on a retail website, Urban Stitch Studio.  It will serve as both a personal branding site for my workshops and will feature my own line of hand dyed fibers.   It is a work in progress and I would love your feedback.  Additionally, I have started a more personal blog to catalog some of my crafty adventures...please check it out.  Finally, I have a companion store on Etsy and will have my Facebook page up soon.  I started a Fiber Arts Guild a few days ago and will have our first get together at the end of the month.  WHEW! I am doing all of the things that I have been urging others to do for years.  It is slow going, but I have realistic expectations and am willing to move at my own pace in order to craft a retail business that will best suit my life. 

Want to join me?  We have an incredible group of women over on Facebook...exchanging information and feedback with Crafty Retailers from  the U.S. and abroad.  It is nice to feed off of the knowledge and experience of others, and even better when you do not have to re-invent the wheel.  If you are in retail and would like to participate in the dialogue, send me a friend request on Facebook with a request to join the group.  Please identify your store and website.  The group is closed, so the posts are only visible to group members. 

Retail success is all about the branding!

I am back from my hiatus and delighted to be here.  A comforting diet of Merlot and cookies---as well as the support of a good pal----kept me going as I adapted to new demands on my time.    Happily, humans are resilient  and with practice, I have learned to keep all of the balls in the air ...for the time being...well, most of the time, anyway.  Truth be told, things are blissfully under control for the moment....and I am tickled to be back in blog land.

My Fiber/Crystal business has become a  part-time endeavor as I focus more intensely on helping my husband get his new company, an office furniture business, off the ground. [ NOTE:  I said "Part Time."   We still love to sell fiber and crystal.   You can see our current special here.]

No doubt about it, the challenges of  this new business are a bit daunting.  The store is housed in a somewhat forlorn warehouse on a great street.   The carpet is a disaster.  The interior signage is non-existent.  The website is an embarrassment.  The office cubicles utilized by the staff--and visible to the public--are old, mismatched and in disrepair.  Did I mention that it is an office furniture business? 

The business hemorrhaged cash for many months, making Husband reluctant to spend money on marketing.  Since I am all about marketing, his reticence caused me a degree of anxiety.  Of course, as often happens, the delay proved to be a good thing.    We did not have a feel for our niche in the market until recently, so an early move toward branding would have been premature.  We needed the last few months to learn who we are as a business and to identify what we want to grow into over the next few years.

Part of the education came as a result of  research investigating the websites of Office Furniture businesses all over the country.  It was a real eye opener.  I learned of trade associations that I had never heard of, found new vendors, saw what product others were dumping, etc.  It was good exercise and I encourage every small business owner to do the same thing.  You might uncover an idea for a class, store promotion, or free pattern that would never have occurred to you.

One take away:  most office furniture web sites look exactly the same...each one indistinguishable from the next.   BORING!  Worse, most folks consider an office furniture purchase to be a chore, as well as an unwelcome expense.  Customers are not coming to our store for warm fuzzies, they are coming because it cannot be put off any longer.  Further, most of our competitors sell similar items at an identical price point and competition in this tepid economy is fierce.   Our target customer is looking for a bargain.  Sound familiar?

My current challenge is to develop a brand that is memorable even thought the  product is not.   After all, one more showroom with a sea of  wooden desks and one more website with pictures of even more wooden desks will simply get lost in a sea of mediocrity!  Ho Hum.   Accordingly, we are endeavoring to build a brand  that is a  informal and a bit charming, so that visitors remember the experience... 
          ...using virtually no cash!

In the immortal words of my former business partner......

I guess it is time to pull another miracle out of my ass.

No sweat...I am up for that! 

First, a quick fix to the interior:

I am building life size cut outs of "Mad Men" stylized "characters" to populate the sales floor.  Unexpected and fun.   Our signage will incorporate an old fashioned "typewriter" font to reinforce the vintage message.  We have created interesting vignettes -- previously non-existent--using typewriters and office supplies from the 1950's and 1960's to add interest to  the stuffy executive desks.  We are using vintage toys to inject playful pops of color to make the store even more engaging.  Remember the good old days?  The days when life was simple and people were honest and true?  Yup, that's us.  We even have plates of fresh cookies scattered about the place.

Second, a new website is under development.  It will reinforce the brand and will be tied to my new small business marketing blog (in the works) so that prospective customers will have a reason to come to the site, even if they aren't in the market for office furniture.  After all, we want our business to be "top of mind"  if and when the need for furniture does arise.  The same sort of marketing would work for you!  Consider offering free patterns on your site--and change them often--to keep your customers connected.

Third, beginning January 2011 we will be hosting monthly networking parties that will feature different speakers well versed in a subject important to small business owners.  January's speaker is a Collection Attorney, February's features a Commercial Landlord offering advice on how to renegotiate your lease, March is all about Web Site Optimization and so on.  We will serve wine and light appetizers and hope to build a sense of community.  Hmm...maybe folks will come in for warm fuzzies after all!
 
In short, we have been working hard and working focused and it seems to be paying off.  Last month was a profitable one, albeit a "so tiny you could hardly see it" kind of profit, but we were exhilarated. 

High five!

 
In the studio:

The last few months have been equally productive, from a crafty perspective.

I have been doing a whole lot of crochet and am also in midst of some fiber projects.  For those interested in a very simple introduction to felting, consider the simple felted headband with Swarovski embellishment pictured at left.  It is quick and easy....the perfect holiday Make and Take for bead or fiber stores.

 Check out the video tutorial:

I also finished a bright crochet pillow inspired by Lucy of Attic 24.  The ripple blanket  seen with it is based on one of her tutorials, as well.   Any fiber retailer who is unfamiliar with Lucy's colorful work is missing a wonderful opportunity to get customers thinking beyond the scarf.  She is a gem and has great free tutorials.

I even completed one of the UFOs that had been dogging me for months--yet another rooster pillow.  I love the way the velvet got all brainy looking after the wet felting. 

In other news:

Rosie the Three Legged Dog continues to chase squirrels and chickens, Cancer be damned.

As her adorable Veterinarian  --an Antonio Banderas look- alike--says in his equally adorable Spanish accent:

"The cancer, it will catch her, but it hasn't catched her yet, thanks God."

Thanks, God, indeed.

Does your Brand Identity need an Extreme Makeover?

Life is full of surprises.  My husband recently...and somewhat unexpectedly....wound up in the office furniture business.  The existing business has seen better days and my husband is a "turn around guy," so it could be a good fit.  One of the challenges facing him is to establish a brand identity that sets the business apart from the multitude of similar companies in the area.

True Confession:  Office Furniture isn't sexy.  Nope....I do not get excited by office furniture.  No disrespect intended to those whose fantasies include a solid mahogany work station---I am simply not an office furniture aficionado...to me, office furniture is kind of invisible.    A cherry veneer desk is a commodity item that can just as easily be purchased from Office Furniture Depot as Business Furniture Warehouse.  Nonetheless, when my husband asked me to jump start the marketing program, I was intrigued by the challenge and have found myself spending  time in an unfamiliar world.
 
  Funny thing is....as I walked the floor of the business it was easy to identify some of the problems.  The space is well stocked, spacious, and clean.  However, it is sterile and without personality.  Ho Hum.  I see craft stores like that all of the time!    Take a look around your shop.  What do you see?  Clean, well stocked, and easy to navigate fall far short of establishing a BRAND IDENTITY.

 What makes your store stand out from the competition?

Branding is about emotion---a successful brand identity will make people feel warm and fuzzy when they think about you.  It will make them get in the car and drive to  your store to make a purchase that could easily be made from an on-line competitor.  It will make them stop by when they are "in the neighborhood" just to see what you have going on in the shop.  It will make them recommend your store to friends and family. It will keep your cash register humming along!

 The branding process is multi-faceted.  It has to do with the clothes you wear, the product you sell, the look and tone of your store.   You are in a creative industry.  Your store should be "artsy."  A plethora of slat wall and beads hanging like little soldiers leave a bit to be desired.  Ratchet it up a notch!    Artful displays provide visual interest and creative inspiration.   Your windows provide a wonderful opportunity to showcase your brand.  No time to focus?   Put the word out that you are looking for display help.  Many colleges offer classes in retail merchandising....ask a professor to have the class adopt your window as a project. Alternatively, team up with a new charity each month and change the window display to showcase every charity.  Raise money for a cause and engage your customer base at the same time.  Don't forget to notify the press!

Craft store owners are not just in the creative industry, they are also in the fashion industry.  Bead store owners should show up at work wearing statement jewelry and dressed to sell.  Yarn store owners should be wearing killer knits.  You are the dream makers and you need to play the role!  Your job is to create an aura that people will want to emulate.   Incorporate that tone into every email you send and every event that you host.

Some businesses use "tag lines" on their websites, business cards, and letterhead to reinforce the brand identity.  Poco Creations and Beads in Winnipeg has a short but effective line:  "Poco...where every bead is a gem!"  It is cute and it is memorable.  Other businesses focus on a visual logo to further their brand identity.  Geico might have a little green lizard, but Alaska Bead Company has a cute little bead lovin' polar bear.

Retail success in 2010 is about establishing your brand identity and engaging with your community...whether you are selling craft supplies or office furniture!  Now if you will excuse me, I have some office furniture to rearrange............


In other news:

how 'bout a sparkly challenge to jump start your creativity?

I am looking for challenge participants from various backgrounds (beaders, quilters, stampers, scrapbookers, etc).  who want to play with some incredible Swarovski cupchain!  This special order product is a real treat.

          Show us what you can do with this spectacular sparkle!

Sew it, Glue it, Solder it, Alter it.....do whatever you want, just 

SHOW US WHAT YOU'VE  GOT!

We are looking for some crafty souls who are willing to think outside the box and meet an April 1 "picture of finished product" delivery deadline.   You will also be asked to take pictures of your work in progress along the way and offer a brief explanation as to technique.  Each participant will receive a selection of  the product pictured above as well as a thank you gift from Aussie Threads and Fibers.  Please send me an email with contact information if you would like to participate in the March Challenge.

Refine your Brand Identity to Enhance your Profitability!

Children all over America might be enjoying the waning days of summer, but their mothers are counting the seconds until the school bus starts making the rounds again! Summer vacation is a struggle for Mompreneurs.....you want to provide your child with a wonderful break from routine, but you still have a business to run. Many retail craft store owners put the business on cruise control June through August as they turn their attention to the family. You have to do it, but the reality is that the business suffers. You have a lot of catch up work this Fall!

Plan NOW to ensure that you get your share of the shrinking shopping dollar during the holiday season. Use this "lull before the storm" to take a clinical look at your business. Pat yourself on the back where you deserve it, but be merciless where you must. Consumers have a world of shopping choices today. The internet is cheap, easy, and fast. Your brick and mortar competitors are working hard to persuade your customers to shop with them instead of you.

What is the crafty retailer to do?

Take the steps necessary to ensure that Carly Crafter will get in her car and drive past your competitor to shop in your store!

One of the biggest challenges facing craft retailers today is the need to establish a clear and compelling brand identity. Many of the independent craft stores that I visit look like clones of one another. Seriously...they are "cookie cutter" identical. It is apparent that many buy from the same vendors and they stock "commodity" inventory rather than one of a kind pieces. Ho Hum. Face it: If it is the same stuff that can be found on-line and in the shop down the street, then it will have to be dirt cheap to attract clientele. Unfortunately, if you have to "give it away" to customers who are loyal only to price point, then it is a bad business model and you shouldn't be stocking it anyway!

A successful retail craft store needs to be a CREATIVE DESTINATION worthy of a customer's time and money! It must be a respite...an escape...an oasis from the mundane. Look objectively at your own store and ask yourself a few questions. Do you carry a product line that no one else carries? Do you offer innovative classes that cannot be found elsewhere? Does your brand evoke warm and fuzzy feelings that customers find irresistible? It is critical that you differentiate yourself from the competition. The wonderful qualities that make you unique must be consistently expressed in every single thing that you do: from extraordinary product to exemplary service, from clever business cards to compatible store signage, from a delightful store atmosphere to a winning employee culture. Your must be able to articulate your vision to your staff so that they understand your store brand and their responsibility for promoting it. Are you making the grade?

Steven Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, has been very inspirational to me and countless others. One of his life changing "habits" is to begin every journey "with the end in mind." The idea is that you should identify your destination so that all of your future actions will be taken with an eye toward achieving your goal. He describes an airplane pilot who operates pursuant to a specific flight plan in order to get from Point A to Point B. Weather considerations might force the pilot to alter his course temporarily, but as soon as is practical the pilot reverts to the original flight plan in order to reach his destination. The same is true for all of us! Success doesn't "just happen." Nope...the harder you work, the luckier you get! Define your goals and stay on course! You will deviate from the plan from time to time as you deal with family pressures, financial challenges and the like, but if you keep focused and get back on the path you will ultimately reach your destination.

I think back to my experiences as a young mother. My friend and I had children around the same time and we were determined to be the best mothers in the world. We read the books, attended "mommy and me" classes, and documented every giggle and burp. We were really good moms. We were certainly not like those OTHER mothers! We would always be patient and our precious progeny would never be seen in public with runny noses. I still remember the day I watched her tie a bottle to the crib, positioning it so that her infant could feed himself while she dealt with one of her other children. Mind you, this woman had four children under the age of four and it was a matter of survival...for everyone. Nonetheless, I was uncomfortable....propped up bottles and infants wriggling around searching for the nipple weren't in the plan! The point is, life sometimes gets crazy and things don't always work out as planned, but you don't give up. My friend was having a bad day and she forgot her "mother of the year" goals for the moment. However, she quickly got it together, jumped back on the path, and her kids morphed into productive, amazing adults who have managed to avoid therapy and jail time! In fact, despite having been seen in public with a runny nose or two, my kids are equally productive. All is good and we are still in the running for the "Best Mom" trophy.

The same is true in business. Do you remember the store that you envisioned when you first decided to go into retail? It was going to be warm, happy, busy, and fun. By George, you were going to be rolling in the dough. You had a plan. Have you achieved your goal? Every step you take must be consistent with your vision so that you can turn the store of your realty into the store of your dreams. We all lose our way from time to time....just make sure you get back on the path that will lead you to your goal...RIGHT NOW!

Refine your focus, spiff up your brand and get marketing. Do your business cards need a face lift? If they are not advertising who you are...or who you want to be...it is time for a change. Spend the money for a professional to design your logo....it will be worth it in the long run. The font, the graphics, the colors and the "flavor" will set the tone for your in-store signage, your newsletters, your print ads and beyond. It will give you a starting point for creating the image you want to promote.

Does your store atmosphere promote your brand? The lighting should be bright and cheerful. There should be ample room for crafting and creativity. Music should be playing and if possible, food and drinks are always a plus. Customers should be able to move about freely and not forced to navigate tight aisles. You should be scheduling at least one major promotional event and three minor events every single month.

Your staff is part of your brand. Are your employees reaching out to a limited audience? How many times have you walked into your local yarn/bead/scrapbook/paper store to find every employee twenty or thirty years older than you? I frequently hear complaints from younger Indie artists that they do not feel welcome at these establishments. Maybe it is time to rethink your hiring practices so that your employees further your brand identity. One of my most effective employees was a young cutie whose tattoos and piercings were way ahead of her time. However, her enthusiasm was contagious and customers seemed to enjoy soaking up her "coolness" by association.

Need some inspiration? Check out these retailers, each of whom has an established brand identity that works:

You've Got to Be Beading in Mystic Connecticut
Paper Tales in San Diego, California
The Yarn Garage in Rosemount, Minnesota
Ornamentea in Raleigh, North Carolina

Change is always hard, but going out of business is even harder. Carve out some time this week to articulate your vision. Brainstorm with your staff and put it in writing. Determine what it is that is special about your store and capitalize on it. Spread the word, talk the talk, and train your employees to do the same. Stay on the path and focus on the goal. Success is within your reach!

OTHER NEWS:

Congratulations to Cathy McKillip of Wish Upon a Quilt and Kathy Withers of Unique Designs by Kathy. Each lady won a beautiful hand dyed velvet fabric package for their contributions to our "True Confessions" Challenge Question last week. Ladies: please contact me with shipping information so that we can get your goodies to you ASAP.

Challenge Question: What steps have your recently taken, or are you going to take in the next month, to reinforce your brand identity? Shoot us an email by Sunday, August 30 to share the creative wealth and you might win a Swarovski Crystal embellishment package!

Coming next Week: We are going to focus on how to write an effective customer newsletter! Most store owners would rather have a root canal than get a newsletter out. We will give you a winning formula to take the misery out of this important marketing tool.