Looking for sellers to feature in a Seller Handbook post

[Former_Member]

Hi there,

My coworker is working on an article for the Seller Handbook, for which she's looking to interview some sellers. Hoping you can post a few sentences explaining how you handled the topic, if you're interested in taking part!

The topic is how some sellers have expanded in new directions, diversified their income streams—say, started to teach workshops, or consulting for other small businesses, or started doing skilled production work for other designers, or even how you got started wholesaling. For some it may have been out of an interest or passion, for others, perhaps their direct online sales plateaued. Or maybe boredom with where you were with your business!

How did you diversify your business mix and why? Where were you then and where are you now in terms of your income streams?

Looking for sellers to share how they got into wholesaling, but open to all the interesting stories you have to share! Please share a few sentences and perhaps my coworker will reach out for an interview.

[Former_Member]

Hi Vanessa,
I just jumped into the world of online wholesaling, and I mean just did. Got accepted to Etsy Wholesale this week (about to launch my linesheet, yay!) and have been offering my bedding items for about a year to local shops. The main reason I wanted to start on this journey now was to really build my brand. I have an active social media 'following, active sales, etc but I want people to really understand what my brand is and what it is that I have to offer. I like to work one project at a time, that's how I work best. So I have done some major research, upped my packaging/branding big time, and am ready to start getting my name out there. And what better way than to be featured in more locations?! I am truly excited to see my idea of my nursery and toddler bedding in more homes and start to really drive the idea of "my family to yours". Excited to see where this journey takes me!
Thanks for the opportunity,
Michelle
orangeblossomspecial805@gmail.com

[Former_Member]

Wholesaling has definitely been a godsend for my business growth. When I started Fresh Pastry Stand in 2012, my intention was to provide a happy distraction to being a stay at home mom, an outlet for my creative passions and, of course, to earn some pocket money.

A few months after I began, I was contacted by a buyer at FAB.com to do a flash sale of my cake stands. This was a big moment for me because I had to choose whether or not I wanted to grow in an instant! I chose to go ahead with the sale and thus invested in a huge amount of inventory, The sale event went very well and I had subsequent events on FAB. They have since changed their business model and I haven't worked with them recently, but working with the gave me a crash course in scaling up and I am forever grateful.

Plus, I have had subsequent POs from the buyer I worked with at FAB, who has since moved on to other companies.

Another way I have diversified my revenue, and this is the most important to me and my business growth, is by diversifying my product line. I started out with curated vintage china stands (thus the name) and have grown my line to include candles, tea towels, aprons and now jewelry.

By paying attention to what my wholesale customers buy, I have been switching my tea towels to more "all over" patterns, which are easier to display in shops. By diversifying my product offerings, I achieved my 2014 goal of having both wholesale and retail customers buying across categories. This is a great feeling because I really want Fresh Pastry Stand to become a go-to gift brand, especially for online shoppers looking to consolidate their shipping costs.

With the purchase of my Honda Fit (amazing gas mileage...I'm getting 43 mpg on the highway!), I have begun doing craft shows. This is wonderful money in my pocket and is allowing me to use the cash at these weekend shows for my family expenses while I squirrel away my Etsy revenue to start a new brand.

Did I mention my new brand! I am so excited about this! After deep long thoughts about the direction of my company, the products I want to offer and the customer base I've already developed, I realize that Fresh Pastry Stand is a great little operation but to follow my dreams, I need to start a sister company.

In the fall, I am launching another brand! It will have a stand alone site as well as its own Etsy shop. The name Fresh Pastry Stand is too limiting but I have such good online presence (blog features, PopSugar Must Have Box 2014, Urban Outfitters, etc) that I don't want to just drop that. So FPS will exist with it's colorful, vintage inspired product line but the new company will be a more coordinated effort of home goods and gifts that are coordinated and organized with great effort.

In summary: wholesale, product diversification, craft shows, new brand.

Cheers to Holiday 2016! I am excited!

[Former_Member]

I got into wholesale thanks to a fellow jeweler who's work I carried in my shop. I wasn't making jewelry at the time, just silkscreening apparel for my own brick & mortar, which had a much more narrow margin. I was buying wholesale, so I was familiar with that end of things, but it never occured to me to do wholesale myself until that conversation. As a result of doing business with this intelligent and talented local jeweler, I decided to expand my product range to include jewelry, and started investigating wholesale options for small, handmade operations. Now I pretty much only do jewelry, and I'm in 27 shops, but on-demand manufacturing is changing the printing landscape, so I'm now looking at adding apparel and home furnishings back to my operation.

[Former_Member]

I opened my etsy wholesale account after having much success selling bulk orders for events like baby and wedding showers, and also corporate gifts. It's definitely been a learning curve, with looking into drop-ship options. My products have meshed into new options just by demand. And I'm constantly looking into new ways of growing my business, including the launch of a men's care line.

[JennyRobsonDesign]

I work in a local art gallery. A buyer from the gallery gift shop expressed an interest in my work and they began stocking a selection of my printed paper goods, bags and badges. I had previously only sold at craft fairs and art shows. This has been a great base for researching what sells and how gallery and gift stores work as well as giving me the confidence to pitch my work which is now stocked in other stores.
I recently diversified my business by teaching a printmaking workshop at the gallery with more planned.
Despite having an Etsy store since 2010 it pretty much lay dormant until a year or so ago, Still early days but looking forward to seeing where business leads in both retail and wholesale :)

[ContempoJewelry]

Hi Vanessa,

I have definitely diversified to have a steady cash flow, many aspects of my business are seasonal. In addition to selling at shows, online and wholesale - I also teach jewelry classes and host jewelry making parties.

We have a space in State College, PA (by Penn State) where several artists can host events. My slowest time for jewelry sales (Jan-March), is my busiest time for adult and kids private jewelry making parties.

[PALEOLOCHIC]

Hello!
Wholesale was a big part of my business plan, though at the moment I didn't know how I was going to become a "wholesaler".
Learned a lot thanks to trial and error, online resources, Etsy sellers handbook. Things here in Spain where very daunting thanks to the global economic crisis so I focussed in the international market in Europe, USA and Australia. Etsy played a big role in this process and in May 2014 I've made my first trade show in London, haven't stop since then. Still have a long way to go but I am happy in how professional I have become and how my wholesale clients grow every month.

[CreationsBySewAndSo]

Wholesale is a natural transition to custom clothing and bridal design. Jewelry offered at a discount is a great incentive for a bride who wants a coordinated bridal party.
I have been creating patterns for costume, wedding, and formal fashion and accessories for over thirty years.
I have to keep up with production rates and deadlines, so, I have streamlined my business for speed and satisfaction of my customer.
I look forward to helping you fulfill your orders by sewing and making jewelry.
I specialize in Theater Costume, Millinery, Bridal, and Soft Toy Creation and Design.

[Former_Member]

I started on Etsy in 2009. My business has grown year over year since. I started to wholesale to a boutique in 2010 and found that I could sell my items for double in a store setting and therefore make the same revenue and profit being on Etsy. The stores I pitch to are only located in high income towns/areas where someone would be willing to pay for table linens at these prices.
I just pitched and won a store this weekend in this same manner. This type of wholesaling works for me on many levels.
Michele

[KidEssence]

My vision for KidEssence is to bring quality toys for on-the-go families and those living in small spaces. A great way to reach cities with more quantities of products is to partner with brick and mortar stores- shops that people who appreciate handmade quality know and trust. After just one year into offering KidEssence products on Etsy Wholesale, I grew from just one local boutique to having our items in a dozen across the nation. Wholesale made up 40% of our revenue last year.

[stacywonghandmade]

Hi Vanessa,

My businesses are diversified and ever-evolving. I started selling on Etsy over 8 years ago and continue to sell today. I have also branched out and a few years ago purchased another online boutique, shoptwine.com which features curated handmade (I'm also an Etsy wholesale buyer and seller) and my own products to a very different market and customer.

Last year, I started Community Making Workshops as a way to give back and share with the community. I wanted to provide an outlet for meaningful connections within the community at large as well as with other creatives. Some of the workshops are taught by myself and others are taught by local artists/makers. I collaborate with local businesses to host the workshops and it's definitely and win/win partnership.

[CeeCeeandBee]

This is a great topic and so important to include. When I first started venturing out into starting my own business, I listened to a lot of business coaches. One thing that I kept hearing was to diversify your income streams. Do not expect to be making all of your money in one place. And to me, that makes sense. It's kinda like putting all your eggs in one basket. What happens when the basket gives way.

I started wholesaling at the start of my business. My previous career was working in Consumer Packaged Goods where the majority of our income always came from wholesale. Even though we would have a web store where people could buy direct. I was in marketing where I planned tradeshows, created sales materials and worked closely with the owners and sales people. So it was very natural for me to create a pricing strategy for my products that allowed for wholesale from the very start. (and because of my CPG marketing background, my products had professional for handmade looking labels and packaging)

I realize you don't want the whole story here. But my business strategy has been to find ways to get in touch with different people. Every new store I sell to allows me to get in front of a whole new group of customers that might never have found me on Etsy or at a craft fair.

I have been keeping busy making and selling products so I haven't pursued any other forms of making money such as consulting, teaching or private labeling... but I would be open to those in the future. I have a very strong belief that you set a big long term goal about what you want to accomplish, then start pursuing it and pursue the doors that open.

:)
Charlene

[Former_Member]

I have not been on Etsy as an individual seller or a wholesale seller for very long. I opened up my store at the end of January 2016 and had my first sale in a week. After 3 weeks of no sales I started to combine several mediums of art and techniques in jewelry making to diversify my line. This not only helped me to appeal to a wider audience but it was a way to express my story and how I obtain my knowledge and skills in different mediums of art. My sales, views, and favorites immediately started to increase.

Why I got into Etsy wholesale? That is so simple.. they invited me to make more pieces that I love and have so much fun making. Also, for me knowing that Etsy wholesale was juried gave me more security on the quality of work that would be chosen. This would also give me the opportunity to have my line of jewelry to beseen by not just individuals but boutiques and large businesses across the globe.

I am very excited to continue my journey of learning Etsy, Etsy wholesale, and to have the opportunity to capture the hearts and eyes of individuals and business with my jewelry that has been made with nature.

[HelloFlytrap]

Hi, Vanessa.

In my case, Etsy was a fun, creative distraction (and, initially a teeny bit of extra income) from a brand consulting income stream that was steady and thriving. However, as Etsy sales grew I hemmed and hawed and finally surrendered to the fun factor. Flytrap became my primary focus in 2010.

Now, I diversify a few ways. Primarily by offering a few product lines (cards, boxes, sticky notes, and others to launch in the future). But I've also explored wholesale in the past. Retailers came to me at first. Then I realized selling to retailers could grow the business much more quickly. So I hired a few indy sales reps (commision only) and footed it around town to expand.

I'm just now reinvigorating that side of the business. This month, my catalog will go to press and I hope to contact retailers by foot and online this summer. I'd like to establish that side of the business more fully to have an additional revenue stream and to interact with other creative pros like shop owners tend to be.

Thanks for your consideration!

Jen

[SpotLightJewelry]

I think one of the best ways I have found to diversify my income stream is through diversifying my product line. I have this innate desire to create (an attribute I think most Etsy sellers can relate to) and expanding my product line not only fills that drive, but also brings in a whole new clientele that never wold have found my shop otherwise.

While I am a jewelry shop, I have found adding products that reach new markets has helped my business grow financially in exciting ways. Several years ago I launched a mens cuff link line that brings in many male shoppers that normally would have never found my shop. Now, those same men find a perfect anniversary gift for their spouse while browsing my cuff link collection. I love taking a raw material or supply and coming up with several ways to utilize it in my creations.

I also have loved Etsy Wholesale, starting my own website and selling at local craft shows to be invaluable in building sales and life long customers.

[UniqueArtPendants]

I have a great one that I think would be very interesting for Etsy members to read about.
I contacted hip hop artist, Dessa, Minneapolis rapper, singer, spoken word artist, writer and hip-hop member of the Doomtree collective. I told her I had an idea to create a custom skeleton key merchandise necklace for her to sell on her world tours based off her song Skeleton Key. We did it and together we have sold thousands and thousands of dollars worth of the necklaces. She buys wholesale from me and I also sell the necklaces out of my Etsy shop.
I specifically chose Dessa because she embodies the Etsy spirit. She is a self made artist on her own collective's label. She's not just your average artist. She takes her fame and uses it to teach and do different initiatives.
For example, on the final leg of the Parts of Speech Tour, Dessa visited farms and farmers markets, filming and talking directly to growers about the business of food. She performs live with the full band at every stop to bring awareness to locally grown, organic, small farm businesses, etc.
She meets with inner city youth, has taught at the University of Minnesota, essayist in the Twin cities newspapers, etc.

Here's her NPR Tiny Desk concert (where she was totally sick and still rocked the performance).:
http://www.npr.org/event/music/249016526/dessa-tiny-desk-concert

Here's a sample of some of her songs - she produces all her own videos -

Dixon's Girl (half a million+ views):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eQL3BrRqM8

Call Off Your Ghost (quarter+ of million views):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6A8T6qWPBo

Skeleton Key (song I created the necklace for):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-elJDC8N7I

Her latest video, Sound the Bells (if you're only going to watch one this is the one to watch - such a beautiful video):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIGioQ7tfXg

She's also part of a collective rap group called Doomtree. Here is an example of some of their songs:

Live version of Little Mercy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xr9aU59Gc28

Beacon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ngVuAIa5xI

Here's a short video on one of the farm visits:
https://vimeo.com/81557418

I can connect you with her and can also give you more examples if you need them. I think it's a cool idea to show how independent artists on Etsy can connect with successful musicians, etc and collaborate together to create new and fun merchandise - all in the spirit of Etsy.