With each gift that I bestowed upon my family & friends, I kept hearing "you could sell that". The echo of that statement was my soul's encouragement.
How it all began:
One day, while having a pleasant "coffee talk" with one of my friends, she told me about how she had discovered Etsy and finding these amazing treasures, handmade or vintage. The concept was so intriguing, I had to check it out. It was love at first sight! The variety of goods, the sellers stories, the information available, the community of artisans that existed. I had been living in the dark ages. The draw back was that all of these people seemed like pros and that was not me. I was a crafter, not a creator; or so I thought. I liked to "make stuff", think of ways to repurpose things, think of what would make an interesting present for some one.
A week or so later, I was talking to a college colleague and she was describing the success her shop was experiencing on Etsy. She had even been featured on some blogs because of the exposure her shop had received. Wait! I knew some one who was a seller? As a mother of 3 she needed a way to be at home and generate income. She had opened her store about a year before and was beginning to get a solid client base. At the time I was working a full time job, and could see no way to make an Etsy shop work for me with out becoming an insomniac. I didn't stop day dreaming.
It's only $1.00, why not open a shop? What would I name it? I don't specialize in one craft or one technique, or one of anything... although the Etsy forums suggest finding your niche. My niche is Gift-Giving. The personalization of gift-giving. The emotion in gift-giving. I was sharing my conundrum of coming up with a shop title with another crafter and said "I guess I'm kinda like Disneyland, where imagination comes to life. Maybe I should be LaylaLand, where creativity comes to life". That was it. A name was born.
That night, I went home and opened my shop, started filling in the blanks and quickly got overwhelmed by the overload of information. I didn't know what I was even going to list, much less who my target market was, plus I didn't have anything made. I didn't have a camera. I didn't have a clue... But I was going to figure it out.
Flash forward:. LaylaLand is my full time job. I was given a secondhand camera. I opened a business checking account. I found a warehouse to share with my dad's company HunterWood, a place where the creations that require power tools and lots of space to make a mess are born. I converted the guest room, a place that is now corporate headquarters and manufacturing center. I still read everything (and I mean everything) into the wee hours of the night. I've had a number of private sales, and am making my way up the ladder of cottage industry, one gift at a time.
I'm hoping that with the support and inspiration of the Etsy community I will be able to continue my growth as a creator.
