Starting your own craft business is an exciting time! But there are some things you will need to consider before taking the plunge. It’s important to make sure that you get certain things right before you start trying to sell the products, and either you don’t get the customers you want, or you quickly realise that your costs outweigh the profits.
Take a look at these tips to make sure you start your craft business off with a bang…
Identify Your Niche
The first thing you need to consider for your craft business is your niche- are you going to have lots of competition? Or is your product offering the market something new? Even if there is a little competition, if you can offer a product that you believe is superior to others on the market- it’s time to jump in.
Now is also the time to think about the name of your craft business, the logo, and branding colours. It’s great to get a good idea of all of these things before you go ahead and put your products into the world. Your side hustle could end up being your main source of income, so it’s best to get these things right from the start.
Consider Your Costs
You need to make sure that your costs check out. Make sure that the price you sell your product at covers your costs, and the amount of labour you spend on the item. There is no point in selling an item with a £10 profit margin when it’s going to take you over 2 hours to finish the product.
Value your time wisely- make sure that you are paid well for your time. This will make it easier to scale up the business as it grows and you get more orders. If you’re running a craft business alongside a full time job or degree, you need to value your time.
Could You Make A Passive Income?
The holy grail of side hustles is to create a passive income stream- in other words, a product that makes you money, even while you sleep.
Something where you do the work once, and reap the rewards for weeks, months, or years to come.
A great example of this is to create a craft store which sells printable artwork. You create the artwork once, list it on Etsy or your marketplace of choice, and people buy it and print it at home themselves.
Decide On Your Platform
There are a multitude of different platforms that you could use to sell your wares. Obvious ones are those such as Etsy and Not On The Highstreet.
However, as well as an online platform, you might also want to consider selling your products in physical stores or stalls. Would you like to sell in independent shops? Or perhaps have a stall at a fair in your local town?
Be sure to consider the right platform for you, and pay close attention to the fees that you might need to pay on each sale that you make online.
Top tip- remember that you can claim back tax when working from home.
Start A Social Media Page
A craft business goes hand in hand with a great social media page. Instagram is a brilliant one because it is so visual. Your customers can go to your Instagram page and instantly be updated with any new products that you are launching- a good Instagram strategy will be essential to your new business.
It’s also a great way to connect with existing customers, and reach new customers too.