Monday, May 30, 2011

Expanding the Biz...

So, as I continue preparations for my participation in the GBK Productions' Gift Lounge at the Primetime Emmy Awards, I find myself pondering as to how to expand my business. Right now, it's just lil ol' me prepping the plastic bags and crocheting. That means that there's a limited number of product that I can produce.

I've had people tell me to outsource the prepping and teach people how to crochet my totes and purses. Well, outsourcing the prepping makes a lot of sense to me; that would give me more time to crochet, thereby increasing the number of products I can offer at one time. But, having someone else crochet for/with me, not so much. The point is that it's MY work, and I'm such a flipping perfectionist.

I have found one person who's willing to prep bags for me, which is awesome (thank you, Lu)! I would like to find more. I will continue to crochet all the totes and purses myself. My hope is that people will understand that something that's artisan-made is worth the wait. In today's society of instant gratification, that may be a bit difficult, but I'm confident that my products will be worth the wait to those women who truly want something that's not only eco-friendly, but also one-of-a-kind (because handcrafted items are never exactly alike).

My thanks go out to my wonderful husband and friends who give me honest feedback about my products and my business. Kate, Denise and Valerie, thank you! And a special thanks to The Artisan Group and its members for their support.

6 comments:

  1. Awww you're welcome Tina, I'm so honored that you asked me :)

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  2. I'm so honored that you accepted, Lu!

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  3. Sounds like a plan! And a good one at that!

    It's been such a mutually beneficial relationship in terms of brainstorming, business decisions and so many other things
    that I feel like the lucky one.

    You've had a clear vision, a determination to brand yourself and your product, not any venue, a passion and belief in what you do and you've refused to compromise your prices.

    Good on ya all the way. You deserve every bit of your success. You've earned it.

    Great to see you take your biz to the next level.

    Kate

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  4. Thanks, Kate! You've helped a lot more than you'll ever know. Our (sometimes) marathon phone sessions have been instrumental in helping me form better ideas about business-in-general, and it's just plain fun to talk to you. :)

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  5. Business decisions like this are always tough but it sounds like you are thinking through your options and staying true to yourself and that's going to make it work in the end.

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  6. I have a little award for you
    http://crochetedlittlethings.blogspot.com/2011/06/lovely-blogger-award.html

    ReplyDelete

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