Just had to share these new beauties!
Marmalade by Kim Neely
These art glass beads were made by the very talented artisan, Kim Neely. They are hollow, but substantial, with a beautiful apricot/caramel color. The sparkle is beyond belief! Just wait until you see what I conjure up with these. If you appreciate these little gems, and would like to be awed by more examples of Kim’s fine work, check out her gallery.
This section describes the company structure, key management team members, their function and strengths.
My company will have a jewelry designer, a jewelry fabricator, a customer service representative, a marketing specialist, a financial executive, an office manager and a salesperson.
All of them will be me. Why do I think I can handle all this? To start off, my original degree is in metallurgical engineering. I graduated from Columbia well before it was in vogue for women to go into engineering. To be a woman in engineering back then meant being very focused and determined – traits that will serve me well as an entrepreneur. After graduation, I worked in aerospace where I had numerous responsibilities during my tenure – Program Manager, Research Engineer, Test Lab Supervisor.
Skip ahead a bit to my next career in decorative painting, which was definitely more “right brained” than the engineering. I started my own business helping clients beautify their homes with faux finishes, murals and stenciling. I took many courses in decorative finishes, design and color theory to support my business.
Skip ahead once more to my new jewelry business, which I see as a wonderful amalgam, or intersection, of my prior careers. These are the strengths I bring to the table for my new business:
I think I have a good running start in getting this new business off the ground. My varied experiences have given me many of the skills I will need to succeed.
It’s funny – one never knows where one will end up in life.
Next Business Plan section to tackle: Operations. Stay tuned!
Our Girl Perky
Here is a photo of our pup, Perky. She was 4 months old at the time. We got her when she was 11 weeks old and she is now 8 1/2 months old. I will be posting more photos of her along the way, but this is my favorite photo of her – she looks so noble, doesn’t she?
She has quite a life ahead of her. Perky is a Future Guide Dog. I am a volunteer puppy walker and am raising her for the Guide Dog Foundation. This means she will live with my family for 12-14 months, before she moves on for her service training.
Our mission is to train her for basic obedience and to socialize her. The socializing is the fun part. Since she is being raised to be a service dog, she is allowed everywhere I go – stores, restaurants, malls, buses, railroad, libraries, nursing homes – you name it, we go there.
She never fails to bring a smile to the people who see her. I watch people as they notice her and see their cares practically melt away as their eyes light up. Puppies have that effect on people!
I’ll be writing more about Miss Perky and the Guide Dog Foundation – also posting more photos – she is a bit of a ham and loves the camera.
Part III deals with marketing strategy – how am I going to get customers?
Art is a matter of individual taste. The more traffic I have, the better the chance that some of those people will like my work. My current mailing list with over 400 of my jewelry customers, will be an important initial source of traffic to my site. In addition I will increase awareness of my new company with the following:
Does anyone else have any other good ideas? Please share!
My daughter is with the Teach For America program. She is teaching a wonderful group of 5th graders in the south Bronx how to learn and succeed. She is in her second year of a two year commitment to the program and I see her and her TFA friends working so hard to make a difference in the lives of our city’s most vulnerable children.
Now here’s the DISCOUNT part! The Gap Brands of Banana Republic/Gap/Old Navy have an annual Give & Get fund raiser. You get a 30% discount on items in any of the three brand stores and Gap Brands gives 5% of purchases to Teach For America. The coupon is good through tomorrow, 3/15 and and please read the fine print at the bottom of the coupon for the usual exclusions.
Click for the coupon and get up early to go shopping – or sleep late and shop online! Get a great deal on those new spring clothes, help the economy and help Teach for America!
Just back from an exhausting but invigorating three days at the Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America trade show in NYC. My favorite seminar was on current/future jewelry trends and how runway styles translate into everyday fashion – exciting information which I will be sharing in an upcoming post.
My new kiln!
In my Business Plan, I budgeted for the purchase of a kiln in 2010. However, at the show one vendor made me an offer I couldn’t refuse and I am now the proud owner of a kiln. Although I was not supposed to make this purchase until Phase 2 of my Business Plan, there was a show discount being offered, as well as a pending price increase – so I made an executive decision, bit the bullet and bought the kiln. Having a kiln in my own studio will greatly increase the breadth and quality of product lines I may offer.
Did you notice? I made a decision to change my Business Plan, right then and there. My Small Business Advisor told me in no uncertain terms that a Business Plan is a living, breathing document. Life happens. In this case, buying the kiln now saved me at least 13.5%, over next year’s pricing. I will need to revisit my entire plan and recalculate my budget to accommodate the kiln purchase. I will also need to revise my income projections upward, as the use of a kiln will increase the quantity and quality of jewelry I can produce.
I was able to purchase other tools, at a a reduced price. These tools were included in my current year budget, so I will also be revising my Business Plan to reflect those savings.
Of course, there is no way I escaped the show without buying at least a few pretty things! I will be posting my gorgeous new gems in a future design column.
Back to business! Part II of the Market Analysis in the Business Plan is all about the competition.
The first thing I did to tackle this section was to surf the net for a few days. Ok, I had fun with this one! Since my jewelry will be sold online, I looked at other jewelry ecommerce sites. The more I looked at other sites, the easier it was for me to define what I liked, what made sense for my site – and what I definitely did not want to include on my site. I selected four jewelry web sites to include in my Market Analysis and discussed the pros and cons of each.
Based on my research, my site will include:
My model will of course be subject to refinement as I understand what works and what doesn’t. The learning never stops!
Market share of the competition was difficult to determine. I’m pretty sure that even if I asked nicely, the companies I researched would still not have shared their annual sales numbers with me. As I thought about it, I realized that market share and potential market share do not rigorously apply to my industry. Art is so subjective – jewelry, especially handcrafted jewelry, may appeal to one person, but not to another. Who knows why? It is such a personal aesthetic that it can not be assumed that $100 spent on one jewelry site will translate into possible market share for another site.
Reputation and image were also difficult to measure in an objective way for my targeted competition sites. However, I do understand the inherent value of handcrafted jewelry. I know the labor that goes into making a wire wrap, or in soldering a bezel. I understand the value of fine stones and materials. I was able to roughly judge the cost of a piece of jewelry and compare that cost to the selling price. Many sites were underpricing their jewelry – these were mostly the sites that were not very attractive, the ones that did not make a shopper want to stay and browse. I imagine they were so desperate to sell that they did not mind making a very slim profit. I must remember to check these sites again next year, to see if they are still in business. Pricing must always be a good value for the customer, but also fair to the artist so that the company may thrive and grow.
There were other sites that priced fairly, including enough for materials and overhead, with sufficient profit to allow for business growth. These sites looked more professional, with testimonials and publicity to enhance their marketing efforts. These higher end jewelry sites really showcased the art of a handcrafted piece and are where I would like to place my company. I would rather take my time on an intricate piece with extravagant materials that will sell for $100 and ultimately be treasured by a customer, than churn out 20 minor items at $5 each.
I am not making generic widgets – I am creating art. I will have to come up with a Marketing Plan to expose as many people as I can to my work. Then the law of percentages will kick in – some will like my work and some won’t. The more people who see my work, the more who will like what they see.
Which will lead us to the Market Analysis, Part III. Stay tuned!
I admit, I am NOT a business person. I do whatever I need to do to make sure my business will run smoothly, but my business posts are a bit dry, if you know what I mean. So forgive me for interspersing non-business posts along with the business ones – if I didn’t do so, my head would explode.
Browsing my friend Dee’s blog the other day I noticed a series of articles she had written on buying handmade along with her pledge to buy handmade.
I always prefer to buy handmade items, but never really thought about the why. To me, handmade articles are always more beautiful than pieces churned out by factories. Whether one is working with gemstones, pottery glazes, paints or paper, no two handmade pieces are ever the same. Handmade takes thought, passion and yes, I think love. I know I sometimes spend hours pondering a design question, trying different options until I find the one that is exactly right. I’m sure most artisans are the same way.
Dee's Kaleidoscope of Life
I’m a big fan of color and love this bracelet, handmade by Dee, owner of Runako Designs. The colored beads are handmade of recycled paper by women in Uganda, through Beads For Life. The silver in the bracelet is handmade by artisans in Thailand and is also Fair Trade Certified. Everything is handmade. Other bracelets may look similar, but this is the only one that will ever look exactly like this.
Dee and I share a common belief in giving back – one way Dee is doing this is by donating half the profit of each Kaleidoscope of Life bracelet back to Beads For Life. Click on the photo to find out more about this special fundraiser. While you are at it, explore Dee’s site a bit – she finds inspiration in nature and ethnic beauty. Even though our jewelry making styles are very different, I truly enjoy her work and love the beautiful Kazuri beads she uses.
Handmade is custom, handmade is unique, handmade helps the local economy – all the things you won’t find in a big box store.
Bad Behavior has blocked 29 access attempts in the last 7 days.