So I have launched my winter collection and the orders are rolling in!
Well that would be a great way to be able to start this blog post, but it's far from the truth.
I have worked hard to design and make a collection that I believe is creative, cohesive and wearable, and I have done lots of social media posts to get the word out there about the SuzziMaggs Winter Collection 2021. I've bought the materials and made the patterns and I'm ready to go!
I set up an awesome display in the main street on launch day, and apart from my family maybe 8-10 people dropped in.
I have sold 3 items!
This is hard!
My reason for this blog post (and hopefully the ones that follow) is to document my progress or lack there of into the world of creative small business. Maybe it will be helpful to someone, or maybe it will just be a quirky snippet into my head.
I've read the books and joined the online classes about how this works, and I think that as much as that information all has a positive input, every single small business is unique, and I just have to work out now what is going to work best for me.
Some things I do know:
I don't like promoting myself
I am not good at being consistent
Bookkeeping is not my friend!
I find that social media can feel like a necessary evil
I love the creative side of things
I do like interacting with people
I enjoy styling my designs
I am good at teaching my creative/making skills
There are so many things that I am uncertain about though;
Should I remain mainly an online business with a website to interact all of my orders through?
Or should I get a little shop front somewhere so that my designs can be touched and tried on?
Should I even be trying to do this thing?
As a believer in the Creator God I have been spending time asking Him these questions, praying for a vision of the way forward. He has not yet chosen to hit me with a lightning bolt of inspiration, or a dream with great clarity, or drop a large bag of $$$ in my lap from above (hahaha) but I feel deeply that this right here might be the start. I think I am meant to document the story for others to read and see how He can work in a Mrs. nobody special form regional Australia.
I know in my head that a lot of it is sheer persistence, to just keep going, keep showing up and doing the things, but as an overthinking internal processor I can get caught up in all the self sabotaging questions. Why didn't people show up to my launch? Do people even like my designs? Who am I to think that I could be in business? I'm not smart/clever/with-it enough to do this! Blah, blah, blah and on it goes! Some of these are real questions that I need to investigate, but I can't let them take my time and my energy. Find the answers, make any necessary changes and move on. Sounds easy, but its not!
This blog doesn't have a neat little conclusion, I will just end with ............. To be continued ............
So let's see where this goes, and hope that I can be consistent enough for it to go somewhere!!!
Thank you for reading,
Love Suzanne
Readers Coupon Code: justkeepgoing for $10 off your next order
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