Start a 'cottage industry'... official MoneySavingExpert.com discussion

notenuftime

wingnut143 wrote: »

I've been making cards at home for the past year and have often wondered about the best way to sell them. I've sold a few at car boots and I take them to work and sell them there, but does anyone have any advice/experience on selling them on say ebay or starting their own website? Another thought I had was setting up a stall at a christmas fayre or something similar. Thanks

I have been making handmade cards for the last 5 years now.It started as a hobby as these things usually do and then gradually started as a profit making effort.My advice to you would be not to bother with eBay.In my opinion,buyers want something for nothing on eBay and the fees are ridiculous.Regardless of whether someone says you can only charge what someone is willing to pay,you should set your prices higher than someone has suggested.( 5 cards for £2.50)You should be looking for at least £3.50 for a handmade C5 card unboxed.For a boxed card a lot more.Carboots and fayres also in my opinion are not the places to sell your cards.My advice would be to arm yourself with an attractive box (not a tupperware one!) fill it with an assortment of your cards.Make sure they are presented in proper cello card bags sealed with either white price labels or clear round seal labels(not sellotape).Print or write out an inventory of your card categories,card sizes and prices.Make yourself some business cards with your name and contact telephone number on them.Once you are ready,it is time for the hard bit!Go to shops selling quality gifts who are not already selling cards.Ask them if you can show them some of the handcrafted cards you have made.Ask if they might be interested in stocking your cards on a sale or return basis.Obviously,the shop owner is not going to sell your cards for nothing so offer them a decent slice of the final sale price per item.I used to give £1.00 per card sold.Remember they have the overheads and will not take kindly to you offering 10 pence per sale.(You can set your card prices with this figure in mind.)You may get knocked back many times but if your products and sales patter are good enough you should get some luck.
Although nowadays I also sell giftware,I own shop now and my card business is still thriving within that.I'm not saying it won't take hard work,determination and bags of patience but it can work if you want it bad enough.I hope this helps.Best of Luck!

Frugaldom

CharlieDavis, I have my new domain name set up and website at the ready to develop, when's post 2 going to appear so I can start earning my fortune? I'll be linking my sales through eBid rather than eBay, so I don't need to pay listing or selling fees.

Don't forget you can claim a free domain and web space via Micr0soft 0ffice Live and get points for signing up to it in the first place.

wigglebeena

emma23 wrote: »

I am always looking for new outlets where I can sell my handmade jewellery. I have recently come across a new website called www.ShopsInMalls.co.uk where you can set up your own online shop for just £55 per year and start to advertise items for sale. There are no commission charges like Ebay and I would recommend it to any other crafters if they are interested in selling their craft items online.:A

Might as well do your own website and market it on the cheap as pay that price for a new venue. Artfire is free for the first ten items by the way. I think Etsy listing fees are cheaper than that even.

miss-slide-away

I'm really interested in selling homemade things online.. I just wondered, does this Etsy site not put off UK buyers with all of the prices being in $? Also, with the small fee for each item sold- does anyone know how profitable you would have to be before you could afford your own website?

Thanks!

Frugaldom

miss-slide-away wrote: »

I'm really interested in selling homemade things online.. I just wondered, does this Etsy site not put off UK buyers with all of the prices being in $? Also, with the small fee for each item sold- does anyone know how profitable you would have to be before you could afford your own website?

Thanks!

If you want to sell and have the time to market yourself then you could try eBid.net as it's worldwide and supports several payment options like PPPay, PayPal, Google checkout etc. They only charge a small percentage once the items sell, no listing or relisting fees unless you want to use added extras and, if you make enough money at it, they have half price option for lifetime seller membership with stores and no monthly store fees. I just linked a free domain name to my store page and it looked like my own site

Edited in - Was just checking, Lifetime membership is on offer at £49.99 which includes your stores, you can get a free domain & build a homepage to link up your store at OfficeLive. If you go via something like Mutual points, you'll make a bit extra for yourself at the same time by way of points for vouchers.

swimityswim

miss-slide-away wrote: »

I'm really interested in selling homemade things online.. I just wondered, does this Etsy site not put off UK buyers with all of the prices being in $? Also, with the small fee for each item sold- does anyone know how profitable you would have to be before you could afford your own website?

Thanks!

I don't think the $ puts UK buyers off. They can search in location, and I have bought alot of gifts from UK sellers on there. Alternatively there is folksy.com which is a UK version of Etsy. The great thing with Etsy is that you have a massive customer base especially from the States, whereas Folksy is very small in comparison.

Frugaldom

My cottage-style industry was slightly hampered last year by circumstances beyond my control (involving another house move) so I am going to focus more on getting orgainsed this year. I'm still wanting to reduce, reuse, recycle and still want to aim for a cottage industry that could help sustain a self-sufficientish lifestyle, however, my source for free offcuts of wood has gone.

I'm now concentrating on producing stuff mainly from the garden to sell from home - plants, willow, surplus veg, eggs and anything else I can think of, plus hoping to generate a few pounds extra from the computer by way of clicks & cashback etc. My main concern is in keeping overheads low, so I've decided against listing anywhere that charges a listing fee but will revamp my eBid store, which I got free during a previous offer. I'd also like to learn to basket weave.

Must re-read this thread to refresh my memory but love all the ideas and suggestions. Thanks to all who are part of this, keep the ideas, encouragement and inspiration flowing, I'm a bit lazy otherwise

wigglebeena

miss-slide-away wrote: »

I'm really interested in selling homemade things online.. I just wondered, does this Etsy site not put off UK buyers with all of the prices being in $? Also, with the small fee for each item sold- does anyone know how profitable you would have to be before you could afford your own website?

Thanks!

PayPal does the conversion for you when you buy, so it's not like you have to work it out for yourself.

wigglebeena

Any knitters out there? I love long cardigan coats with roomy pockets (you know the ones I mean?) and was just thinking a stripy one (like Tom Baker/Dr Who's scarf but in brighter colours) would be fantastic, horizontal or vertical. Just throwing it out there as an idea...

tru

This is a must-read

It's exactly the way things go when starting out - just swap their porridge for your product and you get a realistic view of what you're in for

Apart from the Harvey Nichols bit (I've never had a meeting with anyone from big shops) and the last part of the article (family investing and getting into Waitrose), I could have written this :rotfl: