How I Started My Handmade Jewelry & Handbag Business - Lessons Learned Along The Way

 
Artist Lisa Ramos working at an Art Show. 

Since launching my handmade jewelry and handbag business, MONOLISA, seven and a half years ago I have learned a lot. Being an independent artist and selling my work at art shows is not an easy business. Although having my own business is extremely rewarding, at times it is physically challenging. Through all of the different experiences I am grateful for my loyal customers, the art community, and being able to do what I love - creating and the personal teaching moments. Happily, I am still learning something new everyday. In this blog article I am excited to share with readers how I started my handmade business and the five valuable lessons learned along the way that help keep my business thriving. I hope my shared experiences can encourage other artists and entrepreneurs wanting to start a business. 

"Practice is a virtue."
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Artist Lisa Ramos with a Customer at Los Altos Art & Wine Festival.

How I started My Handmade Jewelry and Handbag Business

To my surprise, creativity came much later in life and collaborated nicely with my  independent work style. My appreciation for beautiful jewelry and handbags lead me to start my own business. It has been quite the journey and I wouldn't change a thing. So, how did I start my handmade jewelry and handbag business? My ongoing curiosity about product design and development lead me to start studying the subject in 2013. At that time I began exploring patterns, working with leather and metals. I dove into learning how to sew on industrial machines, watched how to make handbag and jewelry videos, worked with unfamiliar tools and continued vigorously creating with my hands. I fell in love with the creative process because of the unlimited possibilities. Once I started working with my hands I was hooked.

Lisa with her Dog Monique in 1997 - Nicknamed "MONO"

The Handmade Process

My first designs were awful, but my gut said they would get better overtime. My tenacity, curiosity and excitement kept me creating every day for hours. Those hours turned into months and eventually years. As a dyslexic child I struggled academically.  Learning in school took me twice as long as my peers. Working hard, learning patience and often failing at something was in my DNA. Therefore, patiently learning and making mistakes when creating a great bag or beautiful piece of jewelry felt familiar. As the years passed, I continued perfecting my craft and learning new skills. Eventually I started achieving better design results. As my craft and skill level progressed my gut said to take it to the next level and start my own handmade business. So, that is what I did. I named it MONOLISA with my personal mission to design beautifully handmade limited edition pieces that add a touch of elegance to any personal style. The business name I chose, MONOLISA has a double meaning, "MONO" means one and when you add my name it spells out MONOLISA - one Lisa. The second meaning holds a special place in my heart for my beloved dog Monique who I also called MONO, so if you take her nickname and my name it comes out as MONOLISA.  

Handmade Business Model

During the inception of my handmade business it was important that each MONOLISA piece be personally hand crafted by me. I had zero interest in mass producing my work or using wholesale business models. My business goal was to create one of a kind and limited edition pieces I could sell in person to customers. I preferred this business model for two reasons. First, it gave me full creative and quality control. It allowed me to test the market with various high quality handmade pieces in an array of styles. Then I could evaluate and determine what the market wanted. Lastly, I wanted to create a positive customer shopping experience. I understood the value of a high quality customer service shopping experience. I wanted MONOLISA customers to experience that level of service. Today, it is especially important because in person shopping is quickly being replaced by online shopping models with little or no positive customer service. 

In 2016, while I working on my first MONOLISA Collection, I started developing a business plan for generating ongoing sales. I wasn't interested in investing in a retail storefront. I wasn't comfortable with the financial risks and property leasing terms. Instead, my business model was to personally sell the MONOLISA Handmade Handbag and Jewelry Collection at hundreds of California art shows and festivals that typically fell on the weekends. Doing art shows allowed me to work 2-3 days a week at shows nine months out of the year and still have plenty of time to create in my studio. During each show I focused on four goals - (1) Selling my handmade pieces (2) building my customer base (3) listening to customer feedback (4) collecting emails for a monthly newsletter. One of my biggest lessons in business is understanding the value of marketing a monthly newsletter. My newsletter email markets pieces from my collection, features upcoming art shows and allows people to go behind the scenes with me creating my work. I can't tell you how many times customers walk into my booth and say I am here because I received your newsletter. Then they are excited to start shopping at MONOLISA. I have had shows where 40% of my business is from returning customers who received my newsletter. Another newsletter bonus, it keeps the art show community alive and gives people an opportunity to shop an array of talented artists in their communities. 

Prior to launching my business I also focused on building a website to market my handmade handbags and jewelry line. My website includes a monthly blog about my business journey, videos of me creating, detailed product pages and my show schedule. I am grateful that my previous career in e-commerce taught me that online sales is a tough business. It is difficult to reach target audiences without consistently spending thousands of dollars on advertising with no guarantees. Especially today, the online markets are over saturated and extremely competitive. When I launched MONOLISA I knew if I chose only the online sales model the odds were highly against me and it would cost a fortune to build my target market. Also, I had no interest in connecting with customers remotely. I understood the value of face to face connections with customers when selling handmade handbags and jewelry. Today, 98% of my sales are from doing art shows and 2% are from online sales. So, what does that say?

Artist Lisa Ramos with a Customers at The Palo Alto Fine Arts Festival.

Five Lessons I  Learned Along The Way of Starting My Business

There is one fact about business, there are no easy steps to creating a successful business. No special class, marketing guru or shortcuts will make your business a success. It requires consistently putting in the work and getting used to being uncomfortable at times. Starting a business is equated to training for an ongoing marathon. Everyday you get up early, work hard, keep trying to improve and keep at it. Since starting my handmade business there are five valuable lessons I learned along the way which I have detailed below.

Artist Lisa Ramos Loading Out at an Art Show.

1) Show Up and Do The Work

Simply showing up and doing the work is a huge part of being in business. This includes selling, marketing, physical labor, long hours and administrative work. Learn and do it all. Don't be afraid of making mistakes. You will make a lot of them. Be open to doing things that are totally outside of your comfort zone. For me in the beginning it was getting up at 4 am heading to a far away show in an unfamiliar city. Then arriving to quickly setup my booth, have someone watch it while I park my van. At first it was really tough and the physical challenges went beyond what I ever thought. Overtime it got easier, became habitual and I made great friends along the way. 

I have learned a lot about the ups and downs of being an independent artist. Some days are better than others. It isn't always easy powering through the tough times, but you do find the strength to keep going. Some days you may even say to yourself "Is it really worth all this work?" I said this to myself when I was doing a show in Burlingame last year. At the end of the first day I was packing my collection up so I could take it to the hotel. Unfortunately, you can't leave your pieces in an empty booth for someone to steal - there is no security. So as I was carting my things to the car alongside a cracked uneven sidewalk my dolly started shaking. Suddenly the dolly lost balance and all of my six bins toppled over in the middle of a very busy street. I was mad as hell. I took some big deep breaths and quickly picked up the bins while watching oncoming traffic. My heart was racing and I wanted to scream. I was so worried my collection was damaged. To my surprise nothing was damaged. What I should have been more concerned about was being run over by a fast moving car. The next day I found the humor in it, laughed with friends and went back to work at the show. 

2) Be a Great Salesperson

Sales requires customer interaction, patience and nurturing relationships. Most of the time it takes two, three, four or more times for someone to purchases your work. That can add up to days, months or years. Your product will not sell itself, so learn how to be a great salesperson. Perfecting a short sales pitch (under 30 seconds) about your collection  - where the pieces are made, how you make them and why they are different is a nice starting point for a customer introduction. The introduction is a fine balance of introducing yourself and not talking too much. Avoid annoying the customer by over talking. No one wants a long-winded sales person. Focus on the customer, not yourself.

Understanding your target audience is critical for selling. Learning about your market takes time and a variety of show experiences. I learned about my market after doing several shows in various cities. Those experiences quickly gave me the insight about the ideal locations and show types that attract my target audience. When you are engaging with people in different cities at shows you learn a lot about people, how they connect to your work and what their spending power is. This year I will have done over 200 art shows and festivals. I am still learning about customers and refining my collection. The more sales experience the better you become at selling and growing your business. As you build a business over the years your customer base will grow. Just keep at it. 

Physical Labor is Big Part of Being a Traveling Artist. 

3) Learn Business Finance

Managing profits and losses is a big part of business. Understanding what expenses are coming in and going out will help grow your business. Quickbooks keeps me on top of my business profits and losses (PL's). Numbers don't lie so it is critical to stay on top of your finances. I  save a lot of money in my business because I am able to do a lot of tasks myself from making all my products, selling, photography, videography, website presence, ongoing social media, accounting and if I don't know something I enjoy studying it. Technology keeps me well organized.

Another big part of business finance is dealing with the highs and lows of sales. Get comfortable with sales fluctuation. There are highs, lows and just ok moments with sales. The emotional roller coaster can be challenging and exhausting. However, it is part of owning a business. We all love the highs but learning how to cope with the lows can be tough at times! Over the years I have improved on steering away from focusing on an unsuccessful art show. I re-shift my thoughts and say, "ok I have been her before, now onto thinking about the next show and just keep at it". I track my show profits by keeping detailed records. Then at the end  of the year I can easily go back and analyze if a show is worth doing again.

Artist Lisa Ramos Cutting a Seat During The Stone Setting Process.

4) Cultivate Creativity Learning New Skills 

Learning new skills cultivates creativity for sure. One of the biggest lessons I have learned is to keep learning, trust the process and take risks. I remember during Covid when I was home inside for a year. During that time I really wanted to take my jewelry making skills to the next level. So, I studied stone setting everyday for over a year. I watched so many videos, read books and worked at my jewelers bench for hundreds of hours making lots of mistakes. In the end I learned how to do stone setting. It was really hard, but I am thrilled I stuck with it. The more I learn the better my business becomes. 

Embrace being different and creative in business. There is tremendous value in thinking outside of the box when running your business and selling your art work. I have steered away from trying to be like others when it comes to creating my work, selling, booth curation, marketing and pricing. For my business growth I continue working on getting better at my craft and gaining my show experience. What I do one year may differ the next. I like to experiment with creating new pieces and trying different art shows and festivals. 

MONOLISA Booth with Awning Cover at Clayton Art & Wine Festival.

5) Evolve  - Small Changes Big Results

Small changes in business can deliver big results. I know firsthand this is true. A small change could be as simple as changing the way you display your products. For example keeping ring cases open so customers can try on pieces can encourage them to try one on. Many customers do not want to ask you to unlock a jewelry case if they see something they like. The change could be taking the time to explain how the jewelry piece or handbag is unique. Those small conversations could entice a customer to explore your work further or even buy it. Maybe getting an awning for your popup tent to keep the sun out of your booth will bring in more shoppers resulting in sales. I saw positive results both physically and financially after purchasing an awning for my popup tent. The awning cover provided a cool shaded area for me while selling and for customers. That small change helped me sell better because I didn't have the sun beating on me or feel like I was going to faint from the dreadful heat. I immediately noticed more shoppers came into my booth and were more likely to purchase my pieces.

Politely engaging and observing with customers can bring great value to your business. At shows I carefully watch how customers shop, analyze their behaviors and listen to their comments. Both positive and negative feedback often delivers insightful data. I am also open to asking customers questions such as what is your favorite style in the collection or least favorite. Their feedback sometimes encourages me to make small changes or adjustments to my work. These approaches have helped my business evolve by expanding my collection and driving more sales. My message to you is don't be afraid to try new things. Be open and you will be surprised how small changes can deliver big results. 

Thank you for taking the time to read about how I started my handmade jewelry and handbag business. Hopefully my experiences and lessons can help others start or grow their business. 

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 "Life is full of lessons."

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