The launch: How did you start out in the beginning?
Five ideas before Craft My Life, I sought business advice and mentorship from a Tasmanian state funded organisation called Van Diemens Project. They have helped me incredibly, with all aspects of small business, including looking after my own wellbeing and how to get through those tough times. They continue to mentor me and know me well. It’s an incalculable service that I’m so grateful for.
I came up with the business name because I’ve literally been crafting my new life to be awesome. I opened Craft My Life in November 2017. The other part of my business is providing craft workshops for all occasions, large events, schools, community groups and birthday parties. I’m flexible and happy to work with any group. Senior citizens, physically or mentally disabled groups, workplace team building groups, preschoolers and even their mothers. I’m very gregarious, so chatting and interacting is a big part of what I do.
My very first workshop I did as Craft My Life was by invitation to provide for Tassie’s premier event “The Taste of Tasmania” 2017 in Hobart. I’m very lucky as due to the “fame” and popularity of TAS ROCKS here in Tasmania, all the events I’ve appeared at have been by invitation.
I was also employed as the Craft Coordinator for the “Kid I Am” 2019 event at the Silverdome in Launceston. That was my biggest one yet! It took months of planning and sourcing our supplies, so when it finally came together it was very exciting! The photos can be found on my Facebook page. There were roughly 4000 people at the one-day event! Just this February I attended the “Kempton Festival” 2020, Kempton.
My online store has been tricky, I started off in a contract with another business owner that designed my website for me,and drop-shipped my stock. He also gave me business advice for selling online. At the time I was not in a good headspace and was not making good decisions. I needed help desperately as I felt completely overwhelmed. I thought the agreement would give me peace of mind knowing that I’d be moving forward with experienced knowledge, but as it turned out it was not the answer for me at all. I ended up on a web shop platform that is very overpriced and over complicated! I didn’t have various sales channels set up and also my brand was being handled in a drop-shippers framework which is fine for large businesses that are buying and selling through Asian suppliers. My business is a small niche market/ boutique kind of business. I needed to handle it and present it as that. It was begging for authenticity and I had to give it that organic feel that it deserved.
I’ve now contracted another small business owner to build me a new website on a far better platform. I’m so excited my new website will look so different and more fitting, my new photos I’ve taken are more situation bound and give that warm, organic feel instead of all my products being on a stark white background which is suitable for drop-shippers. It’s due to be released any time now. My marketing has not been great either. To make sales online it’s so important to have all back-of-house systems in place. I was totally out of my depth! I know exactly what needs to be done but I’ve had so many personal challenges and my own well-being as well as my children-s had to come first. So all those crucial things I needed to do to make my business succeed I just couldn’t get to. I’ve kept my business open through workshops, sporadic sales, my dad’s small inheritance and my welfare payments.
I made so many poor, rushed decisions and I have lost a lot of money due to that lack of experience. I also could not function properly on a day-to-day basis until this year! I’m still in recovery but I’m so much better and this year will be Craft My Life‘s turning point.
The innovation: What was the biggest breakthrough for you with your business?
My workshops definitely at this point are my biggest earners and also set Craft My Life apart from other activity providers for events, schools and party activities. This can grow bigger and I will, in time, employ staff to provide workshops across Tasmania.
The Craft My Life craft kits that I hand make or handpick are different again and will only get better. I have many more ideas to actualise. This is the part of the business that I really want to develop. I love creating new ideas and inventing new kits. My aim really is to grow my website and provide so much more through it.
Blog posts are something I’ve totally neglected in my recovery and my other goal is to get my YouTube channel up and running to do fun, homemade craft tutorials with my children. My house is actually very ADHD, we are all friendly, excitable and passionate characters. We won’t be masking that: it’s very much part of my homemade brand.
