You Success

It is not always a straight path to get where you want to go. In fact, the curves and turns, detours and obstacles are what make the journey a mysterious and magical event.

Your first step in your home-based jewelry business is to plan to be successful. As you know, many new ventures fail, and oftentimes it is because they failed to create a plan for themselves. A plan will keep you focused on what is important and less distracted by the interruptions.

So let’s get started.

1. Determine for yourself if your love of making jewelry is a hobby or if you can see yourself producing under time deadlines, in large amounts, to appeal to the other peoples preferences and with materials that fit in the customers budget.

2. Fortunately, jewelry components and tools are so small that you wont need a real estate agent to help find a big warehouse for your business. Many people operate their craft from the kitchen table or a room in the basement.

3. Before you actually launch your jewelry business, you would be wise to do some research. Make a list of the retailers in your area or city that you envision carrying your line of jewelry. Go visit each one and see what they carry. Talk to the owners/managers and find out what sells and what doesnt. Talk to other customers and listen to their opinions about designs, price and selection. Be a SUPER SLUETH.

4. Write down your ideas– every one of them!It doesnt matter if they are good or bad at this point. Get them recorded. And dont forget to write down what you learn in your “spy” business-youll be using that information for sometime in the future.

5. Determine if you are going to begin full-time or part-time in your business. Full time may be your goal, but before you burn your bridges consider:

· Do you have enough cash to keep yourself comfortable for the first year of business, without draining every dollar you have in savings?
· Are you prepared to focus everyday on what you used to enjoy as a pastime?
· Will your body cooperate with the positions required to work with tiny objects for hours at a time?
· Will your family offer their support or do they expect a certain financial contribution from your work?
· Can you work in isolation and enjoy the time as quiet and to yourself, or do you need interaction with others to stay motivated?
· Do you need the benefit plans afforded from working in a larger company?

There are of course other considerations, but this is a good start.

6. How well do you get along with your new boss? That means YOU. When we leave a job, its easy to think that working for ourselves is easy, but in reality, it can be a tough slug. You may be a slave driver, a perfectionist, or a procrastinator. These characteristics dont always make for the easiest working relationship. You will have to find a way to make peace with the new head honcho, and tell her when you need some time to yourself!

7. Do you need to borrow money to get your business off to a good start? Because of the seasonal aspect of jewelry sales, you may be able to enter the market on a shoestring budget. But if you intend to capitalize on Christmas season, or tourist months, you may need an infusion of cash.
Make a list of possible resources and make some calls. Find out what you will need to provide to get assistance.

8. Prepare a budget. You want to be as thorough as you can be, even though your knowledge of the industry is limited. See below for a sample worksheet to serve as a guide.

9. Prepare your family:Teach your family what “Do Not Disturb” means when you are working. A lot of home-based businesses suffer due to lack of good boundaries with friends and family. They dont always remember that you are working, and it is your job to teach them.

You are off to a great start. In your next chapter we will talk specifically about how you can find your niche in a crowded marketplace; how you can be unique and have a style that motivates people to want to buy from YOU.
SAMPLE BUDGET WORKSHEET– Start-up Costs

1. Office or Workshop Furnishings _$__________
2. Jewelry Tools _$__________
3. Designated Phone Line _$__________
4. Website _$__________
5. Business Cards _$__________
6. Stock – beads, jewels, etc _$__________
7. Business licenses _$__________
8. Insurance Fees _$__________
9. Legal Fees _$__________
10.Other ………………….. _$__________

Find Your Unique Customer For Your Jewelry Business Every business needs a USP– Unique Selling Position

 

I have good news
………I have bad news.

Let’s go with the bad news first:
There are many competitors in the jewelry making industry. They too, want to sell their designs to the public and make money. Some of them are good at what they do and actually make some lovely jewelry. Some competitors have more money than you do and can advertise more than you can.

Whew! Now that we have that behind us,heres the good news:

You are a unique person with a creative perspective and your jewelry will be a reflection of your person and your skill.Your customers wont care about how much money you have or dont have. They care about if you know about them, please them, price for them, and design for them. Its all about them! SO, the better you know them, and what they want, the more you can target them specifically and build your business.

What is a USP?
USP stands for “unique selling proposition”, or you could say, “unique selling position.” What it means is this:

In the marketplace, you have to have a reason to be. There must be something about you that is a reason for your products to exist; for you to compete with others for market share.

Are you going to position yourself to be the cheapest? Will you have all your beads imported from Greece? Are you going to offer free shipping? Will your trademark be pearls? Whatever you decide to become the focal point, the selling point for your business, is your USP.

How do you find a USP?

You wont find an effective USP drinking coffee and eating a donut. You can dream up what you want about your business, but to be successful, you need to base your USP on what the market demands.

Your business will be successful if you are meeting a need, solving a problem or making life better for your customer.

 

You will need to do some market research to determine what is missing for the consumer and how you can help.

 

How to Begin Your Market Research

 

Marketing research is a science of its own, but every new business owner needs to have some basics down pat. Here are a few steps to take toward determining your USP:

1. As we mentioned in Chapter 2, going to the places where you expect to be selling your merchandise and asking questions and *really* listening, will be a real eye opener.

2. Get your hands on at least 20 different magazines published within the past year. Take note of the styles, the prices. Go online; look at the sites that are similar to what you want to do. Note the styles, prices and variety.

3. What type of person is likely to buy your product– describe them in as much detail as you can; how much money they make, where they live, their age, family status, education, gender, and buying preferences.

4. Will there be enough of those types of people, that if they buy, you will make enough money?
· Check this out by using a tool such as Wordtracker you can find instructions

on the site. It will show you how many people have searched for what you are offering in the past month. This can be a good indication of interest.

5. Once you have an idea of what you want to design and sell, make some samples and take them to at least 10 different local retailers – Ask the merchants for feedback. Be open enough to HEAR what they are saying.
Remember, they want to sell your product. In fact, they want you to be smashing success as it means more money for them.

This is just a beginning, but we all start at the beginning! I discovered a lot of good advice from some jewelry business leaders who have also written about the business. You might find something helpful here:

· Start a home based Jewelry Business

 

· Secrets of a Handcrafted Jewelry Shopping Service

Do your homework and get ready! In your next chapter, you will learn some of the basics of jewelry making. Prepare yourself a table to work at, and book some time to yourself; its time to start your Basic Beading and Jewelry Arts 101.

How To Make Jewelry 101

 

Learn how to make beautiful handcrafted jewelry at home

What got you hooked? Do you have a friend or family member that gifted you with a unique handcrafted piece of beaded or wire jewelry? Maybe you have spent a small fortune purchasing jewelry from artisans either at public fairs or in private boutiques. Whatever brought you to this juncture, you are sure to find some personal satisfaction and delight making your own fine pieces of jewelry.

Let’s begin with some of the tools required for jewelry making:

1. The basic tools are: round nose pliers, flat nose pliers, crimping pliers and flush cutters. Tools average around $15 each.
2. If you intend to do knotted jewelry such as pearls, there are special tools for knotting.
3. For jewelry wire wrapping, a wig-jig tool helps make the loop designs consistent. You will want some nylon jaw pliersso that you dont leave marks when you work with wire.
4. Split ring pliers will help you open the split rings and attach them to your chain.

The prices for all these tools can vary. The experienced jeweler will have quality tools that can last for a lifetime, but when you are starting out, you can find tools at affordable prices. Shop on EBay, local craft stores, or watch for upcoming lessons when I will share with you some of the insider secrets to buying your materials at wholesale prices.

Consider your lighting and invest in good lamp coverage. You may want to have a good pair of reading glasses, even if you dont need reading glasses. After several hours of working with tiny elements, the magnification can be helpful!

Things seem to get smaller as time wears on.

 

Additional Tools

 

As you develop your skills, you will find there are many tools on the market to help you get the job done.

 

1. A ruler for measuring bracelets.

2. A Design Board: A nifty tool for making necklaces or bracelets. You have a board that has little holes grooved out to hold the bead or stone that you want in that position. You can see what the piece will look like in advance, and not loose your tiny elements in the process.

3. A Bead Mat– you will love me for suggesting this. Keeps your beads from rolling off the table and into a hidden corner or under the refrigerator.
4. Thread Scissors – great for cutting thread and helping to tie it at the same time. Normal scissors are too big and clunky.

This is the beginning. But of course, tools dont make jewelry without beads or other elements and you! And then of course to be a winning combination you will need PRACTICE, and then more practice and then some more practice.

I found there are some sources that I can highly recommend for jewelry making techniques and instructions.

First, my favorite is the e-Book that is loaded with ideas and step-by-step instructions. Written by Lorri Ely, this jeweler and business owner has been where you are, and helps the reader to build their business precept on precept.
She loves making jewelry, and her enthusiasm will motivate you, even when you are practice weary! In fact, her website on making jewelry is a digest of free information you wont want to miss.

Other websites you may want to reference are: http://www.grandpasgeneral.com/leabead.html www.beadbugle.com

Are you getting excited yet? Have you made a piece of jewelry? Ev en if you dont have the tools to make the finer items, let your enthusiasm guide you and practice seeing jewelry in everything. Stones, berries, pine cones (the tiny ones), marbles; anything can be your practice elements. Envision yourself “seeing” designs and successfully completing them.

You are on your way.

In our next chapter, we will address how the successful jewelry handcrafter actually creates or “dreams” their designs. You might be surprised at where the pros find their inspiration.

How To Find Great Jewelry Designs Secret sources for jewelry designs that sell

Creative thinking, in any field is exhilarating, magical, idea popping and frustrating. Unlike a math problem, where there is a certain formula to follow, creative thinking involves education, discipline, imagination, playful abandonment, adventure, positive expectation, personal exposure, emotional expression and precise detail…and rarely at the same time or order.

Your first assignment, regarding jewelry design, is to take the pressure off and relax. Millions of jewelry designs are possible and they are waiting to be found, or recreated with your specific touch.

Ideas for great designs are waiting to be found! Expect the unexpected.

 

If you feel anxious about your ability to innovate or create, you subtly blind yourself to the mysterious world of inspiration.

 

Where to look for your Inspiration:

1. The first obvious choice would be jewelry design catalogs or magazines. You can do a search online and scout about. Go to some artisan markets. Of course, you dont want to copy, but you wont need to. Your mind will have different interpretations, and your choice of materials can make all the difference. You might want to check out: Arts and Crafts Mega-Ezine; as an ongoing source for ideas and inspiration.

2. Expose Yourself– Careful now, keep it legal! Expose yourself to the most creative people you can find. Whether they are musicians, painters, woodworkers, actors or children. Surround yourself with an influence that anticipates the unexpected and welcomes new ways of thinking. You will be inspired, and when you are inspired, your creativity will find you.

3. Travel – Get your body moving…away from your worktable. Walk in the woods, go to the beach, visit the museum, or explore the art gallery.

4. Study Keep refining your craft. Buy books, read e-courses, take local classes, teach a class (you learn so much more when you actually teach what you know). By adding more techniques to your portfolio, your ideas cant help but to expand.

5. Rest– You may remember the classic movie The Gambler, with Kenny Rogers. Rogers is a gambler in need of a life-saving idea. The theme song became a top hit: “You gotta know when to hold „em, know when to fold „em, know when to walk away, and know when to run.”
Sometimes the smartest thing you can do when the juices dry up is to walk away. FORGET ABOUT IT! Tell yourself you dont need to know what to do, that it will come to you at the right time. Then go play golf, or run 5 miles or go shopping. Whatever will distract you from the need to be creative; do it! If you need to, leave it alone for 24 hours or a week.
But while you distract yourself, there here a few helpful tips:

· This is not the time to punish yourself for not being productive. You are being productive – you are releasing your knotted brain.
· Put the beads away if you need to. Dont walk by and look into the room and see a pile of “nothing going on” lying on the table. Clean it up. Put it away and tell yourself that when YOU are ready, you will take it out. The priority is your energy flow, not the project.
· Dont go talking about how frustrated you are or how stuck you feel. Talk, if you choose to, with friends who dont know a thing about jewelry. Listen to their stories of caring for the kids or minding the garden. Let your insistent mind lose its grip on your thoughts.
· HAVE FUN. Don’t feel guilty for a second. Enjoy yourself.

If you will try it out, you will be surprised. New ideas will spring into your mind like a targeted rubber band snap. Before you know it, you will be busy again and enjoy yourself as you bend the wire, knot the thread, and count your beads.

Are you wondering how to price your jewelry so that you actually make a profit? We are all over it! Stay tuned; your next chapter will address product pricing specifically.

 

PS. Keep yourself surrounded with idea generating tools. Check out the Arts and Crafts Mega-Zine. Your first copy is free!

 

Pricing Your Jewelry For Profit How to determine fair market value for your jewelry pieces

 

What is value?

 

When we look for the right quotients for fair market value and pricing, let me be clear about the difference between price and value.

The price charged for an item is the determined monetary amount required in cash or currency for that item or service to leave the possession of the owner and become the new possession of the buyer. It could be $10 or $657,851.46.

What makes a person pay a certain price is the value they place on the item. Value is determined solely by the buyer. How much time is this item worth; meaning how many hours/weeks/months would I need to work in order to pay the price? Is the item worth effort to me? Would my spouse leave me if I buy this new boat? Is the boat worth sleeping alone? If I choose to travel Europe for 2 months, my children will not go to the private school of choice for this school term. Is the experience of travel worth the cost of the private education of my kids for a year? That answer equates to the value you place on the trip, or the education.

Handcrafted items are largely paid for because of perceived value. You can, by using the appropriate methods, increase the value of the item. But first, you need to have an idea of what the item cost you to make so that the price you charge the customer reflects profit.

PROFIT: whatever money you can put in the bank after you buy the materials, pay the overhead, cost our your time, cost out the time of any employees working on the
project, and any reductions you offer in the final price, either to the customer direct or to a retailer wanting to purchase from you at wholesale prices.

Determining Factors for Price

1. time – your time to make
2. creativity-your talent to design unique designs
3. materials
4. overhead expenses
5. skill to make the jewelry

Rena Klingenberg suggests in her book Jewelry Booth thatjewelry artists increase profits mainly from cutting costs and learning how to buy smart. However, she also suggests a formula that works for her and encourages her readers to determine their own winning formula.

Possible Price Formula:

 

Add the Base Price (materials and packaging x4) + your pro-rated hourly rate+ 10% of the above costs for your overhead costs = final price.
(See the book Jewelry Booth for detailed description.)

 

With all the variations in the market, it can get complicated.

 

There is however an easier way.

 

You can have the pricing figured automatically by using a software tool designed specifically for the home-based jewelry business called Bead Manager Pro.

 

With Bead Manager Pro, you enter the products you purchased from your supplier including the date, the cost, the number of pieces etc...

As you can see below, your entry allows you to not only begin the pricing strategy but keeps your inventory up to date:

Once you have entered the parts, you can begin making jewelry and knowing exactly what each piece cost you to make in raw materials.

You simply choose the parts from your stock that were required to create a piece. The total cost of materials is calculated for you instantly (these parts are also instantly deducted from your stock so keeping inventory is a snap), all you have to do is put in your labor cost and any other miscellaneous costs.

Be sure, when you are posting your labor and overhead fees, to allow enough margins for you to sell your products wholesale at a 25-50% reduction, and still make a profit.

 

On the next tab after cost Bead Manager Pro automatically prices your items for you at wholesale, direct and retail pricing, depending on the formula you choose to use.

 

Each of these fields is fully customizable so you can change the markup values to suit. You can learn a lot more about Bead Manager Pro at www.beading-software.com

 

P.S One more thought about profit and value= you increase profit when you increase the perceived value in the eyes of your customers.

Custom designs, historic symbols, trademark stones, detailed packaging, “sets” verses individual pieces, and even celebrity reviews or photos add value to your products but dont have to result in increased costs in production.

That clearly amounts to profit, no matter who you ask!

 

Sourcing Your Stones & Beads How to find the best product for the best price

For your jewelry making business to be successful, you must be able to price your product so that you make a profit. You cant purchase your products consistently at retail prices and hope to build a business. You will need to go wholesale.

As in many fields, jewelry makers can be tight lipped about their suppliers or sources for materials. Today, I will show you some key tips in building a successful supplier list.

You will need to do some research with this chapter. You might find it helpful to work from the e-copy of this lesson (rather than a printed version) as you will be able to click your mouse and go locate the sites with ease.

(This chapter alone could be worth its weight in ….silver!J)

 

How to find the materials you need:

1. Put the Bead or Gem Fair on your calendar. One of the best ways to find bulk materials is at a show. You can see the products and have a “hands on” experience.

Here is a link to use to access a directory of all the shows scheduled in the US. It includes International shows.

 

http://www.lapidaryjournal.com/cal1.cfm

 

2. Go Online: There are many distributors online. You can purchase large quantities and get some deep discounts. You may want to visit:

http://www.riogrande.com/
http://www.rings-things.com/
http://www.inmcrystal.com/
http://www.bestbuybeads.com/
http://www.artbeads.com/
http://artgemsinc.com/Content/Default.asp? http://www.foreignsource.com/
http://www.auntiesbeads.com/Home.aspx

3. Try EBay:Dont be deceived! Just because it is on Ebay does not mean it is cheap or a good deal. Check the prices– so some homework. Having stated that disclaimer, you can find some good deals on Ebay.
(Be sure the provider has at least a 99% rating!) Here are a couple dealers you might want to look at:

http://stores.ebay.com/beaddevotion
http://stores.ebay.com/junesgems-antique-jewelry-beads

 

4. Buy from bead stores– but only in the case of an emergency! You wont make any money if you are buying your raw materials retail.

 

5. You may want to import your own stones from other countries and skip the intermediary altogether!

It is possible to gain access to the Asia market and import your own supply and/or, you may want to take advantage of those connections and sell online to other jewelry designers.

Check out The Ultimate Jewelry Source. They provide you with an extensive database, training in how to sell online, create mini-sites and protect yourself when doing international trading.

6. Buy at wholesale or below wholesale by taking advantage of clear-outs and liquidations. Again, you could use your price advantage to resell at wholesale prices and/or for your own business alone.

Check out: