Exciting Times Ahead

Zazu Jewellery has been trading for two years now and has moved on so much from where it started.

At first I was a little nervous of selling my own creations so I used to buy LOTS in. In fact I still  have lots that I'm selling though car boot sales! I have hundreds of pairs of £1.00 earrings still lying around!

My Mum came to visit me one weekend and noticed all the things I had been making, but most were never completed (my way of making sure they couldn't be sold!). She persuaded me to start selling them that weekend and I have never looked back.

At first I was keen to sell through any event I could possibly find. This meant I was selling somewhere at least once each weekend. I soon realised that a lot of events were not 'craft fairs' and simply a jazzed up boot sale or people were selling for peanuts and couldn't possibly even cover costs.

It was frustrating to see these people doing well as they seriously de value your items and when speaking to many they only consider themselves as hobby sellers - therefore don't pay all their hard earned takings to the HMRC!

2011 so far has been very positive, I exhibited at the British Craft Trade Fair and gained new stockists. Just before I exhibited at the BCTF I saw a job vacancy in the local paper and said to myself  'I could do that' so I applied and also quickly forgot about it. During the BCTF I got an email asking if I wanted to come for an interview and now I have got the job!

I started this week. it is part time giving me 2 days during the week to make and sell jewellery. Things will be a little tight financially for a while so there is a bit of healthy pressure on me now to make sure I get more sales, more stockists and in general more successful!

I am so excited about what this opportunity will bring to me and Zazu Jewellery. Hopefully the second half of 2011 will be just as good as the first!

The Power Of Twitter

I joined Twitter in April 2009, not really knowing how it would benefit my business. Who was I meant to follow, what was I meant to talk about?

So two years later and I am completely hooked!

How has it helped me and my business?
Well I have gained new business from it (which was my goal)

I have made some lovely cyber friends from it, some of which I have since met others I haven't had chance to yet.

I have gained press coverage from it.

In March a networking evening was set up with local tweeters. It was a huge success and about 80 people turned up. We have just had our second event which was a quiz night. It was a great night and our team came third - YAY!

And now this week I got a tweet from one of my cyber friends saying she had something she didn't need and would I like it. It is just so lovely when people you haven't even met before think of you for these things.

I think that Twitter is a great free marketing tool and also a great way to make new friends.