How claudinehellmuth got started
Introduce your Etsy shop and tell us your story. How did you begin and decide on what to sell on Etsy, and how do you create your products?
I began selling on Etsy many years ago and was offering hand-made collage artworks. After a while, I let my shop go dormant until 2012, when I began selling printable downloads. This suited me much better because once made, each item could be downloaded over and over again to be made by the purchaser. I created my retro oven cupcake box and launched it in 2013, and it was a huge seller. I sold thousands of them within a few weeks! It’s still my best seller today!
Favorite items
What are your favorite items? What makes these so special? Why do you think these items might be selling well?
For sure, my retro oven is my favourite and the favourite of my customers.
My next favourite would be my cassette tape gift card holders:
I’m also really a fan of my yellow car cupcake boxes. I used to have a 2001 yellow beetle that inspired these!
Getting sales on Etsy
How long did it take for you to earn your first sale and how do you currently attract customers to your Etsy shop?
With the printables, as soon as I put them up and announced them to my mailing list, I began getting sales. I think the low price point and the fact that they can make as many as they like were very appealing. I get a lot of customers who are bakers and want to package their products in cute packaging for sales at Farmers markets, etc. Currently, I don't do anything extra to attract customers to my shop. In 2015, I went back to office work full time, so I let my Etsy shop run in the background, which I still do today. The crazy thing is that many of these items continue to sell well without any extra promotion other than being on the Etsy platform.
Managing claudinehellmuth
How do you manage your shop? Are you running solo or do you have any team members? What tools or services do you use to run your shop and how do you handle fulfillment?
Because my shop sells digital downloads only, there is no shipping. I use the Etsy Shop Manager app to manage the store and answer customer questions. I try to answer customers as soon as I get a message, so having the app on my phone is helpful.
The future of claudinehellmuth
What goals do you have for your shop in the future?
Right now, I’m just letting my shop chug along without much planning. When I get more time one day, I hope to be able to continue to add more items.
Advice for new sellers
What’s your advice for a new seller starting an Etsy shop?
I would say just jump in and start adding items to your store. You may be surprised with what takes off, and you can let customer feedback and what is most popular inform what you want to create and sell next.
claudinehellmuth
whimsical party printables to download, make & enjoy!
