Etsy Seller Interview with Ashley of MizuCrafts

How MizuCrafts 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?

Hello! My name is Ashley, and I’m the owner of Mizu Crafts. I started Mizu Crafts in November 2018, selling cross-stitch patterns. I enjoyed creating these digital downloads but wanted to do something more. Not long after, I discovered the fun of creating candles, and it just hasn't stopped growing! Every geek, nerd, otaku, and fan should be able to show loud and proud their favourite fandoms, and our crafts are meant to help you do just that.

Each product is designed to showcase a certain show or character while also using materials that are safe around animals. We have five cats, one of which is very sensitive to certain smells. Making sure everything we used was safe around them was one of our major goals.

Another goal was to be eco-friendly but still affordable. Our vessels are able to be reused once the candle has finished burning, and many of our labels are printed on recycled paper. We also use starch packing peanuts that can be dissolved in water, as well as packaging materials that can be recycled. Our mission is to provide eco-friendly nerdy candles and crafts without the high price tag. That's why all the materials we use are sourced specifically with that in mind.

We decided to start selling on Etsy because of how easy it was to get started. Because Mizu Crafts started very small, I didn’t have a lot of money to invest in a website. After doing research on different platforms, Etsy came up time and time again as the most reliable, so I took the plunge to set up a site and have Mizu Crafts available around the world!

Favorite items

What are your favorite items? What makes these so special? Why do you think these items might be selling well?

I love everything we put out, but my two favourite items are our Chihiro candle and our Winner wax melts.

I love Chihiro because it’s a clean, relaxing mix of lavender, chamomile, and sea salt. It also features a wood wick that provides lovely crackling, similar to a fireplace. I love lighting it when I’m feeling stressed from work or just need a refreshing boost. The embeds inside are also adorable.

Winner is one of my favourites because it was the first time I had put my packing design skills into Mizu Crafts. From the melts to the actual design of the box, every part of these melts is made with great attention to detail. Much of the feedback we get on this product is about how well everything goes together! It’s definitely a best-seller and can be hard to keep on the shelves sometimes.

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?

Our first sale came from a friend who wanted to support our business. However, keeping sales consistent is a mix of staying on top of trends and making sure to constantly update our SEO. Once a month, I go through our listings to see what keywords are being searched for and how people are finding Mizu Crafts. Then, I work on and adjust listings that have a low search volume. That can mean changing the title, description, tags, or adding new photos to see what helps boost that listing.

I also use social media and email to promote new products or share them when we’re having a sale. Creating unique sales for email subscribers or social media followers encourages people to stay connected with us and helps people want to follow us or sign up for our newsletter.

I also make sure to take advantage of Etsy's promotions. Offering a sale during peak times puts you on a list of items promoted by Etsy itself. That can be an easy way to get your product in front of someone who may not have known what keywords to search for to find your specific item.

Managing MizuCrafts

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?

Mizu Crafts is a one-woman show! I sometimes partner with my wife to create label art, but overall I create the product, design the labels, do printing, packing, and shipping all on my own. It can be a lot of work, but it’s something I really enjoy.

Some of the tools I use include:

• Illustrator for label design
• Photoshop and Snapseed for photo editing.
• Premiere and CapCut for video editing
• Canva for social posts
• Pirate Ship for Postage

If you’re selling fairly consistently, I would also suggest a thermal printer. I use a Rollo and love how easy it is to use. Thermal printers don’t use ink and let you print on special sticker paper. It saved us a tonne of ink and paper when printing postage.

The future of MizuCrafts

What goals do you have for your shop in the future?

My most immediate goal is to move Mizu Crafts into a dedicated warehouse! Currently, we have a home studio, but it’s definitely running out of space. My other goal is to hire a couple more people to help with packing orders and some other day-to-day tasks.

I’d also love to be able to have sold and sent an item to each state in the US!

Advice for new sellers

What’s your advice for a new seller starting an Etsy shop?

The biggest advice is to not give up! Success is not instantaneous, and the hard truth is that you probably won’t be making “quite your job” money for some time.

More practical advice is to focus on your listings. Try to make sure you’re adding new products regularly, your photos look professional, and your descriptions are accurate for what the item is.

People buy with their eyes, and if the item blends into the background or your description is littered with typos, it won’t inspire much confidence in your brand.

And lastly, don’t let the numbers get you down. Slow seasons are normal. It doesn’t mean you have a bad product. It just means you have to think outside the box.