Etsy Seller Interview with Hanna of BlytheBannAnnaBears

How BlytheBannAnnaBears 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’m Hanna Kibalchich-Poda, the owner and founder of the BannannaBears brand. My story began in 2014, when the war came to my hometown in Ukraine and I lost my job (I had been an economist in a bank). That was a time of indefiniteness; I literally didn’t know what to expect on the following day. So, to maintain my mental health, I started doing needlework, namely crocheting. I must point out that I had never knitted or crocheted before in my life. But I had the Internet and a great desire to try. I had been crocheting my first toy for a whole month, figuring out the difficulties of a pattern found on the Internet!

My husband and I were sitting in our apartment corridor, the walls were shaking, and I was crocheting to distract myself from the horror happening around us...The fact that I did it made me so happy! It is hard to convey! I couldn't even imagine myself holding a bear I'd made a month ago.Later, I started experimenting and creating my own toy designs. I was sharing my hobby on Instagram, and crafters began asking for patterns. That's how I got a new dream: to see my patterns used by crafters all over the world, and I came across Etsy. My Etsy story began in 2017, when I opened my first crochet toys and patterns store.

I liked to add knitted outfits to each of my crocheted toys, which completed the look and added the emotions I wanted the toy to project. Many crafters became interested mainly in these knitted outfits; they were amazed by their miniature size and, at the same time, their neat and realistic look. They looked forward to learning to create the same outfits, so I started drawing up miniature clothing knitting patterns as well. A little later, large-eyed Blythe dolls stole my heart, and I began to create Blythe outfit patterns and develop a finished clothing line for doll collectors. At the moment, I have two Etsy shops: a patterns store that teaches other crafters how to make miniature dolls and toys clothes , which I had to launch instead of a suspended one due to territory occupation after I left my home city in Ukraine for Estonia, and a design miniature collectible doll clothes store that I created with my partner and friend Irina, who continues to live and create in Kyiv, Ukraine.

Favorite items

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

This is a very tricky question, for I love absolutely all the items listed in my shop! If I try hard to single something out, it’s going to be animal outfits: deer, frog, fox, cat, and bunny. All the animal hats have a unique construction, thanks to which they look seamless from all angles and perfectly fit the doll’s head (I teach how to knit such outfits in respective patterns), and collectors just love their design and want them in their collection! One of my students had even made a hat following my pattern for her 1-year-old son for Christmas! I'm getting photos of her child wearing that hat for the third year in a row! It is incredible to realize that people want my designs not only for dolls but also for themselves or their loved ones, and that my designs make people so happy! I’d also single out my strawberry cardigan: this idea had been buzzing in my head for a year, and I put bringing it to life on the shelf for fear the cardigan wouldn’t be as realistic as I wanted it to be. But it turned out to be just perfect! Its design includes all my experience as a designer, and its pattern includes all my experience as a teacher.

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?

I have had the experience of opening and promoting three stores on Etsy. That said, each of my stores began full-fledged work, i.e., received orders, in the first few weeks. And they weren't just any old random sales. From the very first operation day of my first shop, I realized that the competition in my niche is crazy and that simply sitting and waiting for sales wouldn’t work. I had been researching Etsy algorithms, creating listing promotion strategies, studying my customers, who get to my store directly from Etsy, analyzing sources other than Etsy where people can get to know about me, and thinking about an exclusive feature to help me stand out among other designers. I used such social media as Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram. And as a result, I set a goal: I need repeat customers to come to my shop over and over again instead of making single guest purchases. This is the thought that runs through my mind as I create each item—what else can I give to my favorite collector or crafter, or for a random client to become a repeat customer! 

Managing BlytheBannAnnaBears

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?

All duties regarding store management and promotion strategy are solely my responsibility. In terms of patterns, I design them, take tutorial photos and videos, type and draw them all myself. I mainly translate the patterns into English on my own as well, and only address a translator in rare cases when I have difficulties. As for the finished miniature clothes shop, my friend Iryna helps me here by sewing clothes. Over the years of cooperation, we have developed a common clothing design style, and our goal in compiling the assortment is for both knitted and sewn clothes to complement and match each other to create variable sets. Also, the talented Anastasia joined our team, who implements my ideas for unique doll footwear.

70% of our listings are items made to order. We offer collectors a vast range of fabric colors and patterns, yarn, leather, and suede shades when creating this or that clothing item. This, in addition to our unique designs, makes us exclusive. Collectors are ready to wait for 2–3 weeks to get miniature clothing made specially for their doll. But those are happy weeks of expectations, and their reviews prove it! Since I had to move to Estonia, now the finished goods shipment comes from two countries. from Ukraine and Estonia. At first, I was worried that it would be inconvenient for collectors, but six months of work in this mode showed that I shouldn’t have worried. As for the tools, sometimes I use Google Analytics and Erank for a deeper analysis of the store from the inside.

The future of BlytheBannAnnaBears 

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

My goal is to increase sales at least twice and remain only a designer with a team of assistants who create with my patterns. I collaborate with famous brands (that sounds a little funny now, doesn't it? ), but I'm passionate about it.

Advice for new sellers

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

My advice is to get real and realize sales won't come on their own. Study the site, study your niche, study your customers, and predict their behavior. Keep your head up and experiment. Believe in yourself and your business!

Some sellers really get inspired by hearing numbers. Feel free to share these if you like.

Question: What is your shop’s conversion rate?
Answer: 1% - miniature doll clothes2.2% - patterns