Etsy Seller Interview with Sally of StarMomentDesign

How StarMomentDesign got started

Introduce your Etsy shop and tell us your story. How did you decide what to sell on Etsy, and how do you create your products?

Hi, My name is Sally, and my shop is Star Moment Design. My shop primarily sells bespoke greeting cards and prints, with nursery and children's prints being the most popular, as well as wedding prints that make great personalised gifts, and so on. When I had my first child, I had to decide whether I wanted to return to my previous day job in the office or be a stay-at-home mom and spend time with my baby son. I started to do some research and decided to open an Etsy shop. This was a massive decision for me at the time, and I was nervous about giving up my secure job and risking becoming solely self-employed. However, I’m now a mom of two. Yes, our second son came along last year, and I now successfully juggle family and work and haven't looked back once. Etsy has allowed me to stay at home with my young children and work around my family's schedule, which I could not have done with my previous 9-to-5 job. 

Favorite items

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

I would say that my favorite item that I currently sell on Etsy would have to be my simple, themed bespoke cards. My customers love the personalization offered on these, which can be used for so many occasions, from birthdays to Mother's Day, etc. The simplicity of the designs seems to be on trend at the moment, but I am always mindful that this could change at any time. I now also offer to print a personal message from the customer to the recipient inside the card to fully enhance the bespoke finish of the card.

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 was lucky, and it only took a couple of weeks to earn my first sale, and volume gradually increased as I improved the range of cards and prints in the shop. At the moment, I only use my Etsy shop to promote my cards and prints; I don't currently use other social media, but this currently seems to be working well for me. I find the most important thing is to keep the shop current and updated, and sales seem to follow.

Managing StarMomentDesign 

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?

I manage the shop solely by myself, which works well for the time being, though depending on how the business grows, I may consider hiring help in the future. I currently design through the Canva app. I print all my own orders, use the Etsy labels platform for postage, and pop the orders in the mail. I like to pride myself on a swift turnaround of orders. I find this keeps everything streamlined and simple to manage.

The future of StarMomentDesign

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

My aim is to simply keep offering a first-class service to my customers and to continue to keep my designs both fresh and current. My goal is to simply grow the business alongside my growing family.

Advice for new sellers

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

I would advise anyone opening a new shop to look critically at the shop as they add inventory, checking photos and listings as you add them, making your shopfront as appealing as possible. Basically, look at the shop from a customer's point of view. Always do your homework when it comes to raw materials. It took me a while to find the best-textured linen effect card stock for my cards/prints, and it really makes the designs pop. I would also advise being aware of your surroundings if possible; it can have a significant impact on how your shop is perceived. I stopped sending my cards out in plastic sleeves, for example, and this was really well received. The most important thing to realize is to think like a customer. How would you like to be treated throughout the Etsy process? If you always bear that in mind, you can't go far wrong!