Etsy Seller Interview with Jessica of stitchesngiggles4U

How stitchesngiggles4U 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?

We are Stitches n Giggles, an online fabric shop! We started selling online because of our love for quilting and accessibility to inventory (the manufacturer we originally started buying from is close to home!).

We organically expanded with demand until it took over the basement. Eventually we started buying from other suppliers as well.

Favorite items

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

My personal favorites are Quilt Kits and Precut Bundles! I love the idea of having everything you need to make a quilt sitting in a box or bag just waiting for me to have the time and energy to start the project. 

Similarly, Precut Fabric Bundles include some fabric from each piece released in a line so when you really love a fabric it is a great way to buy fabric until you decide what you want to make with them.

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?  

We were lucky in that a lot of people come to Etsy looking for fabric. Because we priced ourselves competitively, we were able to attract sales really quickly.

Now, we advertise through Etsy and try to retain customers by shipping quickly and having a great variety at great prices.

Managing stitchesngiggles4U

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 am fortunate in that I have a great team! My husband helps with behind the scenes tools. He has been working this past year on an inventory management software that allows us to reconcile inventory across different sales platforms called Esherpa (currently working on marketing it to other Etsy shops because we have loved it so much!). 

I have three employees who help fill orders and do the day-to-day. We use Pirate Ship to help us with shipping.

The future of stitchesngiggles4U

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

I am actually really happy with our level of sales and workload at the moment. It feels like a good fit with the work/life balance I want. In the future as my kids get older and I’m able to put in more time and find bigger space, we would love to expand our listings and to keep growing. 

For now, we are focusing on driving sales to our new Shopify website and continuing to hone our fulfillment process to be as efficient as possible.

Advice for new sellers

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

Advertise with Etsy. I know it can be hard to put money in a black box where you aren’t able to control where the money is spent but in our experience it is necessary to advertise to drive the initial sales. 

Take really great pictures and use keywords that will drive customers looking for your product to you!