Etsy Seller Interview with Lindsey of Stylecamp

How Stylecamp 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 Lindsey, the creator behind Stylecamp. Stylecamp was conceived back in 2012 as a combination of my main interests: a love for vintage fashion, travel, and sewing. I'd studied pattern cutting and garment production at university and wanted to apply what I'd learned to create wearable, versatile clothing for modern women inspired by glamorous fashions of the past. A lot of my inspiration is rooted in beach/Riviera and Hollywood style from the 1930s and 40s, hence the mantra for my brand, "simple, timeless, elegance." The result was a feel-good collection of vintage-inspired mix-and-match separates and summer dresses in a selection of eye-catching colors.

I handmake everything here at Stylecamp simply for the love of sewing. I use a sustainable make-to-order model, keeping certain fabrics in stock and making items when required. It also means I can introduce new colors and fabrics seasonally to keep the collection looking fresh. I started my journey with no solid intention of it being my sole income, more of a "see what happens" attitude. I certainly had no experience running a business at this point; I just knew I really enjoyed making clothes and wanted to get better at it.

I had my own website and joined a number of platforms, including Etsy, when I first started selling, with the aim of spreading my net as wide as possible. It didn’t take off immediately, but I was ok with that given that I was free to create and had a freelance role to support me. The turning point with Etsy came when they ran a series of shop courses in collaboration with the Design Trust, I think around 2015/16. What I learned about branding in those few weeks proved invaluable, and that was when I really started to take it seriously. With the optimization of my shop, I eventually gained traction on Etsy, which is one of the most popular destinations for handmade products. Sales grew steadily, and it brought me, customers, from all over the world, especially the US, which I was amazed at.

Favorite items

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

My signature crop top, bralette, skater skirt, and pencil skirt separates are among my bestselling pieces. They are designed to be mixed and matched with each other to create a particular silhouette suited to your style.

I started with 4 main silhouettes: Coco, Audrey, Grace, and Kirsten, and later added a tie-up top and shorts to the collection, giving the additional options of Ava, Bebe, Lupe, and Peggy.

What I love most about these is that they’re not too smart and not too casual; they can be dressed up or down to suit your mood or occasion. For instance, I regularly get orders of sets or individual pieces in white or velvet to wear to weddings, which is one of the biggest compliments.

My next favorite piece is the Lombard dress, inspired by one of my style icons, Carole Lombard. I love the sleek, vampy appeal it has. It’s one of the designs that I feel most proud of, especially when customers say that it made them feel amazing when they wore it.

Lastly, the Marlene jumpsuit is one of my absolute favorites, with its injection of vibrant print perfect for holidays, special occasions, or even everyday wear. Effortlessly chic and comfortable to wear, it never fails to make me feel good, and it’s my go-to piece every spring and summer (I may have one in almost every print!).

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 been with Etsy for a long time, so I have seen many changes to the platform over the years. I don’t recall it being very long before my first sale came in, but it's gone from achieving 5 orders in my first year to 496 in 2022—a total of 2,706 orders since I started, and that’s just on Etsy. There have been peaks and troughs over time, most notably when algorithms were introduced in 2014 and threatened to wipe out my business overnight! It shows you always have to be proactive in running your shop and follow good sales and SEO practices.

Good selling practices include answering messages promptly, dispatching on time, and getting good feedback. Tweaking listings regularly, whether it’s adding keywords to titles or adding good photos, I have a fair few listings, and many of them are due for an overhaul, so it’s a good way of keeping things ticking over. I also add variations to my listings with different keywords to attract a different audience; for instance, although my items are intended for everyday use, I list some of my items with wedding keywords to reach another demographic.

Managing Stylecamp

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’m still working solo as I find my business manageable in its current form, though there have been periods where the orders have come in thick and fast and I’ve gotten a bit flustered. To help with the every day, I use an app called Vela to manage bulk edits to my listings, which is super helpful when I need to change a size chart image or update sizing or color information within the description of lots of listings at once. I’ve finally taken the plunge to use online shipping, and now I don’t know why I didn't do it sooner. I must be really stubborn! My next investment will be a printer for shipping labels to replace the one I currently have, which only does address labels.

The future of Stylecamp

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

Though I classify my business as a slow fashion business, I want to invest in more sustainable fabrics. I have taken some tentative steps in that direction, but it’s not an easy task given the current scale of my business. So for now, I just want to continue to see steady growth, increase my size range, and get back to creativity. I’m hoping to phase out some designs and introduce new staples in the coming years.

Advice for new sellers

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

Avoid the mentality of "if I put this on the internet, they will come." As I have alluded to, there have been many changes to the way Etsy, social media, and online businesses, in general, operate in regard to SEO and algorithms over the years, so it’s not really possible to have a shop passively as it once was back in 2012. Researching good practices such as keyword research for your products and optimizing listings on Etsy from the beginning will take you a long way. It’s overwhelming at first, but you can apply it wherever you show up online once you’ve worked out the basics. Take advantage of online business, social media, or Etsy courses—any free advice you can find is out there—just make sure it’s up-to-date! Work on your brand identity and learn what it means to have a brand identity. Knowing who you’re selling to is the quintessential difference between having a hobby business and a money-making shop.