Handmade Spark Article: The Realities Learned About Running An Etsy Business After 1,700 Sales

Posted on Handmade Spark by Handmade Spark on 5/23/2010

When I started designing metal furniture in 2004, I had no idea it would become my passion and my full time job.
Running your own business will open your eyes to a ton of things. Here are a few of the things I have learned in the past 3 years of selling on Etsy. Oh, and a few other bits of useful info!

*Your passion is your passion: I have learned that not everyone will like what you make. I have sold my metal online, in galleries, art shows, and even in my own brick and mortar shop. Let me tell you, not everyone gets what I do. I’ve had people walk up to me and ask “What is that?!” or “You are asking that price for that?”. It took me months before a gallery would take my work. But I pressed on and believed in what I was making.

*Etsy is not magic: Well, almost not magic! You need to wipe this from your mind: “If I open up a shop on Etsy the sales will start pouring in”. I must say that Etsy has changed my life and can certainly change yours, but there is no magic to Etsy, which means there is hard work that has to be done to achieve your goals.