Company

Every kid should be allowed to grow up believing that they can be anything. Because that’s the first step to making something of yourself an adult.

But many young people are convinced early on that their dreams are too big for them—that there’s a low ceiling on their potential, that their disadvantages define them.

In the city of Detroit, Michigan, in particular, many young people just don’t get the same opportunities to believe in themselves and so they drop out of school or never go to college.

For David Merritt, reigniting that belief is his bottom line and the reason he started a two-part Detroit-based social enterprise.

“I’ve never been a wedding person,” says Emily Newman. Eight years ago, she and her husband skipped the fanfare and eloped.

Today, however, she’s the kingpin and creative genius behind hugely successful Once Wed, a wedding blog and dress listing service that welcomes 6 million yearly visitors. 

A year ago, Emily punched a new notch in her entrepreneurial belt, launching If I Made on Shopify. Learn how she built her second successful business selling digital courses to creative professionals.

Ecommerce has revolutionized how artisans and makers sell their handmade items. It has become increasingly easier for creative DIY entrepreneurs to build and grow a handmade goods business, from scratch, online.

Still, as creatives and makers, it’s easy to forget about the business-side of, well, your business! Merchants that create their own products by hand are much more invested in their product. They pour their heart, soul and energy into each and every item they produce.

Some artisans might not see the business opportunity or the opportunity to make a living or side-income from their passion. While others, see the opportunity to build a real brand from their creations, not just selling one-off products.

I recently had the chance to talk with four handmade goods merchants: Coralie, who sells handmade jewelry at Coralie Reiter Jewelry, Robin, who sells modern leather goods at Fitzy, Sahnda, who sells soft sole baby shoes at Sahnda Marie Kids, and Valerie, who sells leather goods with her husband Geoffrey at Walnut Studiolo. I asked them about their passion, how they turned their passion into an online store, and how they managed the marketing and business side of their company, all while creating their products by hand.

Do you follow the r/entrepreneur subreddit? We here at Shopify love that space, and regularly look through it for inspiration.

Last week we picked up a super helpful post by an entrepreneur who has built an amazing store. In less than a year Mr. Eric Bandholz built a business with $120,000 in monthly sales.

The company is Beardbrand. And Eric spells out exactly what he did to generate revenue of this scale.

His secret? Building a brand. It’s a “high priority” especially as a consumer business. And the results?

With Eric’s kind permission, we excerpt parts of his post (the original is found in gray) while adding bits and pieces to supplement his advice to help make sure that merchants see the value of building a great brand.