Notes from Chris

Episode 1786

During lockdown in Australia, Katrina Vo wanted a creative outlet to keep herself busy. She started experimenting with polymer clay, making jewelry and trinket bowls for fun. For those not in the know (including me), polymer clay is a pliable material, sort of like Playdough for grownups. The main difference is that polymer clay becomes permanently hardened after it's baked in the oven, making it the perfect material for creating ornaments, jewelry and figurines and more.

As Katrina discovered how versatile the material is, her fascination grew into an addiction. She started an Instagram account to share other people's creations. The account was originally intended to be a personal inspirational mood board, but it grew quickly, with 300-400 new organic followers per day!

Once she noticed how popular it was becoming, she put lots of effort into attracting more followers by sharing tips for working with clay, or growing your small handmade business. It became a community for clay makers to connect through sharing tips and techniques while supporting and encouraging each other. The account is now called Clay Craze Community. (Find it @clay_craze)

Those realizations inspired Katrina to open Clay Craze Studio, a one-stop-shop for polymer clay makers. Her goal was to create tools which made working with polymer clay more fun and efficient. Using manufacturers from both Australia (where she’s based) and overseas, she made tools that help shape the clay or print textures on it, spending about $150 on stock and a Shopify website.

But before launching any products at all, she spent months interacting with the members in Clay Craze Community to understand their pain points.

After going live in October 2020 (pandemic biz shoutout), Clay Craze Studio had its first sale via a link on the Instagram account. Katrina had just put through a test order to make sure everything was running smoothly, so she initially thought the sale confirmation was part of the test order. After triple checking the order three times, she realized the sale was real!

Let’s talk numbers. The shop started with ten products, but it now stocks over 300, including products made in-house and supplies from other wholesalers. It averages 300-400 orders per month. During its first year of operation, the store generated $113,000 in sales, primarily through social media. Katrina is forecasting 30% growth in its second year, with over 40 new products in the pipeline.

Katrina enjoys her corporate job managing and negotiating changes to legal contracts. However, she says that running your own business gives you an entirely different source of motivation, purpose and fulfillment. It's incredibly fulfilling to know that someone believes in products, to the extent they are willing to part with their money for it.

Katrina also loves how the project has enabled her to spend more time and support her family. She’s even hired her sisters to source new products and pack orders, while her fiancé helps with the website.

 

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  MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Learn more about Katrina and polymer clay art at her website, claycrazestudio.com and follow her on social @clay_craze.

SEE ALSO:

• Art Teacher Draws Her Way Into Ceramic Shop: A single mom living on a high school art teacher’s salary pursues a series of creative projects to increase her income.
• Hand-Stamped Feminist Jewelry Earns $25,000 Side Income: She’s loud, she’s proud, and she’s wielding a hammer to smash the patriarchy with her hand-stamped feminist jewelry line.
• When Fashion Flops, This Designer Follows a Shiny Object: A Los Angeles designer pivots from making clothes to selling vintage, semi-fine jewelry inspired by her love for the beach.

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work! Yours in the revolution,

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