Are you ready for Christmas?
If you're a person who only shops for gifts in December, then that question is likely to sound ridiculous. It's early October!
If you're a shop owner, especially one who owns a handmade shop, your response is likely to be more like mine:
Arghhhhhhhhh!
I never feel ready for the rush of the holiday season, even though I often start preparing in the summer. This is my sixth year as an online shop owner and I know enough to know that I will never feel fully ready. There are just too many variables: Will people shop mostly in November or wait until the last minute in December? Will one of my products be featured somewhere in December and cause an unexpected late rush of interest like the earrings featured on 27 Inspiring Gift Ideas for Writers and Readers did last year? Will one of my trusted vendors stop carrying the one unique item that I need and can't get anywhere else? Will I run out of boxes? Will the post office lose my packages?
This year I've tried to be more deliberate in my preparations: studying spreadsheets of past sales, gradually stocking up on common supplies, and organizing my finished inventory into clearly labeled containers and drawers. The biggest thing I've done to get prepared is:
Make Two
In the summer and fall, whenever I get an order for an item that I can remake, I make two. One to ship for the order and another to set aside for the hectic days later in the year when I need items that are ready to ship. It saves time to work in batches either to make your individual components or entire items.
For example, if I'm going to darken a batch of raw copper, I always make sure that I do a bunch of pieces at once rather than pull out all the supplies I need each time. Similarly, it's rare for me to hand stamp only a single item. If I have my metal stamps out, I nearly always make more than one piece. I find that I get into a certain rhythm and pieces turn out better when I'm in the swing of things.
If it's something I can't fully make (something that requires personalization to finish, such as my Typewriter Ornament), then I just make the parts I can make now. Anything I can do now will save me time down the line.
Two of my Breathe keychains that I made on the same day. One has been shipped to a customer; the other is waiting for its forever home.
If you only make one-of-a-kind items, you're not off the hook! If you make one necklace, don't stop there. Make a matching pair of earrings or a bracelet. Or make two items that are structurally similar such as pendant necklaces on chain, but totally different in terms of color or style. Simply adding an another item or two every day will make a big difference down the line and doesn't add too much time to my regular workday. This year it's been especially important for me to do this since I've been selling larger wholesale orders now that my items are stocked in several U.S. shops.
Don't Worry, Keep Making!
I'll admit that making and storing inventory is always a little scary to me. It feels safer to only make items as they are ordered, but that can cause long hours during the holiday season. I'm worried that I'll guess wrong in what I make. What if this is the year people stop being interested in hand stamped bookmarks? I've been stocking all these aluminum keychains, but what if tastes change and everyone wants brass?
What if reading moves completely from paper books to digital? Will I end up with a lot of leftover hand stamped bookmarks like my More Books Less Sleep one pictured here?
Talking to someone who owns a food truck made me feel much better about making lots of inventory. With jewelry, it's often possible to take apart components and reuse them in future items that I might sell. I can modify old items with paint or other layers, so that the original version is no longer visible. I can choose to donate unsold earrings to places like Ears for You. If it's jewelry made with sterling silver, I can opt to sell it as scrap for cash. If I were stocking something like milk or lettuce, I wouldn't have the luxury of so many options.
Two of my 2016 star ornaments that did not sell. I'll need to decide what to do with these, but two extra ornaments is an easy problem to solve.
Go forth and make lots of beautiful handmade things this fall! Think of it as a kind gift to your future stressed out self.