Jennifer of FarmsteadOrganics recently contacted me with her story of selling on Etsy full time.  Jennifer and her husband decided to make the most of some bad news when they found out her husband's company would be making some cut backs and he would be losing his job.  After some consideration and noticing an increase in sales, they decided to work together and turn their brand new Etsy shop into a full time family run business.  Keep reading to find out how they make it all work, what her husband can't stand about an unorganized house, how the children pitch in the family business, and the new baby on the way!

When you first started selling on Etsy did you have dreams or goals of eventually quitting your day job?
When I first started selling on Etsy, it was my dream to make some extra cash and contribute a healthy second income that would allow my husband to possibly eventually take a lesser paying job closer to home.  When the gas prices sky-rocketed, our income basically dwindled to a ridiculous new low because of my husband's daily commute to work.  The thought of having a full-time family business was a "dream," but not something that we ever really thought would happen...at least not for several years.

How long were you selling on Etsy before taking the plunge into selling full time?
The plunge into full-time came only 5 months into the Etsy gig when my husband's company began laying off workers left and right...and he was one of them.  We were a little freaked out, to say the least.  I mean, Etsy has been going pretty well, especially considering how new our shop is, but, to actually support our family on it is another story!  Thankfully we have a few months of unemployment to keep us afloat and he can look for other work in the mean time.  We also figured that by the time unemployment runs out, we will be smack in the middle of the busy online shopping season (November).  The funny thing is that around the time he lost his job our business really started to pick up and the thought that maybe we could actually survive off of this deal started to become a possibility in our minds.

What was the deciding factor resulting in your pursuing Etsy as your full time job?
With the gas prices as high as they are, we find that we save a significant amount of money just by having Dave home.  My husband is also a "grab a snack and a newspaper" kinda guy and he would waste a lot of money on little stuff everyday.  What we are finding out is that we save such a huge amount of money by him not working, and if we can increase our sales over the next few months and secure some loyal customers, we might end up in better financial shape than what we were in before. So, the money saved, rather than the money earned, by both of us working at home has been the deciding factor in actually pursuing this as a full-time job.

Did you do anything to prepare ahead of time before taking the plunge?
We did have our DBA and had stocked up on some supplies before this all happened, but that was basically just how luck would have it.  We had no idea that he would lose his job and that we would be depending on this business to take off...so, we really did not prepare.  I wish we would have been more prepared!  But, everything has worked out ok.  Dave has gotten us a lot more organized since he has been home.  He has organized labels and taken an inventory, built some better shelves and storage space.  I am not an organized person at all!  I am very creative, but not neat about it.  He hates that.  I had been trying to build up our inventory like mad because we have another baby due in November but that didn't have anything to do with taking the plunge into full time business, either.  Everything has been really like riding the wind the past couple of months!

What are the most effective ways you have promoted and marketed your Etsy business? What's your best marketing tip?
I am a natural health and nutrition researcher, writer, and herbalist by trade.  Because of this, we already had an established web site up and running for a couple of years before Etsy.  Obviously, this allowed me to bring some customers with me.  I have promoted our shop through my simple living newsletter and through some of my articles.  Other than that, we promote the shop by listing items...often!  I have found that you have to list and relist everyday on Etsy.  Especially when you have so many other bath and body sellers.  If you don't keep yourself visible, you'll get lost in the crowd.  I do post on the forums sometimes, but I am so insanely busy with our children and school and home-life that it is pretty nearly impossible for me to be a forum regular.  I did join an Etsy team (The Old Farmhouse Gathering), which I highly recommend doing.  We have also branched out into other handmade crafts.  I don't want to keep all of my eggs in one basket, so to speak.  That would be boring.  I think that it has helped us in that someone who is looking at one of our aprons or dolls might end up buying soap even though that is not what they were in the market for originally when they clicked on our shop.  Once a person tries our soap or lotion, we usually have them hooked.  We have a lot of return customers.  It is good to be diverse, I think.  Same thing goes for someone who might be looking for soap and they end buying an apron.  This cross promotion with unrelated products really helps when you are in such a saturated market like soap.  Any promotion is probably good promotion when you are first starting out.  Even 1 or 2 customers brought in is a bonus! 

Would you walk us through what a typical workday might entail being your own boss?
A typical day at our house is a hoot!  We have 5 children, 4 dogs, 4 cats, chickens, ducks, goats, we homeschool, and we run a business...need I say more?  It can be crazy...but never a dull moment!  Not to mention that we tend to be very creative and are always doing a number of different projects at one time! 

• When we wake up, usually it is me or my oldest daughter, Savannah, who makes breakfast.  We eat meals in this house.  I am not into just grab and go food. 
• While breakfast is cooking, my husband is printing orders that came in overnight or early morning.
• We eat. 
• Dave then heads out with a few children to do chores and milk the goats. 
• Savannah stays inside and begins taking an inventory on what we need to make that day and what is ready to be shipped. 
• I answer conversations and emails. 
• Usually in the midst of this we are already making some soap or mixing up some concoction.  When the chores are done, school begins. 
• The computer usually gets shut down until after lunch. 
• I am making stuff on and off all day.  Dave packages our orders.  Savannah does our labels and helps me.  

She is thankfully extremely smart and quick to finish her school work which means that by lunch time she is helping fill orders or sewing laundry bags.  I can only imagine what that girl will do as an adult.  She is so unbelievably talented at her age and has so many good ideas!  All of our children help out and even the younger ones are an asset to our business because they give me ideas...and ideas are the key to keeping this business fresh and competitive.  Dave tries to get to the post office each afternoon.  Thankfully, even though we live out in the middle of an Old Order Amish community, we are only 3 miles from a small town that has a post office!  How cool is that?  I love that we can ship often and quickly to our customers. That is very important. My husband can't stand to have a messy house, so we stay on top of that throughout the day so that things don't get too out of control, which you can imagine is not easy.  He has had to learn to ease up...some serious battles have taken place.  In fact, that is something to take into consideration if you are planning a home-based family business.  If you will be working with your husband, will you kill each other or can you work well together?  Believe me, we have our moments! 

• Once the children are in bed for the night, we make our big batches of soap.  I don't like to bring out the lye until they are all in bed and far away. 
• During the day we do our rebatching and other things they can help with.  I also try to do my writing in the evenings and in general, it is nice to relax a bit.

What do you enjoy most about not having a day job? Is there anything you miss?
Some days it is exhausting and it feels like from the time my feet hit the ground I am going non stop, but other days are slower and more leisurely.  We like the flexibility that we have as a family.  If we want to go pick blueberries, we go. If we want to head to my grandparent's for the day, we do it. If the sun is shining and I feel like taking a break out to the garden, I can. Being your own boss is great. I would never want to work for anybody else again. My husband likes being home all day and I love the extra help around the house. I really enjoy having a business that involves our whole family and our kids are learning amazing things! It is so great being able to give them this kind of experience and the freedom to be creative themselves. I would like to see each one of them grow up to have their own businesses based on a trade or skill that they choose to perfect themselves. I believe in artistic entrepreneurship. I believe that we are all created to be creative at something.

How's it going so far? Are you supporting yourself?
Obviously, if we had known that Dave would lose his job, we would have invested more of our time and money in the business before hand.  It would have been great if we would have started on Etsy a year ago and had more time to build up a clientele. Things I put off, I wish I hadn't. I would suggest to anyone considering taking the plunge to sell full time of Etsy to build up an inventory and make sure you have enough supplies and materials to carry you through the first several months.  The hardest part for us has been having to put our money back into the business right now and not having much surplus left over.  Have a business plan, even if it is just handwritten into a notebook.  Make a list, set goals, be realistic, but don't be afraid to dream big and take some chances.
 
Thankfully, like I said, Dave is still collecting some unemployment.  He is also most likely going to take a part-time job this fall until we see for sure how we do after the shopping rush slows down at the end of the year.  I can honestly say though that we have been shocked at how much business we get on Etsy.  It is amazing!  I can only wonder how we'll be doing next year at this time. We have only been selling here since March! Considering that, things are looking bright for the future.  But, I also know that life can take unexpected turns...I don't count my chickens before they hatch. Nobody should!

What goals do you wish to accomplish in the coming year for your Etsy business?
We are planning on expanding our handmade goods extensively in the next few months.  I have a zillion ideas flowing through my mind at any given moment, but on the front burner is to start selling more of our tote bags, aprons, and launch our baby rag blankets with matching crib sheets, cloth diapers, burp cloths...and we'll never stop creating our goat milk skin care products!  I am especially eager to add more skin care for babies and children.  Those goats are near and dear to our hearts and I have a burning passion for making soap and lotion with that creamy, wonderful milk! We are very dedicated to keeping everything as natural as possible and we are always looking for more ways to eliminate waste, as well. One thing that we are hoping to do in the next year is to switch all of our packaging back to glass and paper. We began packaging some of our items in plastic due to cost restraints and easier and cheaper shipping but we have not been happy or at ease with that decision. Plastics are getting better. Phthalate free is available now and recycled, but glass is more easily reused, recycled, and does not absorb or release chemicals. I am constantly coming up with new ideas based on my own needs as a mom of a growing family. That is what started all of this in the first place.  My kids are all coming up with ideas for their own Etsy shops that they will open in the future too. Who knows where it will all end up!  It is one big craft fair around here!

Is there anything else you'd like to share?
I can't thank Etsy enough for providing us with this amazing outlet to showcase our goods and for supporting handmade crafts!  The world needs to get back to supporting small businesses and purchasing based on quality rather than cheap cost.  I know of so many talented people who will spend their lives slaving away in a factory or in a job they hate because they don't know how to market their product or their skilled trade.  It is sad.  People don't think that soap-making is a real "job."  We have forgotten that soap-making was once a legitimate and lucrative business in this country...Benjamin Franklin's father was a very successful soapmaker.  Painters, seamstresses, woodcarvers, welders (like my husband),  goat herders, beekeepers, sheep shearers...those are all real jobs! I would love to see things like they were before the industrial revolution when families could actually support themselves by being creative, smart, skilled, and hardworking!  Etsy is a move in that direction!