1 Dec 13
As some of you might know, I’ll be selling my goods at the Christmas Pop Up Store this year. After freaking out about my decision, I freaked out further because I had to start planning but had no idea what to prepare or take note of. I knew I could use some advice so I stepped out of my comfort zone and asked for some. I tapped on Sarah & Siew – shopkeepers of Small and Able for tips. I’ve always appreciated their openness on their blog and what they stand for. Thus I’m so happy they obliged and came up with a comprehensive list of what to do.
I’m sharing it here with the hope that this list will be helpful to many more people. Other than me.
First, think about your shop front.
• Something eye-catching in the display to have people want to come over in the first place
• A signboard of sorts – so that people can remember your name/shop
• People like a busy display, we think
• Try to have variations in the height of the display – a flat display requires people to come close and look down
• Think about how you would like to display your prices. Try to commit your price list to memory so you won’t be caught off guard!
• Namecards! Let people know where/how to find you.
Next, some things to consider and prepare for the upcoming event.
• Decide how to pack purchases. Paper bags? Plastic bags? Envelopes? Do you have irregular-sized items that may require special packing? Remember bubble wrap for fragile items!
• How to store your goods? We don’t really like suitcases because we have so many little things. Hence, we settled for plastic boxes from IKEA and lots of bubble wrap. After setting up our display, we try to consolidate the rest of our stocks in one/two boxes for easy access.
• How are you getting there? We carried our boxes to and fro the car for a few markets before we decided that we needed to preserve our ageing backs. We got ourselves a trolley, which helped heaps. Stairs are always/still a challenge though.
• Collect S$1 coins and a good assortment of other coins. Collect as many S$10 and S$2 notes as possible too.
• Do not underestimate the energy required to man a stall for hours – best to get help. You will be standing for hours. Busy is good!
• Stock up on water and snacks beforehand
• A market is one of the best places to interact with your customers, (regular or otherwise) and to gain exposure. Consider having a mailing list for potential customers to sign up for so you can provide them with updates and news.
It’s D-Day, time to execute.
• Give yourself enough time to set up your display – we do mock-ups and still take a fair bit of time to set up
• Have your ‘sales pitch’ ready – people will ask you about you, your stuff, and pretty much anything
• Be prepared for people asking for discounts
• Leave some space on your table as your “office” – a place for your cash box, scissors, tape etc
• Bring a notebook to note purchases. A calculator will come in handy for doing calculations.
• Bring blu-tack, tape, twine and scissors, just in case
• Lastly, you’ve to be prepared to stand. And stand. And smile.
Here are the deets to the Christmas Pop Up Store:
14 Dec 2013, 1-9PM
at The 3rd Space
18 Cross Street (China Square)
B1-05
Thank you, Small and Able for shedding light on gearing up for a flea market! Readers, do come by to shop for Christmas gifts (or for yourself). Small and Able will be participating too, together with a whole bunch of favourites like the little dröm store, Green Banana (for terrariums) and nong jia nu (gift wrapping class!). Check the Facebook page for updates and more sneak peeks of vendors.
I haven’t written a post this lengthy in a long time. Imma need to lie down after this. Actually no. It’s already December, there’s no time for that. Carpe Diem-cember?
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14 Nov 13
I overworked my hands today – making poms – so I’m taking the rest of the night off. Freed up some time to do a post so how about that 🙂 A quick word that the shop is updated with new stuff. AND I’m very excited that I’ll be having a stall at this year’s Christmas Pop Up Store! More news when the date draws nearer.
On to the photos, these were all taken while en route to somewhere.
Walked past these colourful facades while heading to the Grand Bazaar
Here’s a peaceful demonstration right outside Shake Shack. Also where we were going to eat.
The magnificent view on our walks back to our Airbnb apartment
This Karaköy tram stop is the closest one to us so we start out from here on most days
We took the tram to Tophane to check out Istanbul Modern. Ended up getting distracted by the Biennale Festival next to it instead. I liked these two pieces! After this, we reached the limit to how much modern art we could take and moved on.
A nice place for breakfast/brunch in the area is Van Kahvalti Evi. It is in the Cihangir neighbourhood, walkable from the Tophane tram stop. There is a massive hill to hike up to get to this place though, like crazy steep. Taking a cab here would be wise.
We stopped for coffee at this cute neighbourhood in Tophane. Also kitten-watched the whole time.
Enjoyed the sea breeze and the sights of men fishing at the Karaköy pier before dinner
The best place to buy baklava is a stone’s throw from the pier. It’s called Karaköy Güllüoğlu and you can’t miss it because there’s always a crowd.
| Tags: 50mm/F1.8, istanbul, nikon FM10, turkey, what to eat, where to go
22 May 13
— Addendum made on 17 July 2013 —
Hi guys! I edited this post because I felt I didn’t fully voice my thoughts and process in the initial post. I left out the part about this being my first foray into making & selling handmade goods with a business mindset. I made & sold my drapes previously, that, I did on the side for fun. Back in July last year, I started working on some wood pieces, using the drapes as a foundation, to make something bigger more geometric. I ended up hitting a dead end when space constraints got the better of my ideas. I shelved the wood ideas though I really hope I get to bring them to life when we move into our own place and have a proper work studio. I was a bit defeated and it took me more time to figure out what next.
I took two bookbinding classes taught by Pooja of Notabilia to keep my juices going. I played with my paints and embroidery. But I kept coming up empty on ideas. One fine day I decided I wanted to make something wearable and I used that as my starting point. The result is Pomhead! The first person to draw inspiration from is – yourself. It’s so brainless, yes, let’s make something for the girl like me!
I circled three words out of the bunch I wrote down – Fun, Bold and Tomboy Style. Tomboy style because I’m pretty much very unladylike, flowers on my head make me feel like uncomfortable. While Fun and Bold helped guide me in the right direction in terms of colours and design. I can’t say for sure how I finally arrived at pom poms on a headband but yeah, I liked it a lot and went with it.
The Berries Headband | The Black Polka Dots Headband | The Honey Rosa Crown | The Watermelon Crown
The Confetti Headband | The Red Polka Dots Headband | The Navy Blue Polka Dots Crown | The Magenta & Blue Headband
I’m working on a range of smaller pom headbands too. Also, pom pom garlands to liven up any space! I’ve started a mailing list for announcements – the field is up on my navigation bar ↑, join it if you’d like to be updated as I might not always be posting news here.
So dear internet friends, you’re gonna be riding this journey with me. I have hit a few bumps already but still crazy excited for the possibilities. Do share the word! Yknow pin it, tweet it… 😉
Credits to Larissa for her beautiful hand-painted silk tops you see in the photos. She owns curious creatures, do check it out.
| Tags: greenlaundry etsy, handmade, pom pom headbands hairbands
3 Jan 13
Ah, 2013.
I want to take this opportunity to thank you guys for reading, for leaving uplifting words every now and then, for being internet friends. Also, there are some of you who left tips for Taipei, they were wonderful suggestions and I tried to go to most of them – so, thank you!
This year is gonna be different for me, whether I’m ready for it or not. The past five years, Ben & I have been working together as Hex. Late last year he moved on to building apps and most recently, been working hard on Sendy. Making it better and better. So this leaves me with an open door, a lot of spare time on my hands, not quite sure what I’m gonna do next. I have some ideas but everything seems scary.
I know every day people embark on new journeys, take on new challenges. I’ve probably read more failures-turned-into-success stories in 2012 than any point in my life… Fell for one too many inspiring-quotes-turned-into-pretty-typography-posters. Now it’s up to me. Power and Love to all and may 2013 be better, in every way possible, for you and for me.
Psssst, I took these pictures at Penny University – a coffee place – and I really enjoyed their latte!
| Tags: 50mm/F1.8, nikon FM10, Penny University
9 May 12
This one is for the peeps living in Singapore and Malaysia.
The guys behind kwerkee got in touch with me, hoping to spread the word about their new site. What’s cool about kwerkee is the stuff they sell, and you probably guessed it right, it’s quirky stuff! Fun and quirky design and lifestyle products. It works just like their sister site Reebonz does, or like Gilt if you frequent there. There are new sales added every day and each sale lasts for a couple of days. I previously saw a sale going on for Jambox and that’s when I knew kwerkee is pretty cool. My boyfriend, Ben, has been talking about Jambox for months now… he finally bought it when we were in New York and he’s been Jambox-ing everyday since.
Anyway, kwerkee was very generous to send me a Sprocket Rocket (!!!) in their incredibly cheery packaging!
Nothing like a shot of lime green to brighten up my day, I tell ya… I’m keeping the box even though I clearly have no space in the house! So Treat Yo Self to something nice. Sign up for a free membership here or use one of my invites. Go check out the sales for Pop Chart Lab and Greengate, those two are my favourite ones going on right now. Free shipping in Singapore and Malaysia!
Thanks kwerkee 😉
| Tags: biodegradable packaging, iphone 4, kwerkee by reebonz, vscocam
