After having written nearly one and a half years’ worth of content here at the Magnus Marketing Minute, I still have to say that my favorite issue of ShopTalk! Magazine is the one from April 2020. Amongst the strong, powerful and independent women in leathercraft featured, my daughter (then seven) was recognized in an article by Jim Linnell for the small, yet notable strides she’s made with selling her leatherwork to raise money for charity.
Since then, I look forward to the annual publication dedicated to women in our craft each year. We do have the opportunity to hear stories from female business owners and artisans in the 11 other issues each year, but there’s power in the representation that comes with focused attention on a segment of leatherworkers that are growing our industry in new and exciting ways.
As such, you’re not going to hear from me this month. You’re going to hear from them. It’s my pleasure to present to you a collection of marketing and business advice from business owners, sales leaders and marketers from the leather industry. Each one was asked, “What is a piece of marketing advice that you wish you could share with the entire leatherworking community that would help set them up for success and/or grow their business?”
“Confidence is key. Confidence in yourself, your ability and your product. The world of makers is an outstanding group of ‘have-your-back’ kind of people and they’ve fully embraced us. We bounce questions and ideas off of other makers all the time, but ultimately no one knows our product better than we do. If you’ve put in the time and dedication into your product and your business, live in confidence that you ultimately know what’s best for your business.”
- Misti Calhoun, Owner of The Broncy Donkey Leather Co.
“Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there; you as the maker are just as important as what you are creating. When I post online, I’m not just selling my product. I’m selling my story and my process, which results in my products. People feel invested in watching a piece develop because they recognize the time and value that creates…and it makes them want it even more.
They feel involved and get excited at each new step, making them invested in seeing it come together. Without that excitement, it’s hard to make sales and meet new clients. It’s a neat relationship that we get to have with our customers in this day and age. But if you’re a small business, you really have to capitalize on the fact that you are a small business. Part of that is letting them meet you as a maker, know your story, learn what you’re passionate about and know what it took to get to where you are.”
- Sara Garvey, Owner of Western Skies Handmade
“Having a virtual store, whether that’s a website or even just an Etsy page, can be imperative to developing customer relationships and helping potential purchasers find your products. However, take it a step further and curate an online shopping experience for the consumer. Your storefront should showcase the quality and care you put into your products. Make sure images are well-lit and in focus, perhaps even adding your own unique touch with backgrounds and props that convey your personal style.
Once you figure out who your target customer is, go to them rather than making them come to you. Meet them wherever it is that they are already consuming content, whether it’s on YouTube watching project videos or scrolling through TikTok. Seeing your brand in their feed can create a sense of shared values, build a bond and allow you to engage within that community directly. Staying top-of-mind – even when they are not in a shopping mindset – will drive them back to your storefront again and again.”
- Jennifer Gramm, Chief Marketing Officer at Tandy Leather
“About two years into starting my business, I was listening to a podcast called The Lost Trade, hosted by saddlemaker/leatherworker Don Gonzales. While this podcast is consistently full of nuggets of wisdom, there was one tip that really spoke to me. It is so simple and I apply it to everything on a daily basis: ‘This is your business. You get to decide how it runs and you get to decide how to make it work for you.’
With that in mind, I made the decision that I am only willing to welcome a controlled and steady stream of business, targeted at a specific clientele that I want to work with. Though I am running a business, I still consider what I do my passion; it is my art. The second that I stray from that, I lose my grip and it becomes something I have to do rather than want to do.”
- Ali Harter-Street, Owner of Pigs Fly Shop
“A quote that sticks with me is ‘Your conviction and your convenience don’t live on the same block.’ I’ve heard some entrepreneurs share that they believe prosperity is going to show up just because they opened their doors, with somewhat of an ‘if you build it, they will come’ mentality about business. They believe that the overnight successes they’ve seen others obtain somehow paved the road for them to do the same. I would say that you would have to be very lucky for that to happen. In my career in sales, I’ve learned that some successes come from accepting the No’s, allowing you to learn from the experiences, sacrifices and hard knocks if you’re willing. This all helps build the character of the brand, reputation of an individual and their business builds a trust over time that becomes a big part of success.”
- Marty Meredith, Sales Manager at Silver Creek Leather Co.
“When our 146-year-old western retail and manufacturing company, Burns Saddlery Inc., acquired ShopTalk! in April of 2017, the first thing we did was discuss who our ideal target market, audience and community was. Who were we publishing the magazine for each month?
Up to that point, we had been focused more on growing our own company than ‘jumping out of the leather community’ that to take a higher view was absolutely necessary. We had to look at the worldwide audience as a whole and broaden our scope of why ShopTalk! was valuable. As soon as we did this, we clearly saw how vast and diverse the leather community was. Being ‘in’ the leather industry for 140+ years made us believe we knew everyone.
We did not know anyone in retrospect! To bring the value we wanted the magazine to provide, we had to get out of our bubble to be able to better embrace everyone – the raw goods, equipment, machinery and tool manufacturers, the saddlemakers, boot and shoemakers, small leather goods makers, and on and on. We knew that we needed to adapt the publication dramatically with our very first issue, in order to add value to the community as a whole.”
- Misty Shaw, Publisher of ShopTalk! Magazine & My Buyer’s Guide!
“Creativity, perseverance in building my company and living my brand are the top things that come to mind when I consider what it takes to be successful in such an engaging and fulfilling business. I like to come up with my own original ideas, that promote my products, that most people wouldn’t dream of. These days, we have so many ways to get our products out in the market that sometimes it feels saturated. Finding a way to set your product apart from the others and identifying what makes your product special to your brand is important.
Success in this business is also about persevering in a craft that you take pride in and doing the hard work of making a dream come true. So, part of that is finding employees that truly understand what you’re trying to accomplish and believe in your dream as well, so you can all work together to get the quality product to accomplish that goal.”
- Jennifer Watchous, Owner of Just Plain Crazy
