086: So You Wanna Sell On eBay - Kris Kellogg

Kris is an avid quilter who turned her hobby into an eBay quilt store. She began selling fabric & patterns on eBay to generate extra income while Click Creative, her graphic design & online media marketing company, got off the ground. Fast-forward 3 years & that eBay "side-gig" has become her MAIN gig... the Click Creative Boutique. Interesting Notes Kris just discovered she had a skill for a graphic designer. She took her first paid job in 1997. In 1997, her parents gave her their old Mac. She herself made her wedding invitations using the Mac. She used Adobe Photoshop when it first came out. Ever since she has been using professional software for graphic designs. She started quilting in 2003 after her first child left home. She did it to keep herself busy. Eventually, Kris discovered she had a real passion for it. From graphic design to quilt layouts or presentations to clients, everything she does fits together. She uses Adobe Photoshop or Adobe InDesign to do her crafts. Kris does her work more than full-time. She runs alone both her graphic design business and online media marketing business. She also does skydiving. Kris worked for seven years in a non-profit organization as communications manager. But on October 2013 she got sick and had to take a medical leave of absence. On January 2014, she decided to open her own business that would allow her more flexibility. Thus, the birth of Click Creative, her graphic design and online media marketing & communications business. In her downtime at home led her to do some decluttering. She thought of selling some stuff on eBay. So, she started selling her fabric patterns and books. It gave her an AHA-moment and she realized that eBay could be a money making stream. In short, Kris started selling on eBay in 2014 to fund Click Creative. She named her eBay store Click Creative Boutique. She sells quilting supplies on her eBay boutique. She also makes quilts for people. She does commission quilts. Sometimes, she makes quilts, not for a specific person, and lists it. Kris has just finished a quilt cloth commission and was actually sad for that to end. It took her 3 months to finish. Combine with graphic designs and quilting, Kris is only taking on three clients at one time. She has her waiting list. Kris stress reliever from graphic design works is quilting. The biggest quilt she has ever made is a King Size. One of Kris challenges is on how to keep her products coming in. It took her some time to start developing the sources of her products. Now, she has secret sources and it works better. Kris came from a family of teachers. Now, she also teaches beginner's classes both in quilting and graphic design. She is big on upcycling, re-purposing, and putting things back into the revenue stream. Kris goal next year is to start developing her online quilt patterns for beginners. She does not foresee herself writing a quilt book. But she likes to keep going where she is now and probably being a queen or maybe an empress. In about 10 years, Kris sees herself as more prevalent in the industry. She also wants to bring her daughter on board to help her run the store and the design business. She also wants her husband to join her business, and probably run her warehouse. In short, she envisions a family run business. Advice, Tips, and Tricks 1. Kris makes her customers feel that same feeling and gets that same level of service like that of a local store. She does not want to compete with a local quilt store because she does not. She kind of supplement to the needs of the people. Either to those who cannot find the vintage fabrics they searched for or those who don't live close to a local quilt store. 2. Kris best practice is handing out to people her business card and does private buys. This got her to a lot of referrals. Like a quilter who destashed and sell all or part of the stash. She used to run an ad on Craigslist, but she does not do it anymore. She finds fabrics in a vintage store. Sometimes, she goes to an estate sale and finds some good stuff there. She also does some consignment. Quotes "Quilting is more than just an art form." "When I don't have a full client load, I can concentrate fully on eBay. When I do have a full client load, I can do as much or less than I want." "eBay is like my dream job!" "When working on a job, it's like I can't wait to get to be able to play with my fabric and list new items in the store." "I have not worked on a quilt yet, or in a store, without waking up looking forward to doing it!" "I want my store to feel like how it feels to go into your local quilt shop - very warm and inviting." "Quilting is a flexible job!" "The older, the better. Old quilts are treasures." Contact Information Website: TheClickCreative Sponsors Premium DIY eBay Template M2E Pro ecomdash