How to Find Your Handmade Shop Niche

Finding your niche in the handmade shop world can be daunting.  If you’re a creative like me, your brain is saying make all. the. things. But when you stop and really evaluate things you may realize, just like I did, that more isn’t necessarily better.

I started my first shop to help make ends meet when times were hard a few years back. It was fun and I was excited about making everything, but there came a point when I realized it was all too much.

Narrowing your focus

I came up with the idea to pair down and focus on just making pouches for my beloved essential oils.  I rebranded and got to work building up my new shop. Then, I fell into the trap once again of thinking if I offered more items I would have more sales.

I was able to make sales, but my time was torn. Should I make baby gear, more pouches, aprons? My shop suffered because I couldn’t keep all the inventory for all the categories filled. I was still in the classroom, so my time was finite and I needed to reign myself back in.  It was time to return my focus to support my essential oil business.

How to find the right niche

Once I decided I could not make all. the. things. I had to really stop and think about which products made the most sense and would compliment my doTERRA business best.

I had to think about what items I loved making. If you don’t love making something, it will be torture when it’s time to work. Just because you can make something doesn’t mean you should.

Another consideration was how much time and space I had for my products. It takes much less space to store a significant inventory of pouches than it does baby towels. It also requires fewer supplies to make essential oil gear than baby gear.

You should also figure out if there is a demand for the items you want to make. What was popular in the past may be old news now. If your item isn’t in demand as is, could you do a refresh or re-imagination to make it desirable again? Maybe there is something new within your niche you’d like to try. This is the time to figure out what will make you happy and at the same time bring in an income.

Asking these questions will help you decide where you should be focusing your time and energy.

Launching your product

Once you have done the soul searching and figured out the best products for your business, it’s time to get marketing.  I’m still learning marketing, for sure, but I have learned that if I am excited about my product my customers will be too!

Share sneak peeks and behind the scene images as you get ready to open the doors for sales.  Knowing something is coming is fun! People get excited thinking about potentially being one of the first customers.

Give yourself a timeline and stick to it!  Knowing you have to have something done by a certain time will help you focus and get things finished.

Take great photos, get your shop stocked, and have a friend check things out to make sure it is all working properly. Use your favorite social media outlet to let everyone know your shop is live!

Encourage friends and family to share your shop. People want to be supportive, so encourage them that even if they don’t personally purchase, someone in their circle might love your product. Building a community is one huge part of creating a successful brand.

Be excited and proud of what you have accomplished! Finding a niche you truly love is not always easy, but I’m positive it is worth it in the end.

Pin it for later!