Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The Jewelry Business

I started a jewelry business a few months ago. It is intended to be a way for me to use my particular gemstone knowledge to create a bit of cashflow.

I read a book a few months ago which seems to have possibly changed my life: Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson. I am the type who is thorough, thoughtful and 100% sure it is right before I act. In the book, this author encourages me to act first and refine later. So that is what I am doing with this business. My experiences so far are proving him right. I am a guerilla: I go to any little fair that will accept my booth: flea markets, art shows, gem and mineral shows, highschool band fundraisers, christmas fairs, mardi gras, even Harley Davidson races. I go to tiny towns and big cities. I will do jewelry parties. I have a website and an SEO guru helping me invade the internet.

I am learning a lot. I have sold over 300 peices of jewelry to that many people and I have had 5 times as many conversations with them one-on-one, spanning every demographic. This has given me insights into human beings, what they want from jewelry ranging from the emotional to fashion to mechanics. I have 3 more unique jewelry brands in the pipelines that I have created based on the information I have collected.

Here is a taste: