I set up a Shopify store with literally five styles and for each style I had two inventory items in stock. I received my first order after two months, but very slowly. Then I feel like throughout 2021 it started to get a little bit better: people would actually buy my stuff.
I do it purely on Instagram, getting along, [aesthetically pleasing] photos and put some cute accessories around [the items]. I ran some Facebook ads I learned. [to create] on YouTube and just started building.
How important is your social media strategy?
Our business is definitely based on social media because we don’t have a physical store. We are totally an e-commerce company. Digitally, I think it is very important to connect with our customers. I don’t want people to think we are some random dropshipping company or that we stock all over New Zealand.
I want our platform to be where people can see our faces; every employee who is in customer service, who is in content. I want people to see behind the brand and for our employees to also be the girls we sell to.
How do you make your jewelry and what is it made of?
All initial and pearl styles are still handmade. I think I want to put them into production next year because as the brand grows, I can’t make jewelry for eight hours a day. Most of our jewelry is now produced abroad because I can’t make it by hand and we also have a little more budget.
For example, the initial styles would be 26 letters and you need to order, say, 50 to 100 quantities per letter. It was a lot of money when I started. But now I could say, “Hey, here’s my design, could you make it in the factory?”
We use freshwater pearls and for the rest of the jewelry we have three basic metals: stainless steel, brass and 925 sterling silver. We are still testing our products quite a bit. We do all the designs and we look at what the influencers are wearing, what the big A-listers are wearing. Then see how we can make it a little more affordable for our customers.
What was it like hiring employees and renting office space for the first time?
[The business] I grew pretty slowly over the last four years because I was very cautious. Our team is made up of only four people; This year was the first year I had an employee. The first year in business I was in a one-bedroom studio and the material was under my bed. The second year it was a two-bedroom rental, plus a garage that served as storage. In the third year, I added another spare room and this is the fourth year.
We finally have an office and can hire people. We just started working together since October. Hiring was really difficult. I thought that in the job market, since everyone was looking for work, it would be easy to find the ideal employees. It took me months to find the right people. We had almost 400 people applying for jobs.
It’s the first time I’ve had to get a lease, hire a lawyer, and go through that. It was terrifying. But while I was in the middle of it all, I felt excited instead of scared.
How do you differentiate yourself from other brands?
I think the campaign shoot we did is really cool, the way we designed, but also because we’re young and our brand message is a little different. It is important for me to post my trip on social media.
I was inspired by the I Love Ugly brand – I used to follow the owner and his journey, his podcast and everything, and the whole idea of his brand is clothing for creative minds. For Bare Jewelery, I want people to see us like this: when they wear our jewellery, they think they are powerful too.
What would be your advice to other budding entrepreneurs?
I think just do it, stop asking 100 friends if you should do it, but don’t just do it with all your heart and passion. Do your research and look at the data. Be aware of what your strengths and weaknesses are and be honest with yourself. Do a regular reality check on what really needs to be done to grow the business.
Tom Raynel is a multimedia business journalist for Heraldcovering small businesses and retail.