Sunday, October 23

Sunday Spotlight: e.m.papers

Wedding Invitation Kit - printable
Today I'd like to introduce you to Eleanor who runs e.m.papers on Etsy. Eleanor, a California native who currently resides in Munich, Germany says the greatest motivator that led her to her craft was getting back to designing work that she liked (as opposed to the work she did for her corporate job) as well as create a business that she could run on her own terms. Her own wedding helped her figure out which products needed to be developed!

Starting out with greeting cards Eleanor has branched out into new products including calendars with a special focus on wedding invitations and sets. She also figured out a way to make the text editable on her templates, which gives customers more ability to customize e.m.papers printables. What an ingenious idea!

Christmas Cards - printable

Eleanor says her most memorable accomplishment was creating her "Garden Party" wedding set, based on her very own wedding invitations. This item became her best seller, and in a very real sense allowed her to quit her day job! When asked what the biggest obstacle in growing her business was, and how to overcome it, Eleanor replied: "having enough time to do everything, run the business, manage my online stores, do production work and take on custom orders all while coming up with new designs. At the moment I am just starting to hire help, especially with production."
As someone who's been in this business for quite some time Eleanor kindly shared a couple tips for people just starting out: 1. get your products out there and get started, rather than wait for everything to be perfect. 2. be aware that running your own small business is at least 50% marketing, so be ready to spend a lot of time getting the word out about your products!

Wedding invitation - printable
Heute möchte ich Eleanor von dem Etsy Shop e.m.papers vorstellen. Die gebürtige Amerikanerin lebt mit ihrem Mann derzeit in München. Die gelernte Grafikdesignerin gründete ihr Kleinunternehmen aus dem Wunsch heraus selbstbestimmend ihren Shop zu leiten und vor allem eigene Ideen umsetzen zu können (was ja im Angestelltenverhältnis nicht immer möglich ist). Eleanor gestaltete zunächst Grußkarten, erweiterte dann ihr Sortiment mit Kalender und hat sich über die Jahre als Spezialist für Hochzeitseinladungen und Sets etabliert. Das Besondere an ihren Printables (druckfähige Karten und Sets) ist, dass der Text editierbar ist. So können Kunden am eigenen PC ihre Wunschkarte mitgestalten. Was für eine geniale Idee!
Der Bestseller in ihrem Shop ist das "Garden Party" Hochzeits-Set, welches auf den Einladungen ihrer eigenen Hochzeit basiert. Der Abverkauf lief so gut, dass sie davon leben und ihre Tätigkeit in einem Großunternehmen "an den Nagel hängen" konnte. Als ich sie fragte was sie als größte Herausforderung ihrer Arbeit empfindet, sagte sie: "zeitlich alles unter einen Hut zu bringen - Administration, die täglichen Internetgeschäfte, Kundensonderanfertigungen, Produktion und nicht zuletzt das Entwerfen neuer Produktlinien." Vor kurzem hat sie eine Hilfskraft eingestellt, die für die Produktion mitverantwortlich ist. Zu guter Letzt wollte ich von Eleanor wissen welchen Rat sie für Neulinge hat, die gerade dabei sind ein Kleinunternehmen zu gründen: Einfach loslegen! Nicht erst warten bis alles perfekt ist. Und jeder sollte sich bewußt machen, dass man (frau) mindestens die Hälfte der Zeit mit Vermarktung seiner Produkte verbringt!

Eleanor's website/Webseite
Eleanor's Etsy Shop und Etsy Shop Deutsch

Thanks for your time, Eleanor! Vielen Dank für das Interview, Eleanor!


18 comments:

  1. The cards are fun! Supporting artist is the best! Love this, Duni. Thanks for sharing, going to check out the shop.

    dita

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  2. I enjoyed reading about Eleanor's business and her tips. The artwork is very nice, I can see why it is popular.

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  3. Her designs are so fun! I love that everything can be customized too!

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  4. I enjoyed this very much and appreciate Eleanor's tips. It's good to know that people really can quit their day jobs and be successful on Etsy.

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  5. I love the designs of the cards Duni. They look so clean, simple yet very elegant.

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  6. I love the designs of the cards Duni. They look so clean, simple yet very elegant.

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  7. It sure looks like she has some really nice cards. What a good job she does. Thanks for telling us about the cards. We sure will check it out. Have yourself a great day.

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  8. always nice to read a success story. Her designs are great and I can see why they are so popular.

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  9. The customizable printables are an awesome idea! Her designs are so simple and classic.

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  10. I wish I had more time to do card making! I guess that's why there are people who do it for you on Etsy. So glad that every person has their perfect niche :-

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  11. Her work is beautiful! Her tips are helpful too! Thanks for introducing her to us!

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  12. Hallo Duni,
    superschöne Karten! Ich werde gleich mal stöbern gehen.
    Aber auch Deine Hose aus dem süßen Blümchenstoff finde ich wunderschön. Leider wirkt das schöne Teil in meiner Größe sicher nicht mehr ganz so zart :o) und meine Tochter trägt lieber Sporthosen....
    Ich schicke Dir ganz ♥liche Grüße, Iris

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  13. Wow, what a cool artist! That's an inspirational story too- to think of being so successful that you need to hire help! Eep...guess I need to put in more in marketing to get to my 50%!!!

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  14. Those are adorable and unique!! I wish her the best of luck in her business, although I can see she is going to go far!!

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  15. What an inspiring success story!

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  16. What are you talking about? Your photos are gorgeous--you make me want to fly over and visit!

    And thank you for sharing a bit of Eleanor's journey; it was very helpful.

    (And I cracked up at your comment that cats own us:)

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