BOTM
Hi guys, on twitter I have recently been talking about this feature I wanted to embark on! I have started a monthly 'blogger of the month'! It's a good way to follow new blogs and get a little insight!This month's blog is:
1.) What influenced you to start a blog and a jewellery store? I started the jewellery shop because, to be honest, I needed money to fund my final year at uni and eBay was not an option anymore as it was very unpredictable as to how well things would sell. I had sold thing on ebay during my 1st, 2nd and 3rd year so a webshop was a natural progression. I enjoyed the interaction with the customer and gaining feedback, it helped me to understand what works and what doesn't. Before I started the business, I wasn't into jewellery and my ambition was to be in Fashion PR. I studied Fashion Marketing at uni and so I am very keen in how that side of the industry works. I am genuinely interested in how marketing of any brand works whether this be fashion, technology, food... anything! It's just that my interests lies within fashion and it's always better to embark upon a career in an industry you enjoy being in. I started my shop after I completed my internship, and juggled my final year at uni alongside the business. I started the blog in 2008, a few months after I launched the business, to let people get an insight of what it was like to run a small business. This didn't go well as I wasn't inspired to blog regularly. After 3 years, I had 200 followers and very little traffic - I wanted to take on the challenge to blog more often and make more of it. I didn't expect it to grow so quickly. A lot has happened in a very short space of time, I'm pleased with how things have gone but it is hard work and I didn't expect this!
2.) How would you define your style in three words? girly, simple, high-street.
3.) What inspires the pieces in the Temp-Sec store? I used to make every single product that I sold, and I would be inspired by pop culture, childhood memories and kawaii style. When I started, I had no pressure to make a sale. I would make things in small batches, sometimes it would even be a one-off. This can be quite expensive to do. If they didn't sold, I would put it on eBay and give them to my friends, or even kept them for myself! ANow that I have bills/overheads/fees to pay, like with all business, I have pressure to cover these costs aswell as make a profit. With that in mind combined with the fact that I run every aspect by myself (i have no employees), I have recently started to buy stock in to balance things out. I also have to meet demands that everyone wants things affordable prices, and to factor in the competition from the high street. Everyone wants things to be as cheap as they are in Primark and it's difficult to compete! When I buy products in, I always make sure that it suits the brand and that it all fits in to the range because I am meticulous when it comes to cohesiveness. I also have to bear in mind that I need to produce or buy in products that fit a trend. I still make some of the jewellery, and there are still products that are exclusive to Temporary:Secretary.
4.) One wardrobe staple? A nice blazer. I have one in navy.
5.)What would be your advice for aspiring bloggers? I always feel uncomfortable giving advice because I am such a newbie. I have only started blogging regularly for 8 months or so! I am still learning and need advice myself but my advice to anyone - in anything that they do, not just blogging - is to enjoy what you do! You have to enjoy it, first and foremost. I learnt this the hard way when I took A-Levels for the wrong reasons. I knew i didn't want to study A-levels but I did it anyway, and I got so down about it that i ended up quitting half way through. The feeling of quitting and giving up is really awful, and i felt I had wasted so much time. I enrolled at a different college after taking a year out, and I studied Fashion and Clothing BTEC. It was so hands-on. We got art projects, sewing projects, design assignments and learnt CAD. I ended up learning valuable skills that I use to this day. If you enjoy what you do, you will end up being good at it.
Hope you guys enjoyed the interview and thanks to Sarah @ Temp-Sec for allowing me to interview her!
Check out her shop too!
Check out her shop too!
Please tweet me to nominate the next BOTM!
