Peggy Li is a jewelry designer who graduated from UC Berkeley with a science degree. When you see her jewelry it’s pretty clear she was destined for a creative career. She is a Bay Area local and can be found selling her creations at the Burlingame Farmer’s Market most Sundays. Although she never imagined one day owning a jewelry business, she’s been running Peggy Li Creations for ten years now. Peggy started designing jewelry for herself and her friends. When people started asking where they bought their jewelry, she figured she was on to something. Her jewelry is light and whimsical, feminine and timeless, and, above all, easy to wear. Peggy Li’s jewelry has been featured in magazines like Lucky and Oprah, as well as on TV shows like “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer” and “Private Practice.”
She also blogs at Peggy Li: Musings of a Handmade Jewelry Designer, where she offers valuable posts on starting a jewelry business and lessons she has learned along the way. You can also find Peggy Li Creations on Facebook and Twitter as well. We tracked her down for a short interview. Here’s what she had to say:
What’s your favorite Nina Designs jewelry component?
My favorite is the simple hoop earring finding with a hammer finish. It is simple, elegant, but obviously handcrafted. It is the perfect beginning to beautiful designs. I believe this was the first Nina Designs item I purchased and I’ve been hooked ever since.
What are the biggest challenges you have faced as a jewelry designer?
I think the greatest challenge I’ve faced as a jewelry designer is to embrace the side of me that is entrepreneurial and creative and express it. When you run your own business, you have to live it 24/7 and I believe in trying to continue to grow, learn and understand my business. For a long time, I didn’t like talking about my jewelry design and my jewelry business — it wasn’t a “real” career to me, and yet my creative side kept me trying, pushing, and exploring where it could take me. My business has constantly rewarded me in return! It’s been a great ride and experience.
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Meet Dawn of S.IN. Industries
I consider myself lucky to work in a creative environment where women sketch silver charms, talented silversmiths bring them to life, and jewelry designers use them to make beautiful jewelry. Sometimes I even get an insider’s glimpse into the lives of jewelry designers when I meet them at tradeshows and talk to them over the phone. These little glimpses often fill me with inspiration and get me all pumped up to start a little side business of my own. Today I thought I’d share this inspiration with you by introducing Dawn Floen of S.IN. Jewelry.
Dawn is a successful jewelry designer living in Alberta, Canada. She is also a retired visual art teacher and a hobby photographer who enjoys finding and repurposing antiques from flea markets & yard sales. Her favorite holiday is scuba diving in Australia. And, her favorite bead buddy is her pomeranian, JJ, who loves to lounge on his pillow right next to her workbench. What’s really neat is how Dawn has integrated all her favorite activities into her daily life. Way to go Dawn! Thanks for sharing your story.
If you can remember, describe the first piece of jewelry you made. Do you still have it?
I started creating jewelry in 2006. It’s my friend’s fault. She was wearing a new beaded watch that I adored. I asked where she’d gotten it, and promptly went to the website. After seeing the prices, I decided I could make my own. After all, I was an art teacher. I can do this! So, I started where so many of us do. I went to Michael’s. I bought a few beads and supplies and made my first watch. It had teal ocean-coloured lampwork beads and pewter accent beads. And, yes, I still have it.
Before I knew it, I had a desk covered with hundreds of dollars of supplies. Then I started finding beads on ebay. Soon my husband pointed out that I had more than enough jewelry for one person and since I wasn’t going to stop creating any time soon, he suggested I start selling my creations. Soon after, Sunshine INdustries was born. I discovered Nina Designs a bit later when I graduated to precious metals and I’ve never looked back. I now have a large studio, an etsy shop, a website, a blog and enough supplies and tools to keep me going for years!
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Starting a Jewelry Business is often an idea that friends light upon together. Usually, they are friends who enjoy making jewelry together and find the idea of launching a joint commercial venture challenging and exciting. It feels like the natural extension of a fun hobby and a way to deepen and reinforce the friendship. When I am approached by friends at this stage, I always sit them down for “The Talk”. This is not the warm, fuzzy, encouraging pep talk they expect. Rather, I run them through various scenarios to test how well they have really thought through their endeavor.
Collaborating on designs is one of the best parts of partnerships
First, I ask if they are ready to marry each other. Not only that, but are they ready to marry into each others family? A partnership really is like a marriage. Everything you love about your partner will also drive you crazy. Everything that happens to your partner or their close family, also happens to you. If you think it is complicated running your own family, wait until you have to coordinate two families!
What happens if one partner gets divorced? Could an ex-spouse end up owning part of the business? What if a partner gets ill and can’t work anymore? What if one family is forced to move out of town? What if one person just decides they don’t want to do it anymore?
When those questions are answered it is time to move on to more practical issues. Do both partners agree on how many hours a week they can commit to work? Do they agree on how much money to invest in the venture and how much of the profits they will take out or reinvest? Do they have the same vision of how large they want to grow the company?
You get the idea. Partnerships sound appealing but they can actually strain if not end friendships. To avoid that, it is always better to ask the hard questions up front. If you are happy with the answers, go for it! But be sure to have a legal partnership agreement in place before you embark on your new adventure.
Designers, what is your experience with partnerships?
Jewelry Businesses range in size from small part time affairs to large corporations. I am a firm believer that for jewelry, bigger is not always better. Before you decide to start or expand a jewelry business, take the time to get clear on your priorities. Are you primarily interested in making money? If money is your chief motivator, I can tell you right now that there are many other businesses that are more profitable.
Are you looking for a way to spend more time designing and making jewelry? Hobbies actually optimize design time. Any art form that is turned into a business will usually decrease the time you have to work in the studio. Running a full time jewelry business, you will be lucky if you get to spend 10% of your time making jewelry. You would be amazed at how many hours get sucked up in book keeping, marketing, shipping and other generic tasks. Ask yourself, “Am I willing to spend 90% of my time running my business?” If the answer is yes, then by all means, jump in! If the answer is no, you might want to sell just enough to keep you in beads.
Job or Hobby?
In short, use caution before you turn your jewelry hobby into a full time business. Running a Jewelry Business is just as difficult, if not more so, than any other business. Read my articles Starting a Jewelry Business and Is It time to Quit Your Day Job? for more thoughts on the subject.
Here are a few helpful websites for starting a jewelry business: The Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, for information regarding basic business decisions. Start here to find out your state agency for sales tax. And, go to Home Jewelry Business Success Tips for answers to many of the questions you may have.
I was recently asked by a Jewelry Business beginner if she should sell wholesale, retail or both on the internet. She wondered if she should have two separate lines, one for retail and one for wholesale. In general, I think it is fine to sell both wholesale and retail as long as you take a full mark-up on your retail items so that you don’t undersell your wholesale customers. For instance, if you sell earrings wholesale at $10pr to a store that turns around and sells them for $30, you should not sell them retail online for less than $30 or you will alienate your wholesale clients. (I think it is OK to sell at a price point between wholesale and retail at private home parties).
Should I sell retail or wholesale? Or both?
That being said, there are some high-end stores and galleries that won’t purchase from anyone who sells retail online. (Though this is less common than it used to be). In this situation, it would be smart to have two separate lines, with two separate names, if you want to capture wholesale and retails sales through the internet. Keep in mind that you would in effect have two separate businesses at that point, which could get complicated very quickly.
Designers, how do you manage your wholesale versus retail sales?
