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Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

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Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#71

Post by fridaysoff »

fabricexpert wrote: post #26

I run an almost identical fabric shop online. 20k/month revenue is great but remember this is not a SaaS with unlimited scale and low costs. It's actually a very traditional business model, and margins here are only going to about 20-30%, potentially a lot less if you have to pay for your storage space. You buy the fabric, typically you'll double the price when selling to customers. Then you take off additional posta…

Thanks for your insight. You're not too far off, but my margins are much higher - thank goodness. I've been at this for 5 years and also have an employee who helps with all the cutting, packaging and shipping. I offer a flat rate shipping fee for small price orders anything under $45. Sales above $45 ship with a Canada Post calculated shipping rate. Good luck with your business :)

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#72

Post by fridaysoff »

amelius wrote: post #59
fabricexpert wrote: post #26

I run an almost identical fabric shop online. 20k/month revenue is great but remember this is not a SaaS with unlimited scale and low costs. It's actually a very traditional business model, and margins here are only going to about 20-30%, potentially a lot less if you have to pay for your storage space. You buy the fabric, typically you'll double the price when selling to customers. Then you take off additional posta…

One thing I've been wondering about wrt high-volume online shops: how do you protect your hands against the dryness of the cardboard boxes and papercuts? Is this an issue?

I developed an allergy to the fabric at one point and had to start wearing surgical gloves. As long as I keep them well moisturized in the dryer months I'm ok now :)

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#73

Post by swalsh »

fabricexpert wrote: post #44
sdenton4 wrote: post #3

Beware. There's a whole lot of "start an e shop and get rich quick" bullshit out there. https://www.gimletmedia.com/reply-all/117-the-worlds-most-ex...

This is different though - the gimlet podcast is about dropshipping, where you don't keep inventory and are literally just creating a sales pipeline for someone else, and absorbing all of the marketing costs (hint: why would a manufacturer / wholesaler let you do this for them if it was profitable?). In this case you're entering the supply chain of a product (cut fabric), which end customers cannot do for themselves…

"(hint: why would a manufacturer / wholesaler let you do this for them if it was profitable?)."

Wayfair is a 9.7B company, that dropships. They found a way to make it profitable.

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#75

Post by fridaysoff »

justaskin134 wrote: post #46
fabricexpert wrote: post #26

I run an almost identical fabric shop online. 20k/month revenue is great but remember this is not a SaaS with unlimited scale and low costs. It's actually a very traditional business model, and margins here are only going to about 20-30%, potentially a lot less if you have to pay for your storage space. You buy the fabric, typically you'll double the price when selling to customers. Then you take off additional posta…

> If you're good at marketing you can shift quite a lot of fabric For me marketing is always the toughest part . How do you do your marketing ? What tips can you offer us that save the most time and money spent ?

Marketing and advertising is a 24/7 job for me. As soon as I take my foot off the pedal my sales suffer. You can automate some of it with email flows and facebook/instagram advertising , but you still have to stay on top of the analytics and keep the content fresh. The thing that works really well for me is treating the customers like human beings. The customer is always right. Being nice flows out and then your customers want to help promote your business on social media etc. Try everything.

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#76

Post by soulchild37 »

Swizec wrote: post #63
rhizome wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

tl;dr: Learn retail. It's kind of funny that people will get advice to get CS degrees, take a boot camp, learn a language, etc. to execute on an idea, but for soft skills you never see classes for business or marketing recommended. People could take 2-3+ business/marketing classes in the time it takes to learn React from zero Javascript knowledge. Instead, people are told to sign up to Stripe Atlas or Shopify and Ins…

Look around for what I call The MicroConf Crowd. Practical advice on the business part of business abounds. Books courses and more. Often targeted at programmers. The Independent Consulting Manual is a good place to start, then go down the list of authors and read their other stuff. They often do a christmas sale too. Follow Patio11 on twitter, read his stuff. Follow Amy Hoy, do 30x500. Then spread out from there. If…

Ah yes this, I am lucky to discover the MicroConf Crowd early on in HackerNews.

Patio11 taught me how to raise my salary in my full time job.

Amy Hoy got me off the couch and start building products (that user wants).

Not to forget advice from Rob Wailing, Kai Davis etc too.

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#77

Post by swalsh »

Descartes1 wrote: post #23

I've always hated the concept of "revenues" in commerce. Honestly, who cares what your revenues are? Profits are all that matters.

Revenues show sales, profits show sales + costs + spending. Wayfair, for example, has large revenues, and is profitable for its businesses, but not after it's spending. The spending though is because they've found a weakness in their business model, and they're building assets fix the problem. In the long term, they'll be able to grow faster, it will be harder for competitors to enter, and they'll be able to get higher margins. Revenue tells a story that profit can't.

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#79

Post by fridaysoff »

anoncoward111 wrote: post #33
fabricexpert wrote: post #26

I run an almost identical fabric shop online. 20k/month revenue is great but remember this is not a SaaS with unlimited scale and low costs. It's actually a very traditional business model, and margins here are only going to about 20-30%, potentially a lot less if you have to pay for your storage space. You buy the fabric, typically you'll double the price when selling to customers. Then you take off additional posta…

Nice, thanks for the numbers! At a certain point you start competing with Home Depot, Michaels, Walmart, Amazon, whoever. You are in the product retail business, rather than the manufacturing or services business. I think if you get really good at streamlining your marketing (Instagram photos and landing pages) as well as your pick/pack/ship operations (i.e running a warehouse), then you can expand into multiple nich…

You're welcome. Ya you can't be scared off by the big guys like Michaels, Walmart, Amazon. The fabric I sell isn't really mainstream and it's more boutique quality designer prints. My market isn't really people who would shop at the big box stores anyway. I tap into the niche markets, etsy shop owners, small biz crafters. There is a real community and it's one that likes to shop local and Canadian.

Re: Bootstrapping an Online Fabric Shop and Growing to $20k per month

#80

Post by ggg9990 »

rhizome wrote: post #58
justaskin134 wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If you're good at marketing you can shift quite a lot of fabric For me marketing is always the toughest part . How do you do your marketing ? What tips can you offer us that save the most time and money spent ?

tl;dr: Learn retail. It's kind of funny that people will get advice to get CS degrees, take a boot camp, learn a language, etc. to execute on an idea, but for soft skills you never see classes for business or marketing recommended. People could take 2-3+ business/marketing classes in the time it takes to learn React from zero Javascript knowledge. Instead, people are told to sign up to Stripe Atlas or Shopify and Ins…

Some of those “Chads and Beckys” (I must be old as I don’t recognize those terms but know exactly who you are talking about) bring in absolutely massive amounts of revenue. Furthermore they can often be cheap since they’ll work for less than they can make elsewhere as long as they can have status markers (private offices, etc.) I made good money employing them.
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