Do you want to sell your handmade creations online, but don’t know where to start?
Does the thought of setting up an online shop seem overwhelming?
Do you want a foolproof system you can follow to set up a stellar online shop?
If the answer is ‘yes!’, then I made Set Up Shop for YOU!
Join over 1,400 makers who’ve already used the Set Up Shop system to set up stellar handmade shops online!
You know those online shops that stop you in your tracks – because they’re just so darn amazing?!
That’s what you’re here to create.
Welcome to Set Up Shop – a 30-day course that will take you from *nothing* to having a *fully-fledged online shop* for your handmade creations.
The course is brilliant. It’s in easy steps, and takes you through everything you need to know, and I would never have had the confidence to open the shop without it.
It is difficult to put into words the feelings engendered by your course, but suffice it to say that every time I see advice about selling online, I have a quick skim through it, and measure it against my benchmark – your course.
Want to set up shop online for the first time?
…or perhaps you’ve opened an Etsy shop, but are just muddling along, not sure if you’re ‘doing it right’?
… maybe you’ve been successfully wholesaling, or selling at markets, but you know that NOW is the time to take the leap to selling online, too?
…or, you want to learn how to set up shop on your own website, rather than on someone else’s venue?
Want to skip those years of the learning curve – trying and failing and trying again until you get it right?
Join me for 30 days, and I’ll teach you how to Set Up Shop.
Get it right – right from the start.
The Set Up Shop course is an essential exchange of email lesson installments full of sage guidance, and helpful suggestions to build your online business.
Jess has brought together her decade plus experience to educate, and to heal the anxious heart over the online business building journey!
It is an invaluable opportunity to hear this, not only from the seasoned professional, but also hear from others traveling the same course as myself in building my business.
Thank you Jess for the helping hand, and the gift of your knowledge and time!
Set Up Shop has taken me step by step through the process of creating, beautifying and opening my online shop and social media pages.
Jess has ‘been there, done that’ when it comes to creating and selling her beautiful jewellery and has been very generous in sharing that knowledge.
No more muddling around in the dark trying to figure it all out – Jess has flipped on the light switch!
It has been eye-opening and inspiring and I can say, wholeheartedly, if you are thinking of opening up an online shop this course will save you so much time and frustration. Plus, you’ll meet a host of other talented, helpful creative types. Money so very well spent!
Is this for me?
Ask yourself:
- Do you want to set up an online shop to sell your craft/art for the first time – either on Etsy or another platform (including on your own website)?
- Do you want to re-vamp your current online shop?
- Do you want to skip the learning curve and get it RIGHT, first time?
- Are you serious about turning your hobby into a business?
- Do you want detailed guidance from someone who’s been successfully selling handmade goods online since 2008 – and full-time since 2010?
- Do you want to avoid the oh-so-common pitfalls that hold people back from having a successful online business?
- Do you want to use a system that WORKS? (It’s already been used by over 1,400 other makers to set up shop online.)
Yes? Then Set Up Shop is for you!
If you have been wanting to create an online store but don’t know where to start, then this course is for you.
I loved this course, and was surprised at how quickly the time passed. Jess created a course that was manageable and each email I received was another step towards me setting up a shop.
The content we covered in 30 days was amazing!
Yet, I loved that there was breathing space during the course with catch up days.
The biggest achievement for me is that I will be officially opening my online store in two weeks’ time, something that prior to this course I was unsure of how to approach but now have the confidence to do.
During the Course, You’ll Receive…
- 30 days of lessons
- Each lesson is delivered daily via email
- Each lesson is one small step towards setting up your shop – some will take you mere minutes to complete, some will take longer (there will be catch-up days!)
- By the end of the 30 days you’ll have everything set up, ready to go!
- LIFETIME Access to a private Facebook group
- Share your journey with others
- Get help and advice from fellow students and me, your teacher
- Lifetime access to the group!
- 2 Facebook Lives with Jess during the course
- These will run at different times to allow for timezone differences
- Ask Jess your course questions live
- A pdf ebook of the entire course at the end of the 30 days
- If you fall behind, you can always catch up later
We live on a tropical island where for the past three years we’ve been developing our crafting range with the aim of selling on-line. Well this year it’s time, so we joined Jess’ Set Up Shop programme. It’s a supportive environment with lots of learning and great feedback from Jess and other members who are all at different stages of their crafting life.
By the end of the month we had almost completed setting up our Etsy shop and established Pinterest boards to help drive traffic to our new shop.
What a great course! I’d encourage anyone who’s serious to enrol.
My husband and I are not spring chickens, either, so I’d say don’t be afraid whatever your age.
I’m now enrolled in Jess’ Thriver Circle and it feels so good to be part of a community of makers. Go for it!
Hey Thriver! My name is Jess, and I’ll be your teacher for this 30-day journey we’ll be taking together. I’ve been running my own online handmade jewellery business – Epheriell – full-time since 2010, and it keeps myself and my husband busy each and every day, making jewellery to send all around the world.
Before I figured out how to turn my passion into a profitable business, I was a qualified teacher. So, it was inevitable that I would reach out and share what I’ve learnt over the last few years with you.
Everything I teach in Set Up Shop is something I’ve learnt the hard way – through trial-and-error in my own handmade business.
I’ve done the hard yards – but you don’t have to.
I’ve taken over 1,400 amazing creative entrepreneurs through the Set Up Shop journey already, and the success stories that have come out of it have blown me away.
There is nothing more satisfying for a teacher than to see her student have an ‘a-ha’ moment that revolutionises their business and their life – and that’s something I see every day during Set Up Shop.
My mission is to help as many people as I possibly can realise their dream of building a thriving handmade business.
If you have ever thought you would like to have an online presence, but have lacked the confidence or know how, this is the course for you.
If anyone has ever said “Your stuff is great. You should sell online”, and it’s been a dream of yours for too long, you need to make those dreams become a reality and do this course.
Jessica will take you step by step through all aspects of running an online store. She is a fountain of useful information and experience which she is more than willing to share with her students in easy to understand, manageable steps.
Jessica, I have really gained so much from this course and the lovely, supportive community of like-minded students. Your generosity in sharing your knowledge and experience to us is inspirational.
I know I will not hesitate to recommend your course to other sellers who want to take their stores to the next level or for those who lack the confidence to take that sometimes scary step into the world of online selling.
What does the course cover?
- Venue Selection (including info on how to set up shop on your own website)
- Product Development
- Photography
- Descriptions, tags, and titles
- Your brand – including logo and tagline/core message
- About page
- Pricing
- Marketing materials
- Product packaging
- Shipping
- Organisation – offline and online
- Social Media basics
- Blogging basics
- Mailing lists and the launch model
- A yearly plan…
- …and MUCH more!
The course has provided me with some step-by-step guidance on all aspects to follow over the next few months.
I knew I would never keep up with all the tasks each day with a small baby on the scene (!) but I’ve achieved a surprising amount and am proud to have launched my new wordpress website (still needs work, but it’s there!) I would say the most thought provoking part of the course for me was the bigger picture stuff- the actual products, branding, tag line, etc.
I’m still experimenting with products and it’s been useful to take a step back and critique the basics of my business.
A great 30 days thank you!
I joined the Set Up Shop course because I wanted to start a new business. While I knew in my head everything that I had to do I kind of stalled mentally because I didn’t know where I should start.
I saw the course promoted a fair bit through social media and looked at it a few times but I wasn’t sure I was ready to go through the emotion of putting my creations out there.
The day the course signup closed things really clicked for me, I heard how many other people were in the course, I knew Jess’ story (I’d been a Twitter follower and reader of hers for a while), and I realised my main work for the next month was going to be quiet so I could sit down and really focus on it. I think I signed up about an hour before closing time.
I am so glad I did.
Jess’ emails every day provided a little chunk of the puzzle to be organised without having to worry if I should be focusing on something else. The Facebook group was amazing, bouncing ideas off each other, as well as huge support and encouragement.
While I’m still working through some areas of my products I am able to refer to the emails and Facebook group to keep me on track.
Thanks again!
How much time will each lesson take to complete?
Make no mistake, this IS a time-intensive course. You get one lesson delivered each day via email.
Some of the lessons might take you a scant few minutes – some may take you an hour or two… and some might be so life-and-business changing that you have to go back to the beginning and start all over again.
There are some catch-up days in there, though, where you can either catch up on a lesson you’ve missed, or just take a break.
I am running this course in the daily email format for a very important reason – habit + process.
Each lesson builds upon the last, and by getting that email every day at the same time, it will prompt you into the habit of thinking about your business daily – a MUST for anyone who wants to succeed.
If you’re concerned about how much time you have to complete each lesson, remember this: you have LIFETIME access to the course content (you even get it delivered in a handy-dandy ebook at the end of the course) and also LIFETIME access to the Private Set Up Shop Facebook group. The students from the previous iterations of the course are still using it daily to help each other out, so it will always be there, full of colleagues who understand you and what you’re trying to do.
So the REAL question is – can you afford all the time you’ll spend wandering around the internet over the next few years – without direction – to try and figure this all out?
Or do you want to leap over the learning curve and cut down that time to just 30 days?
Jess has been my go-to maker goddess guru since before I even started my business.
As a hobby knitter, I stumbled upon the Create and Thrive podcast and it convinced me to make a business out of my little creative hobby.
When Jess opened Set Up Shop, I immediately signed up and it has helped me so much with starting my business!
I loved the way the course flowed, and Jess’s teaching style is so effective. Each lesson is thoughtfully curated and is a carefully placed stepping stone to the lessons that follow. I especially LOVED the branding and marketing aspects of the course, and have become obsessed with both since!
By the end of the course, I was confidently able to open my shop and have since built and launched my own website with Jess’s teachings in mind.
If any part of you is interested in taking this course, don’t hesitate…sign up now!
FAQ
Do I need to make handmade crafts to do this course – or can I be an artist, designer, vintage seller etc?
I wrote this course specifically for makers – but that goes for artists and designers, as well. If you don’t make your own products, but get them made for you (or, you sell vintage or supplies), there will be a few lessons that aren’t completely relevant to you, but the vast majority of lessons will be applicable to you – stuff like working out your branding, photography, product descriptions, managing your time, marketing, etc.
Will you only teach me how to set up an Etsy shop, or does the content work for other platforms too?
What I teach in this course can be implemented across any platform. Etsy, Not On The High Street, GoImagine, Madeit, Folksy… or on Shopify, your own website, etc. I do show you how to set up your own WordPress website as an option, but the course is relevant for you no matter what platform you choose to set your shop up on.
Do I have to complete the whole course in the 30 days?
Ideally, you’ll have the time to work through each lesson as it arrives… but we all know that life sometimes gets in the way. I do ask that you at least make the time (10 minutes, tops) to at least *read* each lesson as it arrives, just so you can get a clear idea of how the course is progressing. But you can take the course at your own pace – whether that means you finish in the 30 days – or it takes you 6 months! The key is starting and making what progress you can, when you can. With that in mind, we come to the next question…
Do I get access to the course info and Facebook group after the course ends?
Absolutely! I don’t believe in ‘taking away’ the course content from you. You will have access to it forever – both in the emails you received, and in the form of an ebook, of the entire course at the end. And you also get lifetime membership to the course FB group, so you can pop in their and ask your classmates questions at any time (but I’m only active in there while a course is running).
Can I take the course again in future if I pay for it now?
Absolutely! Once you’ve signed up to the course, you can ‘retake’ it as many times as you like. You can always refer back to your ebook of the course and work through the course again with future cohorts of students in the FB group – in fact, I encourage it!
Do I have to be in Australia to take the course?
Nope! We’ve had folks from all over the world take the class. I do cover a few topics in the initial housekeeping email where I give links to some Aussie stuff (tax and government registration info), but I also tell you what you need to look into no matter what country you live in. The rest of the course is just as relevant for someone living in Auckland as it is for someone living in New York, or London, or Johannesburg!
Do I have to know how to use CSS or html or any other sort of code?
Not at all! If you choose to set up shop on Etsy or a similar platform, you’re good to go so long as you can use a computer, browse the internet, and upload stuff. If you can sign up for and take this course, you can set up an online shop!
Is this course included in Thriver Circle membership/does it overlap with Your Year to Thrive?
Set Up Shop is not included with Thriver Circle membership – it’s a stand-alone course. If you are a Thriver Circle member, doing the YYTT course, there are a couple of lessons where there is a little bit of overlap, but the 2 courses are very different things.
YYTT is designed to teach you about every aspect of setting up and running a handmade business – no matter what venue you choose to sell via. SUS is an intensive course – indeed, a system – to teach you very quickly all the steps you need to take to set up an online shop specifically.
Set Up Shop was the ultimate kickstart to launching my dice shop!
I had slowly been stockpiling products but felt completely overwhelmed on where to start, how to do it and what was worth my time and energy.
I set aside a bit of time each night after my day job to work through the lessons and found them easy to follow with lots of great tips.
I opened my Etsy shop on day 30 of the course and sold out my entire stock—bar one item I kept for myself to mark the momentous day!
I couldn’t recommend Set Up Shop more highly for those looking to finally take their creative idea and launch it into the world!
Completing Set Up Shop was one of the best things I have done for my business and myself.
Jess has combined everything you need to know in one place (no more cobbling together information from tons of websites and ebooks) and the step by step actions make it easy to follow and implement.
From pricing to marketing to mailing lists, each lesson builds on the previous one and because you receive an email each day you will work on your business on a daily basis.
Add to that, lifetime access to the course material and the Facebook group – I still go back and refer to the material regularly – and you have a fantastic course that takes some of the fear out of setting up your own handmade business.
I am so grateful that Jess is willing to share her wealth of knowledge and the money I spent on the Set Up Shop course I have made again many times over thanks to what I learned.
If you have been thinking about setting up your own business then give this course a go, you will love it. Do it!
Jess, I want to thank you so much for putting together this Set Up Shop course.
I learned so much in the last 30 days.
I had already opened an Etsy shop and was wanting to make it the best it can be, since I just kind of went in and did it by myself.
I really had no idea of how little I knew.
I have lots of hard work ahead of me, but now I have a clear picture of what I want and how to get there.
The way you present the information is so friendly and easy to understand. There is no judgement at all, so you made it super easy. It was like talking with friends. The sharing with one another in the group is such a valuable tool as well.
Anyone who is considering this course, don’t hesitate.
Take the course. You’ll be glad you did!