Do you believe in supporting small business? Is it something you’re passionate about?

If so, head on over to kickstarter and see if you can help by supporting a small business I know!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/haveitsweet/an-all-natural-all-handmade-artisan-confections-sh

Have it Sweet makes the most fantastic homemade Fleur de Sel caramels I have ever tasted! I have tasted my fair share of caramels!

The other week I just happened to be researching kickstarter.com

I feel it’s a great way for small businesses to get a jump start from being a truly small business, to building and growing into something larger.

This is something I really need to consider. Homestead Emporium is to a point where I’m having to say ‘no’ to some sales/business because there’s only so much I can do. The family does help (more so when dh was actually living with us!), and it’s great, but as far as designing, sewing, all the careful cutting of fabrics, packaging orders, taking orders, public relations, photography, and 99% of the listings, that’s all on me. My eldest daughter helps where she can, but she has another job and there are going to be some changes in her life very soon that will affect how much she can help, if at all.

So, I have been considering possibly having my own project through kickstarter.com. It’s a very serious step though, a very big step, and one I need to be sure I’m ready for!
A step I need to be sure our family is ready for!

I don’t know if I could hire someone else to do the sewing. I’ve heard too many ‘horror’ stories of other work at home mom’s who have gone that route, only to end up with very disappointing results. However, I believe I should/could consider some alternatives to HOW I work now.

My list of ideas/purchases I’d like to make with funds earned through a project on kickstarter.com would be:

  • hire someone to do my listings and some of my public relations. At one time I had a very good friend working with me, and that was such a huge help. However, she’s no longer available and that’s very sad because I have a hard time trusting someone to help, and she was the only person I had ever trusted before. Now I’m not sure who I’d hire but I think I need to find someone.
  • a large order of fabrics. I have to turn away some very large orders simply because I do not have the fabrics on hand in very large quantities. Being able to order a few full rolls of bamboo velour, bamboo fleece, and windpro, to have instock at ALL times would be an extreme benefit to the business.
  • either a more automated snap press or the funds to build one, and build it right.
  • better cutting equipment. I did finally purchase an electric rotary cutting a while back, and it works ‘ok’ for the inner fabrics but it does not cut as precisely as I feel it should because our patterns are mostly small, OR, they have small curves. This means we’re back to cutting all our fabrics/layers 1 or 2 pieces at a time. Considering we cut HUNDREDS -THOUSANDS of cuts every single week, that’s a lot of cutting, and a lot of time.

  • I may also like to  hire out some of the dyeing again. Before I learned to dye myself, I paid others to dye for me. Although I do love dyeing, and I don’t feel I could ever stop it all together, I wouldn’t mind having some fabrics that are more of a ‘solid’ dye on hand at all times for those who are not as interested in the extreme hand dyed fabrics. This would also work well for items such as the backs of blankets, reverse sides of flat wraps, and the regular stocking of sets.
  • To go along with the above about dyeing, I’d also love to be able to order some full rolls of factory dyed bamboo velour. Again, for those customers who prefer to keep things simple, this would work very well and it would mean always having color on hand.
  • I would LOVE to be able to hire someone to do a whole bunch of swirl dyed fabrics, so we could keep those regularly instock as well!
  • One last thing I’d love to order, is simply extra stock of everything we always use!

It’s time consuming to keep on top of EVERY LITTLE THING we need every single week from polymailers, bags, paper, labels, ink, etc. for shipping all our orders out, to cutting blades, fabrics, fabric dyes, fabrics, thread, fabrics (SO MUCH FABRIC), cutting mats, sewing needles, and everything else! Having large quantities of all these items on hand at all times, would be a huge time saver AND it would help finances as well. Right now it’s a matter of having to order everything so often that we’re loosing money every single time in so many ways. Shipping small quantities to use instead of fewer & larger shipments, paypal fees for every single little purchase, and then the obvious cost of buying all these items at basically retail prices instead of the wholesale prices I could get if I was buying large quantities.

So that’s my possible plan, if I decide to start up a project some time in the future!

First I’d have to figure out the costs needed, and the biggest thing, what I could offer as a ‘reward’ for all those who might pledge. It’s a lot of extra work, and I’d want to do it right and offer some REALLY great things! 😉

In researching, because I’m in Canada, I’m not sure I could do a kickstarter.com project, however, I’m going to continue looking into it. I would appreciate  your thoughts while researching!
What do you think of this kickstarter idea?
If we went with a kickstarter, or other type of project, what types of things would YOU want to see as a ‘reward’ for backing Homestead Emporium?  I realize that not everyone is going to be into cloth pads, so I would want the rewards to be gifts anyone could love. Possibly luxury cloths for a smaller donation of 5$, a facial gift set for a donation of 15$, moving all the way up to possibly a hand dyed blanket for large donations.

Thoughts? I’d love to hear what you’ve got to say!