Crafting A Successful Small Business

Joanne Dewberry, founder of craft business Charlie Moo’s, offers a quirky, no-nonsense guide to running your own successful craft business

Crafting a Successful Small Business Making, marketing and merchandising by Joanne Dewberry

The UK handmade market is currently riding high as our attitudes to shopping and the products we want to buy are changing. With this change comes a new wave of manufacturers – small, local and talented.

If you are a producer of handmade products, or you have a craft hobby and are thinking about taking the next step and wondering how to do it, then this book has the answers. In it you will find out:

• How to turn your hobby into a small business 

• Where to sell your products, both on and offline 

• How to price your products 

• How to develop a unique and recognisable brand 

• Where to start with visual merchandising 

• How to use social media to market your business

This book not only takes you through these points in no-nonsense plain English, but also has quirky craft activities to complete along the way.

Jam-packed with top hints and tips from real-life crafty small business owners in the know, this book is essential reading for anyone looking to craft their way to success!

About the author

Joanne Dewberry started her first business Charlie Moo’s just before the birth of her second child Megan in 2008. Disheartened by the party bags that Charlie had received at parties she decided she could do better and so Charlie Moo’s was born.

Not a natural crafter nor had she sewn before, Joanne soon discovered how therapeutic sewing could be. Along the way she has learnt many new business skills which she is passionate about sharing with small business owners and in particular mums. With 3 children under 5 years herself Joanne understands the constraints on mums in business. Her passion and dedication earned her the title of Dorset Business Mum of the Year 2010 along with numerous other business accolades in the past 3 years.

Joanne is passionate about small business and writes a blog www.joannedewberry.co.uk providing small businesses training, advice & networking in areas of social media, marketing and juggling children and a business.

“In 2009, I co-founded a networking group for mums in business and I soon found myself surrounded by an enormous variety of small business owners; male, female, parents and single folk. But one thing was the same – the desire and passion each one displayed for their business. It’s inspiring to be surrounded by people like this. I wrote this book in order to inspire others around me and give something back to all of those who have believed in me over the past 4 years of running my own small business. Consumers want to buy products that
are handmade, local and unique – crafters want to keep on making and not be overrun with stock. Crafting a Successful Small Business is designed to help talented crafters take that step from hobby into manufacturer.”

– Joanne Dewberry, July 2012