On Structure, Intentions, and Plans Near and Far

Hello, my lovely pixies! Happy summer!

Full disclosure: I dislike summer. Actually, I was originally hoping to launch the shop portion of this whole endeavor on Friday the 16th, with the intent of having a week-long launch that crossed the summer solstice. Why? TBH, mostly to give summer a positive.

(Besides National Chocolate Eclair Day, which is the day after Summer Solstice, and one of my personal favorite days of the year—Christmas, Easter, National Chocolate Eclair Day, and Hobbit Day are the top 4 holidays.)

I mean, okay, I don’t HATE summer. I hate hot weather. And humidity. And the sun gives me a headache no matter how much I try to shade my eyes and how many electrolytes I consume. But, I mean, I like . . . swimming. And biking if the weather will allow me to do it without dying. I’m kind of a fan of not dying. I die a lot less in the winter. But autumn is my favorite. And you’re all totally allowed to have your own favorites, and if summer is yours, GOOD! It makes it better to know that other people are enjoying the weather even when I find it miserable. I hope that some of those who find winter miserable are comforted to know that there are people like me who thrive in it.

Anywho! To absolutely nobody’s surprise . . . I digress. Back to my point! Because of the aforementioned (in a previous post, not in this one, so if you’re looking for that, no, you didn’t just skip a sentence . . . probably . . . .) class that ended up being far more intensive than I was anticipating, I haven’t gotten enough products made to list them yet, so I’m aiming for sometime in July now. I’ll keep you all apprised! And be sure to keep a lookout because there’ll be a contest that starts a couple weeks before the launch, and then people will vote on entries during launch week.

(Oooooooh! What could it be? Hmmmmm . . . .)

For now, I wanted to give you a more comprehensive overview than I have previously done of what it might look like to partner with PE, should you ever be so inclined. First, here’s a super rough chart of the overall business structure that I have planned:

Alright, so what are you looking at here?

Well, the top tier is probably obvious so let’s focus on the branches below that. At Pixie Elegance, I want to employ artisans who will work with me in my shop, designing and creating things sold by Pixie Elegance, and demonstrating the work for others to see how the products are made. This will include products to be sold online and, hopefully eventually, in a brick-and-mortar shop in which I intend to have everything visible, either out in the open, or through windows if it’s something that would be dangerous to have other people around. (That includes soap-making, because lye can eat through anything organic; anything at all that includes high temperatures; and I’m not sure what else because I don’t yet know which artisans I’ll have working with me!)

As far as I’m concerned this can be divided up into something like a medieval village—a smithing section, a soap and candle section*, possibly a forge, hopefully a pottery section, maybe a woodworking section. What else? I don’t know! If you’re an artisan interested in working with me one day, you tell me what else you think there should be, and why you’d be a good fit with PE! Maybe we’ll even be able to include maple syrup production, gourmet/artisan candies and other snacks, and more! And if we can ever include basket weaving, then that will make the ULTIMATE gift spot, where you can select a handmade basket and a selection of handmade items to go into it! HOW COOL WOULD THAT BE?

*Fun fact: candlemakers used to make soaps and candles because there are similarities in the processes and they used some of the same fats and chemical processes to make both soap and wax. Although I don’t know of any individuals making their own wax today, other than by collecting beeswax, many soap makers still end up turning an eye toward candles too, since they can sometimes use similar molds and scents and things.

Okay, okay, so what about the cottages? What does that mean?

Are you familiar with the term “cottage industry”? If you aren’t, it’s a small business run from someone’s home. (Right this moment, that’s what Pixie Elegance is, though I hope to expand it to a point where it will no longer fit in this little workshop room in my house. Of which I still owe you all a tour. I swear, now that this most recent class is done, the final organization to the point where you can actually discern what you’re looking at IS COMING.) So in addition to artisans working with me, the other factor of PE that I really want to do is to sell items from people who have their own cottage industries, but want to still maintain making and selling things for themselves.

For instance, that might include a soap maker who has a different style than mine or uses scents that I just can’t use. (I have a lot of allergies, so while I think that the scents I use are very NICE scents, they’re also restricted to being the ones I can use and not go into an asthma attack.) I could order a lot [whereby I do not necessarily mean a vast amount, but ordering by the lot] from them - say, a lot of 50 bars at a time, with option to buy a new lot of that design once the first lot sells. The artisan knows that the entire batch will, from their perspective, sell, because PE is buying it, the same way that a big box store or a grocer buys from their suppliers, thus giving much greater security than selling products individually or putting them on consignment somewhere. They also get access to an outlet portion of the shop where they can sell things that have a bit of a defect and PE doesn’t want, but that are technically still functional (say, a bar of soap that cut crooked or is much too small for the listed weight, or one that broke in half but the two halves can still be sold as a functional, if not quite as pretty, couple hunks of soap). AND each artisan, whether in-shop or cottage-based, will take turns being featured here and on our social media, including cross-promoting the entire cottage business, not just the line(s) that they sell through PE.

Meanwhile, PE gets access to more artistic designs without actually having to buy the supplies and train the employees ourselves (that is, we’ll have those in shop who might be people with experience or might be people we train; as well as those in their own cottage-based shops who we buy from rather than employ) and our customers get to connect with artisans outside our shop, those more free to take custom orders and such.

EEEEEEEE! Seriously, I get so excited about this prospect!

Slowly floats back to ground.

BUT that’s all a combination of goals, plans, and [admittedly] some dreams for years in the future. If you want to hear me talk more about that, you can listen to this episode of the Stitch and Witch podcast. Meanwhile. what about now?

Well, right now I’m still working toward building my initial product line, which is all done by me because I have to start small and work toward that big stuff down the road. As I said, I hope to have some items listed in July, and I’ll let you know for sure when that will be as soon as I know for sure. I finished my most recent class yesterday, and intend to spend the next several weeks fully immersed in metalwork, soap, and candles. (Not literally. That sounds painful.)

Also, did I mention how close to done my MBA I am? I mean, I won’t be done until the end of this year, but I have no more class until autumn, and then I have my capstone—which is entirely focused on building PE—and I have an accounting class the second half of the fall semester, and then I’m DONE.

As I mentioned up above, I’ll also have some contests coming up, so make sure you’re keeping an eye here and on the social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) for when that happens! It will come in two parts—entries for a couple weeks before the launch, and then people voting on entries during launch week, and there will be chances to win for initial entries OR for being among those who vote!

But as I said, more details on that soon. Meanwhile, if you love this summer weather, get outside and enjoy it while you wait for Pixie Elegance products coming up! If you prefer cooler weather like I do, drape yourself over an air conditioner or stick your head in a freezer, and dream of the upcoming Pixie Elegance product releases.

Have a great week!