My shop is back open. I took a few days to catch up on orders and try to get ahead of it.. I decided to leave items sold out and deactivate other baskets in my shop. This tactic was used instead of actually putting my shop on “vacation “. I’ve used the vacation mode in the past. It seemed to really hurt my store as far as new views and orders after I opened back up. Before I slowed my shop down, it was a week before I even started to weave an order. Now, I can weave orders within 1-2 days
My strategy started by finishing all of the remaining orders I had. It was very satisfying to weave that very last basket. For the last few months I’ve been receiving 50-60 orders per week. Each basket takes an average of over an hour to complete from start to finish. This pace, needless to say, is virtually impossible to keep up with.
My ultimate goal was to make new orders in a timely manner while also having baskets ready to ship. I ended up weaving 15 baskets that will be ready to stain and ship out. I will mix these stock baskets in with the orders I receive. This will alleviate the time pressures and delays I have been experiencing. This will also free up time to design new new ideas and experiment. believe this has to be part of any successful business.
After opening back up, this strategy seems to be working and will be sustainable. I received 10 orders the first day. I had 6 of them already woven therefore had to weave 4. The second day I received 5 orders and will only have to weave 3 of them. While making these orders I will continually make duplicates of the baskets that regularly sell and keep them in stock. This will be my new strategy moving forward. I am very excited and I’ll keep you posted.
Bouquet of Baskets 