Name of your website?Kitty and Polly
Your name?
Paula Green
Your Location (city, etc)
Newtownabbey, Co Antrim, N Ireland
Please give us a short summary of your website?
It's a shop selling a range of gifts and accessories handmade in the UK. The website is mainly aimed at women who are looking to buy a gift or perhaps just treat themselves but I've also found that men are regular customers too ! There's growing demand for handmade products as people find that the High Street sells the same mass produced fare. Handmade products make great gifts.
What inspired you to launch your own website?
I've always wanted to run my own business. The idea of being creative, having full input into all the decisions, has always appealed to me. I've always had an interest too in crafts, interior design etc and so it made sense to bring these together.
How did you decide on a name for your website?
Deciding on a name for my website took some time and was more difficult than I had anticipated. The name finally came about as a combination of my mother's nickname (Kitty)and my nickname(Polly) It had a nice 'feel' to it and since my mum has always been a great source of support and help, it felt appropriate to include her in my first online venture !
What makes your website different from other, similar offerings?
I believe the range of products is varied and fairly unique. I try to source from individual designers and small businesses so visitors to the site will always find something a little bit different. Products are added on a monthly basis to keep things fresh. I also source from across the UK, including here in N Ireland. There's not too many websites doing that !
What is your eventual goal? (To sell it, keep it for income, secure a book or other mainstream media deal?)
My eventual goal would be to run it as a full time business.
How does your investment of time and money balance against your success?
For the investment that's gone into Kitty & Polly so far, I am quite pleased with the results. I have a growing customer base and repeat customers as well who are delighted with the products and the service they receive.
If you had an unlimited development budget for development, how would you change your site?
I would add other features to the website, for example, a gift reminder service . I would also move to a more customisable e-commerce facility.
If your site got really big, really quickly, would you be able to keep up with the demand?
Good question ! I think the main issue would be leadtimes from my suppliers. Because everything is handmade, if stock was depleted very quickly, it could take a few weeks to replenish.
What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with?
Thankfully, I've been quite lucky on this front. I did quite a lot of research before I started so I was able to plan quite well for set up costs. In hindsight, I should have set a bit more aside for sales and marketing activities.
What has been your biggest challenge?
Without a doubt, getting the message out there and increasing traffic to the site. This is what my efforts are mainly focused on currently - creating links, using the right keywords etc. I have a limited budget so I haven't the luxury of getting the experts in to do this for me. I've learnt as I've gone along. It has been a massive learning curve.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
So far I've found that getting the website and products featured on blogs has been pretty successful. I think this is mainly because it's reaching the right target audience.
How has running your website differed from your expectations?
Yes, to a certain extent. It's more work than I anticipated, not that I thought it would be easy, but it does require a significant commmitment to build up the business. Thankfully, because I enjoy it, it's not an issue.
How long have you run the site already, and how long will you continue to keep it up if you don't enjoy big gains in traffic, income or popularity?
The site has been up and running for about 8 months. It's very early days and it will require some time to get to a point where it is sustainable in the longer term. Hopefully with commitment and hard work, it will be worth it.
What advice would you give to others thinking of doing the same thing ?
My advice would be to 'go for it'. Research your idea carefully and be prepared to work hard. If it succeeds, great. If not, at least you tried your best and you'll have learnt loads along the way (and hopefully had some fun !).
What is your website address?
Kitty and Polly
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