When we first dreamed up of The Paper + Craft Pantry, the intention was to become a destination stationery and paper shop in Austin, as well as the go-to spot for all things workshop. The business was always built with these two parts in mind.

I’ve personally always loved workshops, hosting them, teaching them and taking them- and I really felt like there was a lack of a space that suited the kind of experience I wanted to offer our community.

Workshops have now become very popular and dare I even say, a trendy thing for a lot of businesses to dabble in. I personally think it’s an amazing thing because there is now no shortage of ways people can get creative and learn! The only downside is there can be some oversaturation and also a potential discrepancy in quality that may skew someone’s mind on workshops.

A lot of people ask me all the time on how we host workshops. It’s something that I’ve learned and evolved with over the years- through trial and error (a lot of error). And I’m honestly still evolving and learning how to better serve our workshop community!

Want to know what the top thing I wish I would have done differently in the beginning of hosting workshops (back in 2013!)?  

Properly valuing my time.

I grossly underestimated the amount of time it would take to prepare for a workshop, the amount of time it took to source out material, build a curriculum, find a location, time needed to create material for marketing…

A 2.5hr workshop ended up being over 12hrs (give or take) to pull off. That’s A LOT of time to value and translate into a ticket that a paying student will understand the investment for. When someone is paying for a workshop ticket, they often just account of the actual time they will be in the class and the materials. If I’m being really transparent, we do source very high quality materials- but the cost of the workshop materials is actually a very small portion of the total workshop ticket.

You can 100% go to your local craft supply store to pick up supplies + watch a youtube video to learn. But I truly believe that you get so much more when you get to experience it alongside others, and when you are being led and instructed by someone who is incredibly knowledgeable.

The bulk of the workshop ticket really goes towards the instructors time, years of hard work to be a pro at what they do, the time they are taking away from their own businesses/family to be here to teach. I stand very firmly on compensating our instructors (and myself when I’m teaching) and truly valuing their time.

THINGS TO CONSIDER AND QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN HOSTING A WORKSHOP:

LOCATION

Where will you be hosting this class? How much is it going to cost you to rent the space? If the space is being provided to you at no cost- keep in mind that you may at some point have to allocate money for a space (which means you’d have to increase your workshop ticket) Does this place accomodate your needs? Does it have tables, chairs, a bathroom, parking, wifi or anything else you might need for your workshop?

DEMAND +CONTENT

What do you want to teach? If you aren’t the one teaching, what kind of classes does your community want? Have you had a lot of interest in a particular topic? Keep in mind that when you host a class on a specific day and a specific time, there are going to be people who say they want to go but can’t make that date.

Also take the time to do some research as to what else is out there, are there other studios or places offering what you want to offer? Is it something you can partner with them on? Or are you able to pivot and shift so you are not over saturating the market?

PRICING

Calculate the cost of your ticket based off of every factor!

COST OF TICKET = COST OF SUPPLIES/ COST OF TIME (BEFORE THE WORKSHOP, DURING THE WORKSHOP ETC.)/ OVERHEAD COST (LOCATION)/ MISC. COSTS (TICKETING FEES, SNACKS, DRINKS ETC.)

You can still make a workshop ticket fee accessible and of value to a student while still being mindful of your actual costs!

*Another thing I feel is important to address is to price your ticket (and your business) competitively. Sure you can offer it at a cheaper option that what else is out there, but keep in mind you will be doing not only yourself a disservice, but you are also doing a disservice to other small businesses. I also really think it’s important to attract people because they align with your business, not just because you’re the cheaper option. Just some food for thought :)

MARKETING + PROMOTION

People are visual beings- having clear visuals for your upcoming class and workshop can really help in getting people excited about your workshop or class! You want to give people enough time to plan ahead for your upcoming workshop yet want to be sure it’s not too far out that it gets lost in their busy schedules. Finding that “sweet” spot can be tricky and truly is something that each person needs to figure out on their own. I’ve seen fellow creatives who have massive followings and a loyal following who can sell out a workshop that’s listed many months in advance as well as some who have sold out a workshop in hours.

LEARN- BE OKAY WITH AN UNCERTAIN OUTCOME AND LEARN FROM EACH EVENT!

Not every class will sell out. You can host two of the exact same workshops where one sells out in a matter of minutes and the other is a struggle to fill. There are SO many variables when it comes to someone’s life and schedule it’s truly hard to predict or really know. You can make your best guess based on some trends or habits you might see, or even based off the season and what else is going on around your specific city or town- and trust me, you’ll still get those curve balls.

I personally love when classes are more intimate, it allows you to go above and beyond to create an incredible experience for your students. We’ve hosted classes with 4 students and classes with up to 50 students. They are both great in their own way! So don’t be discouraged if you try to host your first class and aren’t able to fill it.

If you read this post through the end, I hope you found value in what I shared. There really is no simple solution or formula to hosting a successful workshop (or event!) I hope these things will at the very least prompt you to consider some of the things I feel are important to consider when hosting a workshop!

HAPPY APRIL!

In case you missed it, we’re doing things a little differently this year and want to invite you to join our Paper + Craft Pantry Book Club! We had a really great time growing our “new” book club through Q1 and are excite to dive into our new 3 books for the second quarter.

IF YOU’RE NEW AROUND HERE, HERE IS WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT WITH OUR BOOK CLUB:

1. We are sharing our book picks by the quarter. So you’ll be able to get an idea of what books are coming up!

2. Book club nights will take place on the last Wednesday of each month from 6pm-7:15pm.

3. Book club members are invited to bring a snack to share at the meeting and we’ll provide a glass of wine- you guys voted for snacks + wine :)

4. Book club members will vote on the next quarters books!

5. We’re committed to making this year the best year yet for book club- and are asking you to join us. Make reading a part of your routine, carve out that one time a month to join us in our studio, better yet, invite a friend to join us. Book club is meant to keep us connected in this busy, busy world!

Q2 BOOKS + MEETING DATES

Happy April friends! Hope this month is off to a great start for you guys- there’s always something nice about starting a new month. From flipping the page in your planner to tearing off the previous month on your calendar, it feels like an opportunity for a fresh start or restart.

After a lot of deliberation, and after gathering feedback from you guys, I’ve decided to streamline our P+CP blog to truly offer you content that feels meaningful in addition to content that personally lights me up. It may seem easier to just churn out as much content as possible (and it may be easy for some) but running a physical business (and what sometimes feels like two separate businesses with the retail shop + the workshop space) is my main focus and this blog was always meant to be a creative outlet of sorts.

I’ve decided to get back to basics in my effort to my 2019 mantra of less but better.

And this new month seemed like the perfect time to kick off our new blog format and calendar. From now moving forward, you will be hearing from me 3 times a month. The first post of the month will be a Monthly Edit series, where I’ll share some combination of the following: A look back at the previous month, a few things happening this month, a section on what we’re currently loving + life lately, plus a mini series where you’ll get to “meet” one of the plants in our shop.

The main purpose of this is to give y’all a quick snapshot and review to stay in the loop (plus I plan to share way more images and photos since y’all love that :)

The other two blog posts in each month will be a creative D.I.Y. project and an installment of our Small Business School series.

I hope you guys enjoy reading these posts as much as it brings me joy to write and create them for you :)

xo,

Pei

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A QUICK LOOK BACK AT MARCH:

1. Survived the madness a.k.a. traffic craziness that was SXSW.

2. Finished our official P+CP Spring 2019 Line Sheet, which is basically a wholesale catalog for other retailers interested in purchasing our stationery to sell in their shop!

3. Successfully integrated our team onto our new payroll system. A HUGE win considering this has been a goal of mine from day one of the business!

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THINGS HAPPENING THIS MONTH:

New blog format + series!

What we’re excited about: getting to share more BTS life and business with you guys!

 

Welcoming back some of our out-of-state instructors + new workshops

What we’re excited about: This painting workshop where you’ll get to paint your home, this block printing workshop with a new local instructor, and a small business workshop to help you grow your business with the help of social media!

 

Sending off our first “big” wholesale order with our stationery line

What we’re excited about: still reeling from the fact that we finally have our own product line and even more excited that other stores what to share them with their communities!

 

Flowers In The Shop

What we’re excited about: me we’re partnering with Grassdale Farms + Petals Ink, a local flower farm and woman owned flower company to start offering you locally grown, beautiful flower stems to pick up over the weekends right from our studio. Each bouquet will feature approximately 10 stems that are ready for your vase (or bud vases) at home. In a few weeks, you’ll be able to swing by the shop for fresh blooms (in addition to stationery) on the weekends :)

CURRENTLY LOVING

Did you know the U.S. Postal Service officially designated April as the National Card and Letter Writing month back in 2001? Their goal was “to raise awareness of the importance and historical significance of card and letter writing.”

An entire month dedicated to sending more snail mail? YES please!

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LIFE LATELY

If you follow us on Instagram, you guys know we just wrapped up on some home renovations. We bought our home back in 2015 and finally got around to doing some much needed updates to our bathrooms. I was honestly a little surprised at how committed you guys were to our renovation! And it was truly so fun getting to share a little bit more about my life outside of the shop with you guys. I think that’s a part of why I feel like this monthly edit blog post will serve as a way for me to share from a meaningful place, and in a very intentional way too! My plan is to share designated post about that whole process with you guys very soon :)

So from home renos and pretty much straight into having to take care of a very sick dog (Fig), the past month has been a bit of a whirlwind. Fig is fine now, by the way, she had some kind of stomach bug that she just couldn’t shake but we are finally on the mend.

This has totally been a long overdue post! I’ve been wanting to share what I know with y’all and have been going back and forth about what I should share. One of my goals this year is to share more insightful topics on our Small Business School blog series so if you guys have any burning questions, please leave a comment at the bottom and let me know!

There’s so much that goes into creating a product line that would warrant a MUCH longer post and perhaps even multiple posts. I wanted to just give y’all a summary and things I’ve personally identified as the most important things to consider. Whether you are thinking about starting your own stationery line or perhaps just want to expand on your product offerings, these are 8 of the most important things to consider.

p.s. be sure to read all the way to the bottom to get a little insider scoop to something new happening soon ;)

IDENTIFY WHAT PRODUCT OR PRODUCT RANGE YOU WANT TO OFFER.

Specifically for a stationery or paper line, I feel like product variety is important. It’s something I look for when deciding to add a new stationery line to our shop. Having some diversity is easier as a buyer to purchase a group of product that will also merchandise really well together.

When deciding on product for the P+CP line, I wanted to hone in on products to fill the gaps. There are a lot of great paper businesses out there with great product, however, there were still product gaps in what I felt I wanted in the shop. I also wanted to have this new product line be cohesive and easy for paper lovers to gravitate towards multiple items.

I also did a poll via social media to ask our community what they wanted. Simple questions like asking if they’d prefer a notepad that was lined or blank was incredibly helpful!

TRUST YOUR GUT WITH THE DESIGN + CREATIVE PROCESS.

There are no shortage of ideas that are floating around my head. And I want to turn them all into tangible goods- but that’s not realistic because producing product takes an upfront investment.

I knew I wanted our P+CP mint color to be present throughout our designs and our line, even as it evolves. I also wanted to have designs that were “timeless”. Trends are a real part of life and design, but I wanted to stay true to what felt in alignment with our business and brand regardless of if it was cool or not. An example would be suddenly incorporating the Pantone Color of the Year into everything even if it doesn’t fit our brand.

Functionality and simplicity was another thing I focused on. I also ask myself every time I design or want to release a new product “Would I use this?”.

I probably have twice as many designs that were weeded out slowly before deciding on our current line!

BE RESOURCEFUL-GOOGLE WILL BE YOUR BESTFRIEND.

I did most of my test printing at home and did a TON of googling. I already had some sources from before the P+CP existed and I was working on my own line full time. I visited several local print shops to get quotes from them.

There is no one “size” fits all for any business. What works for someone may not work for you and vice versa. It’s up to you to explore and do some research.

This might be something that’s only true for me, but even though I have a lot of friends in the industry- I don’t usually ask them for their printers or sources. Mostly because I see it as asking someone to give me all their research and hard work for nothing. It takes months, sometimes even years for people to find the right printer/manufacturer and it seems like a big ask to have someone just hand that to me for nothing.

I equate it to going into your favorite restaurant and asking the chef for their recipe.

*p.s. this was one of the most asked questions when we opened up questions about producing a product on our Instagram community!

ALWAYS GET A SAMPLE AND PROOF!

I always order samples and pay for proofs. It sometimes costs a little more but it’s worth it to know you’re not going to end up with a giant box of product with a slight imperfection or a missed crop line.

This actually happened to me during the production of our line last year. I ordered a proof and yet, still somehow missed that I did not remove the crop lines off one of our notepads. It was 100% on me for missing that and now we have a big box of notepads we use for scrap paper because there’s just the tiniest lines down each side. It’s barely noticeable but as someone who really stands for quality of paper (and business in general) these will never be sold! It definitely stung both in my bank account and I had to take a moment to realize I’m human too and mistakes will happen!

CALCULATE THE COST OF EACH ITEM AND THEN FACTOR IN THE TOTAL COST.

A lot of times, the larger your quantity is the lower you’re going to be able to get the cost per item. That means higher profit margins! But if you are just starting out, I really think doing as much printing (by investing in a good and solid printer) can help you from just having way too much inventory on hand of just one thing.

If you are trying out a ton of designs, you will be able to do that without high minimums when you print yourself. If you want to outsource printing and production, you may have to streamline and only produce a few things at a time because of costs.

Minimums can range from the hundreds to thousands! So even if you can get an item at a low cost per item (example $4) having to order hundreds or thousands of that means you’d have to pay all of that upfront!

A big thing to consider and NEVER forget is to include the TOTAL cost of each item into what you price it at. Take into account the cost you pay for shipping for the product to be sent to you (if you are outsourcing your production), cost for packaging (yes even the cute little labels and stickers on your product) and even the cost of you designing the product/packaging design!

PRICE FOR WHOLESALE AND PRICE COMPETITIVELY.

When pricing your product, always price for wholesale pricing even if you are not planning on wholesaling right now (or ever!) For example: If you plan on retailing a greeting card at $5. You will probably be wholesaling it at $2.50. So to make a profit, the total cost of that card should be at or less than $1.25.

I also think it’s really important to price whatever it is you’re making competitively. In my opinion, I want people to pick up our product because they like it vs. choosing it because it’s a cheaper option.

GET COMFORTABLE WITH VULNERABILITY AND BE OPEN TO FEEDBACK.

Putting your art, design and work out into the world is both exciting and terrifying at the same time. You’ll question if people like what you are doing. You’ll question if you’re good enough. You’ll also probably start comparing yourself to others.

That’s NORMAL.

A huge thing is knowing that the people who will resonate with what you’ve created will LOVE it, and knowing that you’re not going to be for everyone and that’s okay too!

Once you create your product(s), it’s important to get feedback and be open to hearing what people have to say about your work. Get your product out in front of people at local events and listen to what people say when they see or touch your product. There’s no better way to test the market and see what designs or product resonates with your audience than for you to do that.

START SMALL.

Last but not least, perhaps the most important thing is to start small. Start with a small range of offerings, with a few designs. Print from home to keep your cost down and to keep from ending up with thousands of the same notepad stored in your closet! You’ll be able to offer diverse offering while being able to test out various designs and products. Invest in local markets and shows to test your products- make tweaks after feedback and be open to evolving.

The original product line I started with in 2013 is vastly different than what I am doing now :)