To read the first part of this interview with Theresa Harmon, see here. She is the owner of All the Trimmings Shop in Richmond, VA. All the Trimmings Shop is a one-woman workroom that fabricates soft furnishings (pillows, drapes, cushions, bedding, etc.) for the home. Theresa is the creative seamstress behind the business that she runs with the help of her husband Raoul.
Tell us how you market your business.
I have a website that I did myself, because I have a background in graphic design. I use Wix to host it, and they have templates and such that make it easier to build. Last year I added a services page, and I had to figure out how to do it, what pictures to use, stuff like that. That’s the other thing: some people hire all their social media out, but that’s a lot more money than I want to spend. If I can get into [a client’s] house and install the bench cushion or window treatment or whatever, and snap a photo – because I’m a good photographer – I can save money and do my own website and social media.
How do you drive people to your website?
I have embedded in my site certain key words, so that when people google “cushions,” “custom curtains,” or certain other things, my site will come up in their search.
So your site is Search Engine Optimized (SEO)?
Yes. Wix helps me with that. They say my SEO isn’t good enough – they always have a lot of suggestions on how to improve it – but it’s good enough for what I can service.
How else do you market your business?
I have an Instagram account that feeds into a Facebook account. I’m also on Next Door, and I get a lot of repeat business and referrals. I would say for anybody that does any kind of service, whenever you make a mistake, make it right – make the customer happy. That goes a long way in this day and age. If people feel like they got a good value, and you were honest and did a good job, they will tell their friends. I get a lot of referral and repeat business. I think about a third of my jobs last year were repeats. Many customers can’t do everything at once, so maybe they’re doing their living room pillows this year, their kitchen valence next year, and the following year the bench cushions for their river house. You build a relationship and you’ve got someone who’s with you for years. I have about five Google reviews now, and they can generate some business – but people aren’t always good about posting those. However, I have one friend who does no social media – nothing – and she has plenty of business.
How many hours would you say you average spending in your business a week?
[Anywhere] from 15 to 40. At Christmastime it can get really crazy. Sometimes I may work a Friday night or a Saturday to catch up.
You have an advantage in running your business in that you spend most of your time fabricating the products, and you have Raoul to help run the backend of things.
Absolutely. He has a spreadsheet, I have a client queue list, but we coordinate about who, what, and where; monies collected; etc. We have to pay quarterly sales tax, so every quarter we correlate to make sure we’re paying the correct amounts. I know that there are different types of small business software out there, too, that can help. Even industry-specific software. We have our system down now. He also helps me by purchasing foam for pillows and cushions and measuring and cutting it. He’s a chemical engineer – he’s very precise.
So, if Raoul weren’t part of the business, it would be more like a full-time job?
Oh totally. I have a friend from WCAA who works seven days a week – she had $500,000 in gross sales last year, but for me, I don’t want to get any busier.
Would you mind sharing about how much you make in a year?
It depends on the year. You know, I don’t even know what we made last year. One year, I think, we were doing about $50,000 in gross sales, so it’s not that much. It’s not bad. I don’t really have a lot of overhead, so it’s good supplemental income. We try and follow the prophet’s admonition to stay out of debt, so anything I make is extra.
What advice would you give to a woman who wanted to start her own business?
I would say make sure it’s something you really have a passion for. Have a why statement. Write down your goals – not just financial, but emotional, spiritual, artistic, maybe humanitarian, depending on your field. There will be times when you’re pulling your hair out, you’re getting frustrated, and if you don’t have a good sense of why you’re doing it, you’re going to quit. You have to have a why with your business – with anything, really.
The Church, under the umbrella of self-reliance classes, has a “so you want to start your own business” class. We took it about 3-4 years ago. It’s a very good program: you have to come up with a business plan, and they ask you all the hard questions that are essential for a good foundation to start a business. You have to do your homework. Can your locale support this type of business? You don’t want to start a bread-making business if there are already four of them in town. See if your area can support another one. Maybe it can – maybe you’ll do it even better and people will leave the other ones. You have to do a lot of self-exploration, and research about where you live. Ask friends’ advice. Sometimes you want to do some beta projects to see if it will work, and how much people will pay.
Your business, and your knowledge of it evolves. For instance, I took out an insurance policy recently, because, as I’m climbing up on people’s ladders and I’m in their house, and I drop my rule and I dent their table, I have to be covered. And when people come to my house, I need protection in case someone sues me because they tripped on my steps.
Any parting words of wisdom – especially those who would like to start a business but are afraid to take the plunge?
My advice would be to take the Church’s self-reliance course, and participate in the business section of the course. It will require you to do the research on whether or not your business is viable in your area, help you come up with a business plan, and teach you the basics of running a business. It will give you confidence.
For information on the self-reliance groups sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, specifically the business portion of the course, see here.