Sieradenstraatje has invited several entrepreneurs to share their own success stories. In this blog post, we meet Lindsay, owner of Loja Joatina.
Hi, I'm Lindsay Ameerun, born and raised in Purmerend. I work in the HR team at the University of Amsterdam, and in my free time I work on " Loja Joatina," my clay jewelry webshop. I also do my best to keep my Instagram page @lojajoatina up to date, and occasionally receive orders on request.
I started this new hobby in November 2021, which quickly grew into much more than that. During the coronavirus pandemic, I worked from home a lot (in tourism, which was at a standstill at the time) and felt cooped up. I started browsing online and came across polymer clay. I ordered all sorts of things and immediately fell in love with all the beautiful things you could make with it! Because I was simply making "too much," I decided to look on Etsy to see how to set up my own online store, and that's how it all began 😊
Have you encountered pitfalls on your way to success?
Absolutely, I had to figure out a lot. Baking your clay for too long can cause warping, and the clay becomes too soft. Baking it for too short a time has the same problem. I also experimented a lot with paint on clay in the beginning, which was quite tricky at the time. It turned out I was using the wrong paint. After thorough research and lots of practice, I've gotten to where I am now, and I really enjoy making jewelry, especially. The more tools you have, the more you can experiment, and I certainly did.
And now I'm curious, approximately how much do you sell per month?
The Christmas months are by far the best; I feel like the whole world goes crazy on Etsy. Orders from the United States and Europe are especially booming. Last year, I had 150 orders in November and December! Normally, I get about 40 orders a month.
Is this webshop your main or second profession?
My webshop ( https://lojajoatina.etsy.com ) is my second job, which I do in my spare time, next to my job at the HR team at the University of Amsterdam.
Can you describe your 'customer' for us?
My customer base is primarily female, and they enjoy buying from small businesses that aren't too expensive (and offer free shipping). However, I also notice a lot of gift orders, as people can specify this when ordering. I always try to wrap my order nicely, regardless of whether it's a gift or not; I put it in an organza bag with a nice note, and then wrap it in a paper bag with a keyring and a sticker. I've also noticed quite a few repeat buyers, which is absolutely fantastic! 😁
Thanks so much for sharing your story! Do you have any tips for other enterprising women who want to sell jewelry?
Keep trying and experimenting! And oh, definitely try Etsy. You pay a fee per order to Etsy, but without that website, I wouldn't be found on Google, nor among the masses of other companies. I find it a huge benefit, and I also sell most of my products abroad! I even think less than 10% of my orders come from the Netherlands.
And of course, our favorite question: what do you think of Sieradenstraatje? :)
Sieradenstraatje is where Loja Joatina's growth began. I've bought so many cutters from them! I especially like the fun/original shapes (and they sell really well), like the different animals, shells, and fruits. Definitely recommended for beginners (also because they have great blogs about starting and getting started with polymer clay) and for everyone, really 😉
Thank you so much Lindsay!
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