Tell us a little bit about yourself...
My name is Erica Bizon and I currently live in Memphis, Tennessee. My husband and I are originally from Chicago and relocated here after a weekend trip had us weak in the knees in love with the history and vintage fabulousness of Memphis. We have two boys, Lennon 2 years and Theo 1 year, who are a mere 14 months apart. They keep this mama VERY busy!
My Etsy shop is Lookie Loo Loo (found here) and I sell card stock banners and party goods, fabric bunting and rag tie banners and am starting to do quilts, t-shirt quilts and toddler shorts and leggings. I'm obsessed with anything vintage, unique or borderline gaudy. I love thrift store shopping and antiquing. There are so many wonderful treasures to find on those excursions if you dig a little bit. I'm also a music-lover. In my world, there is little better than getting immersed in a sewing project with my favorite bands crooning me on in the background.
How did you get the idea to start up a shop?
I discovered Etsy through a friend way back in 2008-2009. I was immediately hooked by all the hand made goodies and unique, one of a kind finds. As anyone with a creative bone in their body, I immediately started pondering and dreaming about the possibilities of opening my very own shop. Coming from a background as a marketing director of 10 years, I started out thinking too logically. What could I add to this market that wasn't already there? How would I grow a following base? How would I market this? Was Etsy just another flash in the pan website that would disappear in a few short years? I think all of us creative brains over think that too much, and are way too hard on ourselves. We are our own worst critic. In the beginning stages of Etsy, I was childless and my purchases ran from shoes to clothing to bags to jewelry. None of which I had any idea how to make, nor the desire to make on my own. In 2011, I became pregnant with my first son. I was
working as the first Memphis Community Manager for Yelp. Now only was this my dream job, but it seemed to be the culmination of all my experiences and everything I had learned career wise. I worked so hard to obtain that position and was loving my new role in the community. Yelp focuses on and features local businesses- which is very important to me. I'd much rather spend my hard-earned money on a local or small business than a big box store. I had this foolish notion, that once becoming a mama, I'd still be able to go to restaurant openings and to eat out 90% of the time, be out and about and be seen. It became very clear to me once my son was about 6 months that I couldn't juggle both mama and Community Manager like I had wanted. I was missing out on so many little moments with my son because I was constantly glued to my computer and out at businesses. I made a very hard decision to become a stay at home mama.
Shortly thereafter, I found out we were pregnant with number 2 (SURPRISE!). I immediately began planning and decorating his room. I knew I wanted everything to be DIY and Etsy found. I made artwork and prints, had a local woman make his sheets and crib quilt. At that point, I began to realize how easy it would be to start my own shop. It didn't have to be an immediate success, but this was something I honestly loved doing. My husband had been whispering the idea to me for a few years, but I had no clue what exactly I could make. After planning my son's first birthday party, it became clear to me that I could start with card stock and paper banners and party goods. I opened up shop in February of this year, and haven't looked back.
In the beginning of my Etsy obsession, I spent hours favoriting items that I would love to purchase and hang throughout my home. Jewelry that no one else had, clothing that you couldn't find in big box stores and chains. I had pages upon pages of items I would go back to and just dream about. While there was no way I could ever afford it all, it was my version of Carrie Bradshaw's Vogue magazine. Ha! When it came time to think of a shop name, I spent weeks brainstorming, and kept coming back to the term "looky-loo." It was catchy, and so perfectly descriptive of my introduction to Etsy. "A person who seems interested in making a purchase, but whose actual intention is only to browse:" I added a "loo" on the end, switched up the spelling, and made it official.
What is your favorite item to make?
My absolute favorite item to make is fabric bunting. There's something so therapeutic and rhythmic in that creation. From the time I sit down and start cutting out the fabric, to ironing and pinning, till the end stage of sewing it together and watching this masterpiece come to life. I recently took some classes to learn how to quilt and sew clothing. I am just starting the quilting process, but I have to say this will likely be my favorite once I get started. The act of taking pieces of beautiful fabric and compiling it together into a uniquely crafted item, one you cannot replicate or find anywhere else, is magical. There's no other word to describe it. The love and time and detail that go into it, all the while you're imagining the little on who will be using it for years to come. It's a really rewarding experience.
Do you do custom orders?
Custom orders are my absolute favorite. I love taking a walk into someone else's imagination and mind and melding our two ideas together. It's amazing, and scary all at the same time. Melding two different people's ideas together is a creative person's dream. And seeing their face or hearing their words across a computer screen when they see that final project is priceless. It truly is.
Do you use the items you make?
My boys are the proud owners of every item I've ever made the first (or second or third) go around. We have many a fabric bunting and rag tie banner decorating our walls. I'm also in the process of making both boys a their own quilt. Lennon's will be made out of some divine Beatles fabric I stumbled upon and Theo's will be adorable monster crayon art.
What are your goals for your products and shop?
I don't think I'll ever get the marketing director out of my blood. So, when I sat down and really started toying with this idea, I wrote out a rough business plan. My husband's job keeps him very long hours and most holidays, so we both knew going into this rearing children thing, that with a schedule like that, one of us would need to be present for these boys all the time. I have 3-4 years until both are school aged, and if we have a third like we plan, that gives me 5-6 years to build this shop to a point that it can sustain itself and allow me to work full time from home. Ultimately, I'd like to be able to be there for them for extracurricular activities, room mother duties and PTA. This is a mother's dream, and I know it can be obtained with some very hard work these next few years.
My biggest piece of advice would be to utilize your social media outlets. The relationships I have made in these few short months since I've opened- business and otherwise- are priceless. The social media community I am involved with is comprised of intelligent, extremely creative, beautiful mamas much like myself. They are not only an inspiration, but they cheer me on from the sidelines. There is no competition- we all want one another to succeed. That's rare to find in a work environment, but we've all been in one another's position. And, I have great respect for anyone who puts their creativity out there for the world to judge. Even more respect for a full time mama who can find a way to juggle all of that and still run a small business. I believe that in the beginning of my Etsy experience, the social media is what was lacking. I could never get past that "how will people find me?" or "how can I market this." Since the advent of Facebook business
pages, Instagram, Twitter, etc- its become even easier to market yourself and your business. You get what you put out there. You have to be present, you have to help others. In the end, it's all returned three-fold.
Why should we buy handmade?
I think the real reason is why SHOULDN'T you buy handmade. Not only is this a unique item no one else will have, but the time and effort that goes into creating these items is priceless. Your hard earned money isn't going back into the pocket of a multi-million dollar CEO. It's going into the bank account of a family who needs the money. You're single-handedly helping an artist to continue their dream and push themselves to a higher level. When I receive a handmade item in the mail, everything from the packaging and hand written note to the item itself is a piece of art to devour. Just staring at it and imagining th ehours of blood, sweat and tears that went into it is inspiring.
Do you have any special discounts or coupon codes?
I will be offering a 15% discount on all shop items with the release of this blog post. You can visit my Facebook here or Instagram page @lookielooloo for the discount code!
Let's show Erica some love from In A Dream Boutique:
www.facebook.com/lookielooloo
www.lookielooloo.wordpress.com
www.lookielooloo.etsy.com
@lookielooloo on Instagram
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