A collaboration between two friends
Faithful Creations is a startup founded by my dear friend Zaskia Kotze. It is a Christian-themed startup making quality-oriented DIY products to sell. I have known Zaskia for over a decade now and it has been amazing to see her journey.
Meet Zaskia
Zaskia Kotze (22) is currently finishing off her studies in Multimedia and digital design. Her studies touch on topics such as animation design, user interface design, video editing and creating, brand design, and media studies.
She has always loved crafts and letting her creativity run free. Because of that, she founded the startup Faithful Creations.
Faithful Creations.
It started off small. As a side hustle, she was making keyrings and earrings for some friends out of clay. Then one day a friend's birthday was coming up and she needed a gift. She found some old supplies her mom had from making bathsalt years earlier. She went to consult Google, Pinterest, and YouTube for some tips. She enjoyed making it so much that she continued making more, selling to friends who wanted some. After a while people started telling her that she could really make some money out of it. A while later she sat down and decided to see if what her friends were suggesting would be feasible. She started playing around with what her vision would be if she were to start a small business. Hence the birth of Faithful Creations. A business that creates the space for her to do the things she loves as well as share her love for the One that created her. Please go take a look at her Instagram account to find out more information about her current products and plans for the future.
The visit
I have seen a lot of Faithful Creations products on their Instagram account and was curious to know more about them, as well as to give making some myself a shot. I went over for a visit the other day and what a blast we had. She taught me how to make glycerine soap, bath salts, and sugar scrubs. You can go check out how to make the bath salts in another blog post of mine here. Thank you Zaskia for the wonderful time I got to spend with you as you shared more about how Faitfhful Creations came about existing. The time I spent there as well as the skills I learned will not be forgotten.
Starting up
I can still remember the first time I thought I was going to become rich. It was when I had made some stuff to sell at a school fair. I had put all this effort in. I did all the maths but the end results were never as I had wished. My first proper DIY project, I'd say, was making tablecloths and knitting scarves. My business ideas never took off that well and the dreams quickly faded as I realized how much commitment it required; way too much for my 15-year-old self.
I am sure we all have at least a story like this. Creating a startup is not easy and not everyone succeeds, but if you would like to give it a try like Zaskia did, here are some tips for you.
The craft DIY industry is booming and more people are starting to try their hand at some type of project. According to Hobbycraft, 41% of their customers run a side hustle or business with their DIY crafts.
Some of the things you can keep in mind as you begin to think about your startup:
Who will be making the product?
What is your purpose in starting this business?
Stay up with the latest design trends.
Know how you will sell your stuff.
You can sell your products online, website, in person retail, and through trends.
Online: Some of the most common places will be Etsy, Amazon Homemade, Facebook Shop, and marketplace.
In-person retail: craft shops, faires, festivals, consignment relationships, wholesale relationships, farmers markets, galleries, and cafés.
For more information on DIY craft startups, I would suggest you go and check out Wunderlabel. I really enjoyed their blog on this and found it very insightful.
Time to think about a startup
Martenique Torlage
*All photos except those indicated were taken by Martenique Torlage
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