Your Retail Questions Answered~Just Ask Grace

retail coaching, grace kang, pink olive, retail recipes, retail help for handmadeI am really excited to announce a collaboration with the amazing Grace Kang, owner of New York’s Pink Olive boutiques and the talented creator of Retail Recipes, a retail coaching service for small business. Grace will be visiting us every month to answer YOUR retail questions in a new column called, “Ask Grace”. Grace has over 13 years as a retail buyer and consultant in the fashion industry and has worked for some prestigious companies like Bloomingdale’s, Saks.com and Barney’s New York. Her experience as a buyer and successful retailer will help you understand the retail world and how you can get your products into stores. Let the crafty empire building begin!

Here is a taste of Grace’s recipe for retail success:

retail coaching, grace kang, pink olive, retail recipes, retail help for handmade

So if you’ve been struggling to get your products noticed, if you’re just wondering how to get started selling to shops, or want to expand your current list of retailers then Ask Grace. Bring on your questions about how to price for profit, make your line attractive to retailers & how to build your brand or whatever else you are curious about and Grace will answer them monthly-think of this column as handmade’s very own Ann Landers but way cuter & more stylish.

retail coaching, grace kang, pink olive, retail recipes, retail help for handmade

As an extra special treat to kick start our new collaboration Grace is offering an incredible giveaway to Oh My! Handmade readers. Read on for how you can win a “Critique My Line” session…

retail coaching, grace kang, pink olive, retail recipes, retail help for handmade

Enter to win a one-on-one Critique My Line session with Grace valued at $225USD!

About the “Critique My Line” 60-minute Consultation Session
“Do you have a great idea for a line or product but not sure where to go from there?  Do you wonder if you have the right product or collection viable to last in the retail marketplace?  Have your line critiqued by former department store buyer and current store owner Grace Kang.  During this session, I will review your line and help simplify the retail process and make your brand more desirable to your target customer.  I will give you my honest feedback on the good, bad and the ugly (areas to improve on) and provide concrete recommendation. You only get that “first impression” once.  This is the perfect opportunity to get into the mindset of a seasoned retail buyer and improve your chances of getting into your dream store (and might even save you thousands of dollars!)”

To Enter:

All you have to do is sign up for the Retail Recipes newsletter and ask your retail question here: http://retailrecipes.com/ask-grace then leave a comment below to  tell us you signed up. Grace will answer some of your questions next month in her column!

Get extra entries (leave a separate comment for each, 1 comment=1 entry) for:

This giveaway closes next Friday, April 15th at 12am EST with the winner announced at the bottom of this post on April 16th.

by entering this giveaway you agree to the oh my! handmade giveaway policies

Good luck!

This giveaway is now closed!!!! Congratulations to Roseann of Cute Little Thing with comment #62!!!

Thank you all for sharing your questions! Grace will be answering them monthly so stay tuned for her first Ask Grace post on May 9th!

Grace also has a special offer for Oh My readers! Attend her Retail Recipes teleseminar on Tuesday, May 3rd on how to get your product into retail stores and create a desirable brand.  If you sign up by Wednesday, April 20th – you will automatically get 30 minutes of one-on-one time with Grace over the phone! Grace can help you change the way you look at your business and help save you money by referring you to the right sources. This is a great investment if you are ready to take your business to the next level!

Register for Grace’s Retail Recipes Teleseminar here

85 comments

  3. Megan says:

    This is going to be such a helpful column! My mom and I have been selling our handmade baby/toddler items on etsy and our own website for 2 years and we are wanting to drum up some more wholesale business. The harder we try, the more clueless we realize we are! We could really use some help!

  9. grace kang says:

    hi jessika,
    thank you so much for having me part of your OMHG community. retail is definitely my passion and i absolutely LOVE working with indie designers…. esp ones in the creative and handmade world. thanks to all the ladies who submitted their questions already (wow! you guys are fast 🙂 keep them coming…. happy weekend. xx G

  11. Dana Phillips says:

    Okay, I’m on my way… i signed up, following, liked, tweeted, and FB’d – whew.
    I need to win this because I believe in my product and believe my handbags really need to be seen and touched in person. It would open up a whole new world to get my bags out there in the physical world not just the virtual one.
    It would take my business to another level where I could feel like a success and pass that pride onto my children in so many ways.
    The income from wholesale/retail accounts could make it possible to quit my part-time job to put more energy into my own business (be my own boss, spend more time doing what I want to do, and bringing home more bacon to enjoy with the family).
    This opportunity would rock my world! Thank you for this incredibly opportunity! Looking forward to everything coming.
    Dana

  24. Twila Moon says:

    Just signed up for the newsletter. I’m really excited for this addition! My business is small and local at this point and I am looking forward to learning about moving into bigger stores that are farther away – or chain stores. Thanks so much for this addition.

    This will definitely help me improve my line, understand the other side of the equation, and take the next steps to success!

  30. Sarah Jane Nelson says:

    I’m excited to enter this giveaway!
    1. I need to win this giveaway because I am at a turning point in my handstamped jewelry business, LIFE IS ROSEY: Jewlery That Speaks. The company is growing fast and I am wondering if I should expand and hire some help or stay small? I also wonder if creating handmade jewelry which is so labor-intensive is really something that can turn a good profit on a large scale… I know that my business can expand but do I want to go there? – These are my questions and I would love that hour to ask!
    2. I LIKED retailrecipies on facebook
    3. I followed retailrecipies on twitter
    Yea! I hope it win!
    Sincerely, Sarah Jane
    http://www.lifeisorsey.com

  31. Erin Giles says:

    Oh man, I don’t know where to start! I have been working my butt off on my Etsy page, photos, descrips,tags, banner, etc. but still hardly any sales. I know it could do so much more because I get really positive feedback on my work every day. Help!!

    Thanks for the opportunity, your biz is quite inspiring!!

    Erin

    Ooh, I followed on twitter and liked on Facebook:)

  36. Meg says:

    I just signed up for the newsletter and would really love for Grace to answer my burning question! I love having this weekly question and answer from someone that is on the “other” side or retail! Oh! And of course, i would LOVE to win this…”liked” on facebook, tweeted (@whitenestshop) and am following Grace on twitter! Thanks again!

  40. Virginia says:

    This is such a great giveaway! I am currently working on redesigning my website and once completed, would like to start getting my products in to stores. It would be so awesome to win this and get Grace’s professional critique on my line of handmade goods.

  42. Alex Kam says:

    Awesome giveaway! I feel like my current handmade shop is at a stand still, and would love some critiques and advices on how to improve so I could make enough from it to quit my day job some day. I’ve been planning for a new Etsy shop for a while now too, perfecting my wares. I would love it if I could get some professional opinions on my new stuff. 🙂

    Thank you Grace and Jessika for the opportunity!

  64. Sara Olsher says:

    Winning this would be AMAZING timing and SUPER helpful. My partner and I are launching a clothing line for babies (I’ve been in business as a custom illustrator since 2007) and are just now finalizing the details (as in, waiting for the neck labels).

    We’re going to start visiting local retailers in the next couple of weeks, so it would be FANTASTIC to have a pro take a look at our line so we can start off on the right foot!!

  70. Allisa says:

    I’d love to win this giveaway because although I can be my own worst critic…I often need a dose of ‘where-to-go-from-here’ – sounds like Grace could be very helpful! Thank you for this awesome giveaway opportunity 🙂

Comments are closed.