November Shop Update
I have a lot of things going on right now behind the scenes and some important announcements so I figured I’d update you all as to what is going on in a blog post rather than a giant social media post.
Big IMPORTANT Announcement!
My store (both my main website and Etsy) will be closing down temporarily starting on November 13th. It will re-open December 1st!
Digital patterns will be available for purchase, but I will be out of the country during this time and will be absolutely unable to answer any questions or provide any customer service. So if you do purchase a digital pattern during this time frame, be aware that you may be on your own if you run into any issues.
If you have any current or ongoing issues, please be sure to send me a message before November 13th, the sooner the better.
In the past I have run a Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday sales event. This will NOT be happening this year. While I have an excellent house sitter, I don’t think they are quite up to running my business for me while I’m gone :P
Holiday Shipping Cutoffs
You should also be aware of holiday shipping deadlines! It may seem soon, but they are creeping up quite quickly and the store will be closed for a good chunk of time between now and then. Please plan accordingly!
For delivery by the 25th of December, my cutoff dates are:
December 1st - International Orders
December 15th - Domestic (US) Orders
This does not mean you can’t order past this time, however, if you do so you may need to provide your recipient with an I.O.U. This is a very busy time of year for shipping, so the sooner you place your holiday orders the better!
Current To-Do List
On my to-do list this week includes listing the leftover Youmacon stock, writing my Youmacon convention review, catching up on emails from the last week or so, and doing some back end organization.
I’ll be honest with you, there is not much leftover from Youmacon. Some of it will be making its way to my store, but 90% of it sold at the con. I think I have a few pillows, a handful of pokeballs, 1 crochet jellyfish, and that’s about it. They’ll be available shortly.
I’ve already made all the pins and stickers I offer available for order again as well.
The State of the Bats
Stock for the manufactured galaxy bats is quite low. There is only around 25 black bats left after Youmacon. There’s around 70 purple bats. I have more white bats, I’d estimate 150-200, but I haven’t counted them yet.
At the rate the black and purple have been selling I honestly think they’ll be gone by the end of December, I’d be shocked if they made it through to January. White bats may last a bit longer, maybe February or March?
After that I have no immediate plans to order more. I’d certainly like to, but it is NOT an easy or cheap endeavor. With import taxes also rising left and right on different products, it’s also a risky one for a small business.
I will make handmade bats available when I can, but keep in mind these are $45 and are limited quantities. So if you’ve been eying a bat now is the time to get one.
Moving Forward to the Future
I’ve briefly mentioned this in the past, but I will officially no longer be selling items on a made to order basis. Previously if an item was sold out you’d be able to order with a 1-2 week wait time for creation. Moving forward I will only be offering items for sale that are in stock.
I already do not take commissions and this will continue.
The only exception to this is if I offer a limited time deal to choose a special style or color combination, however, I have no immediate plans to offer this.
I also plan to focus more heavily on releasing new sewing patterns and new plush designs in the coming year. I especially want to further explore custom printed fabric and I have always wanted to publish a sewing pattern book! I have a ton of ideas I’d like to try. I just wish I had more time! Hopefully you’ll start to see lots of new things coming from me :)
