SDH 014: Launching an Online Store with Katelyn Kosinski

Katelyn started her blog the summer before she graduated from college. Not too long after, she developed the idea to open an online store. Katelyn challenged the status quo and chased after her dream right out of college. Now, the founder of the online store, Woodbury Lane and blogger at KatelynNow.com, she’s killin it! And we’re so excited to have her on the #podcast! “If I’m going to be running a business, it should be my own business, something that I’m passionate about where there is more personal growth.” Katelyn started her own business fresh out of college after realizing her passion for clothes and retail. “I could not stop thinking about it. I needed to act on it.” Woodbury Lane – The Well-Dressed Girl Next Door Preparation for an online store launch: Website (Shopify, Squarespace, Weebly) Set up LLC Build up Social Media Photoshoot (with a model) Promoting the launch Bloggers in her network Building excitement over the website for months Social Media accounts set up 6-8 months before Built email list far in advance to send launch news straight to subscribers’ inboxes Managing Inventory: Attends a buyers’ wholesale market every 3 months. Usually your buying months before you put them up. “I get to curate what my store is going to look like and hand-pick every item, which I love” Most things come pre-packed (2 smalls, 2 mediums, 2 larges). Start off by playing it safe and buying one pack to see how it will sell on the website. Reorders are generally easy and can gauge the popularity of an item via social media. Not to mention her personalized packaging! Most Surprising Aspect after Launch: The number of people that were sharing the website without even being asked and getting contacted by a local news station to come on the morning show the day of the launch. She shipped to 5 different states on launch day! Favorite Part: Meeting new people “You wouldn’t think that opening an online shop would make you meet new people, but I have met so many people through this!” 3 Things for a Successful Online Store: Have a clean website that is easy to navigate Reaching out to people to promote your site before you launch Make sure you have enough inventory. Tune in to hear more about her journey!