Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Peter Llewellyn, owner of Shoreline Design PEI, located in Georgetown, PEI, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
At Shoreline Design, our business is the manufacturing of jewelry as it was 30-40 years ago. Production starts with raw materials from the refinery - sterling and fine silver in coils and sheets. We turn that into thousands of pieces of handmade jewelry (for example, our showroom has between 1500 to 2000 pieces at any given time). We have two other locations, one seasonal and one year-round, that also have full workshops and thousands of pieces on the shelf.
Our business motto is we only sell what we make. We have a fantastic customer base which is made up of about 50% locals and 50% visitors.
Tell us about yourself
My business is a result of a need for change. I was in senior management and had hit the point where it was no longer fun or interesting. Having given my notice, I looked around for something to do. Having explored a lot of areas, I hit upon the opportunity to produce products and fill a void in handmade production. What motivates me each day is finding new and unique ways to use the raw material, be it by design, function, or purpose.
The first piece I made used sea glass that my mother-in-law picked up off the shore. I basically learned by doing. I started wrapping sea glass, made numerous mistakes, and eventually learned to make them relatively fast, but it wasn't until someone bought one (and it was only $10) that I felt the rush that connected my efforts to the reward. Even today, when I complete a piece, and someone buys it directly from me, there is a sense of accomplishment and the feeling that I supplied a unique experience for the purchaser. I am fortunate enough to do that hundreds of times a year, as 90% of our business is still face-to-face.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
My biggest accomplishment was opening the first store in my rural hometown of Georgetown, population 550, and growing it to one of the largest retail craft stores in PEI. Many of the challenges were from people I knew who felt our community was too far off the beaten path to be successful. After all that, we even opened a second one to support local artist development and increase our visibility as a destination for locals and tourists.
What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?
The hardest thing about being a business owner is maintaining a spirit of optimism for my employees and me because each day is a challenge.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
To anyone starting out, the advice I would give is as follows:
- Research your own numbers.
- Hire qualified people.
- Explore multiple opportunities. In our business, making one thing that doesn't appeal to the board customer base. Many of you will open opportunities to new products if you are looking.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://shorelinedesignpei.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100064649561437
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shorelinedesignpei/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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