How To Be A Handmade Boss
Whether you’re a complete beginner on Etsy, or want to scale your handmade business to multi-6 figures, the “How To Be A Handmade Boss” podcast gives you actionable advice and workshop style full length episodes to grow your handmade business on Etsy and beyond.
We get it. Starting or growing a handmade business can be really overwhelming, and sometimes you feel like you have an expensive hobby rather than a profitable business. If you have questions like “How can I make sales in my business?” “How do I start a handmade shop?” “How can I make this passion my full-time gig?” or “How do I sell my crafts online” then you’re in the right place boss!
I’m Steph, a multi 6-figure handmade business owner (in the top 0.1% of all shops on Etsy), bestselling author of “How to be a handmade boss”, visionary and coach behind Handmade Bosses.
However, It wasn’t always rainbows and unicorns though. Today, my business(es) are bustling, but way back in 2014 when I started, it was HARD. Favourites but no sales, slow sales and low profits seemed in the beginning, like the trajectory of my business. Luckily following the system I’ve now curated, All of that changed and I went full-time in my handmade business in 2016.
Let’s focus on turning your passion into profit, because the world really does need these special creations that you only bring to life.
How To Be A Handmade Boss
#110 Starting Etsy Without a Perfect Niche: What Beginners Should Do Instead
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Do you need a niche to start on Etsy?
Yes… but not in the rigid, overcomplicated way the internet makes it sound.
In this episode, I’m breaking down how beginner Etsy sellers can choose a niche without boxing themselves in too early. We’re talking about the difference between having a clear starting direction and being all over the shop, how to test product ideas properly, and how to use Etsy data like views, favourites, and search terms to refine your niche over time.
Inside this episode, you’ll learn:
👉 how to choose an Etsy niche when you’re just starting
👉 why “perfect niche” advice causes paralysis
👉 the difference between intentional testing and random product chaos
👉 how buyers actually experience your shop when they land cold
👉 what your first listings can tell you about what’s working
👉 how to refine your Etsy niche based on clicks, favourites, and sales
👉 how this advice applies on Etsy and other handmade selling platforms too
This is for handmade sellers who feel stuck because they think they need their whole brand figured out before they can start. You don’t. You need a smart starting lane, real buyer feedback, and a way to build from evidence instead of guesswork.
And if your listings are getting views but not turning into sales, grab my freebie:
Why Your Etsy Listings Aren’t Selling Yet - and What To Do About It ... https://www.handmadebosses.com/whynosales
It’ll help you spot what buyers might be hesitating over, so you can fix the bits that are quietly hurting your sales.
This episode also lines up with the early-stage focus on narrowing your niche, choosing a direction, and learning from real market feedback instead of waiting for perfect clarity
If social media feels harder than it should, especially when summer routines start getting messy… this is for you.
Fix Your Socials Week starts Monday 20th July… it’s a free challenge for handmade business owners who are fed up with overthinking content, disappearing when life gets busy, and still not seeing enough sales from their socials.
Because you don’t need to post more for the sake of it.
And you definitely don’t need to spend your summer glued to your phone.
You need a simpler plan.
One that helps you stay visible, show up clearly, and know what to post without it taking over your life.
Inside Fix Your Socials Week, I’ll help you work out what to post, what to stop faffing with, and how to make your socials easier to stick with, so you can get back to making.
No fluff.
No pressure.
No trying to keep up with everyone else.
Sign up free at www.handmadebosses.com/fixyoursocials
The link’s also in the show notes.