Creative Places to Inspire Your Next Steps: Foggy Notion

Living in the Inner Richmond, I love being able to purchase gifts just steps away from my apartment. Alissa, a long time SFEtsy team member, has owned Foggy Notion since 2011 and is a supporter of anything hand-crafted. It's a great "off the beaten path" stop for any visitor of San Francisco. You're sure to find something unique and beautiful.

What I find inspiring about Alissa and her shop is the importance that she puts on getting involved with her local community. Alissa is extremely involved in her local merchant association & you can often find her walking Clement as she hops from one shop to another. Her dedication to the health of her neighborhood, combined with her love for local arts & her life as a maker creates a beautifully rich story with loads of great advice for anyone looking to inspire themselves in the next step of their business.

First, I just wanted to say that I completely adore your shop. You're amazing at keeping a clear brand aesthetic while showcasing several makers in your shop. When you are you looking for a new maker to add to your selection, what is your process?

At first I sold my own goods, friends' work (like Shelter bags), and a few small local companies like Juniper Ridge that I knew about and admired. Relationships with vendors are super important to me.  The shop is really small so I carefully curate it with I only things I truly love and want to look at every day made by people I enjoy corresponding with.

Products come to me in so many different ways! I get lots of email every day from makers that want to be in Foggy Notion. For apothecary companies I request samples and try out everything myself. I decide based on quality, aesthetic, scent, packaging, price, maker's location...it all has to be perfect for the shop! Social media can be helpful - I check out who's following Foggy Notion on Instagram and sometimes it's a maker that fits. I've discovered some makers (like Odsy Workshop) through local events like West Coast Craft, Renegade Craft Fair, and SFMade. I've also found a couple of vendors through Etsy Wholesale, including a greeting card line made in San Francisco. Sometimes I just meet people socially - I met ceramicist Caitlin Deane and raw chocolatier Wild Omen at a women's gathering we all attended. Sometimes I just search online for specific items I want to carry. And although I haven't had much luck at trade shows and gift fairs, I did find one of my favorite small apothecary companies that way (Molly Muriel).

-If a maker felt like they are a good fit for your shop, what process would they take to approach a shop like yours?

Emailing me directly with good product photos and a short bio works great, with links to website and social media. If you're interested in wholesaling send terms and prices. Make sure your product is retail-ready - cute hang tags and good packaging can make a big difference.

-You're very involved in your local neighborhood community. Tell me about about your current work with the Inner Richmond Business Association.

Although the Clement Street Merchants Association is actually the oldest merchants group in the city, when I opened Foggy Notion I had vaguely heard of it but no one reached out to me and there weren't really any pubic events happening. It clearly needed some new energy and fortunately it was welcome. Cynthia Huie of Seedstore and I decided to reinvigorate it, so we reached out to other businesses like Park Life and Green Apple and set up regular meetings to discuss bringing community-building projects to Clement Street. So far we've helped to create the parklet on 3rd & Clement, established the Farmers Market, and organized events like the Holiday Stroll and Sidewalk Sale.

Even though I've lived here since 2004, opening a business in the Inner Richmond has made me love it more than ever. I feel so much more connected to the community, the neighborhood, and the city. I love meeting neighbors that come into the shop and enjoy working with other business owners and our district supervisor's office to make our neighborhood an even better place to live. New projects on the agenda for 2015 are a mural and Inner Richmond Movie Nights.

a pic of Alissa with other Clement Merchants,
members of the Argonne Community Garden, and Supervisor Eric Mar 

-For local makers looking to open up their own shop/studio business...How did you find your current storefront? What attracted you to the Inner Richmond?

My house is directly across from Richmond Plaza, this weird mini-mall type building that sat mostly empty for years. I was staring at it out my window every day and thinking about how I wanted to move my sewing studio closer to my house (it was in the Outer Sunset) and finally I just thought, I should open a studio RIGHT THERE and have it be a retail shop, too. The space was so plain and institutional-looking but I thought it had great potential, so I got some help making it more cozy and inviting. A lot of times I wish it was a little bigger but I love the high ceilings and lots of windows. We get great natural light.

My advice to potential business owners would be to just look around on foot, be inquisitive about empty spaces, and be open to a weird or non-traditional but potentially awesome location. Walk around a neighborhood, take note of which storefronts are empty or closing, and try to get in touch with the owner or talk to nearby businesses. Don't be afraid of a space that's a little different - it's probably a lot more affordable than one that is more obvious! We're not right on Clement but we have great foot traffic. Now that we've been here a while we have lots of regulars and more people find out about us every day through word of mouth and travel guides like Lonely Planet.

Proximity to other successful businesses is huge for us. The Inner Richmond has no shortage of awesome shops, restaurants, and bars. I love being on the same corner as Green Apple, which is a legendary and amazing literary destination which attracts people from all over Northern California. If people don't know the Inner Richmond and ask where we're located, "the same corner as Green Apple" or "2 blocks from Burma Superstar" work pretty well! 

Foggy Notion is pretty unique to the neighborhood - when we opened, the Inner Richmond didn't have anywhere to buy the kind of products I was interested in carrying: organic skin care, high quality bath & body items, soy candles, wildcrafted teas & chocolates, home wares and accessories, and local honey.  Our customers really appreciate that they don't have to leave the neighborhood to get these kind of things. Our location also allows us to carry specific brands we might not be able to in a different neighborhood. Honestly our location is perfect in so many ways it's hard to imagine Foggy Notion being anywhere else! I feel really grateful to be part of such an awesome neighborhood.

If a shop or maker would like to get involved in their own local community, are there resources that you would recommend?

If you have a shop, definitely reach out to the local merchants association and see if it's something you might be interested in being a part of. It's much easier to make things happen with the help of other businesses and the support of the city. Even if you don't have a brick-and-mortar shop some of them welcome small business owners. Groups like SFEtsy or SFMade are also helpful for meeting other makers.

I love that part of your shop is dedicated to your own sewing studio. Can you tell the readers a little bit about what you make? 

At first my studio was inside Foggy Notion but I moved everything down the hallway to a separate space we share with Save My Seat upholstery. My personal output has never strayed from recycled materials but I'm reaching out to other options. In the past I've made recycled t-shirts and vinyl wallets, but since I opened Foggy Notion I've been primarily making tote bags from my collection of antique Army duffel bags. I love how durable the material is and how much history and character has. 

How do you balance both time for making & running a business? What advice would you give someone who feels like they don't have the time to do both?

Honestly time management is challenging for me and something I'm constantly working on. Nothing gets done unless I do it myself. Having a background in DIY and punk rock has been very valuable! Accepting that not everything will get done and not being too hard on myself about it is really important to my state of mind.  Also I go through phases with creative involvement that usually coincide with my focus on other things. Taking time off from making to focus on running the business side of things (especially during busier times like the holiday season) has allowed me space to think about design, materials, and efficiency for when I dive back into making.

How did you find SFEtsy? What part of SFEtsy has helped you within your own business?

I found SFEtsy through Etsy's website many years ago. Although I don't always post to the email group I read all the member's posts and frequently learn about events I'm interested in or supplies people are selling. It's comforting to know that in a big city like San Francisco there's a community of creative folks who want to help each other out.

Foggy Notion isn't too hard to find if you're looking for her amazing collection of items. You can find them on Facebook, Her website & at 275 6th Ave.

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, visit Our Team Page about joining SFEtsy!

#SFEtsy July 3rd - Product Descriptions

Next week we'll be discussing the finer points of writing awesome product descriptions.

We'll talk about what information should be included and share our opinions on which order to put it in.

We'll also discuss what style of writing works well and, of course, how to come up with and share a story about the item!

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Katy or Steph about joining SFEtsy!

#SFEtsy 8th May - Branding with Story

This week, to celebrate the launch of their new e-course - Ink Yourself, Genevieve from Lightbox SF will be hosting our tweet chat!

You're probably already familiar with some of Genevieve's words of wisdom as she posts here on this blog regularly, for The Savvy Entrepreneur column.
On Tuesday she will sharing more tips and promoting a discussion about branding, specifically in relation to your story, considering such things as how we define branding and how to decide which details to share, as well as working out what makes you different from everyone else.

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Katy or Steph about joining SFEtsy!

Savvy Entrepreneur: How the Big Picture Makes the Small Stuff Easier

One of the first exercises I assign to my clients is to write out the big vision of their business in the form of an ordinary, but ideal day in their life. I ask them to write out in as much detail as possible what it will look like from the time they wake up to till their head hits the pillow.

Taking the time to describe the larger vision for your business is like drawing yourself a roadmap to the future. It not only sets up goals for you to work toward, but it gives you a framework that helps guide the choices you make each day. Working on your business without having a vision of what you want it to be in 1, 2 or even 5 years is like getting in the car and driving with no destination in mind. You might have amazing experiences and visit great places, but you still won’t be any closer to where you’re going.

When I use the term vision I mean more than just having an idea of how much money you want to bring in or a clear description of your product or service. These are definitely part of the equation, but you should also be clear on your overall mission, what the business stands for, what your ideal role is, and the details of the business that you just won’t compromise on.

Your vision is the best possible future of your business, the big picture with all the details filled in. How does their work mesh with their personal life, who are you interacting with, where are you working? What types of employees do you want or do you even want any? Do you want to make everything by hand or will you manufacture multiple items or even whole lines? Does your business keep running when you take a vacation or does it shut down for a week or two?

By imagining and sketching out the big picture, the incredible dream of your creative business you’ve given yourself something to live up to and work toward. Having a clear vision allows you to take ownership of the choices that need to be made in an entirely different way. Instead of wondering if a particular project is right to take on you can measure it against your larger vision. Does it fit in? Instead of feeling beat down that sales aren’t quite what you want them to be, you look to your target market and ask how you can serve them better. A vision brings focus and clarity to what’s really important and the short-term goals become clearer when you know what it is you’re striving for.

This exercise is also one of the first in our branding e-course, Ink Yourself: Using Story to Make a Bold Impression. We’ve designed this 5-week guided e-course to help you dive deep in the big vision of your business, realize your strengths, get intimate with your ideal customer, and bring it all together into a guiding statement that makes showing off your awesomeness a breeze.

Each week you’ll receive a new lesson that you can work on at your own pace in your own time. In addition to the lessons you’ll also have access to a live forum where you can interact with the other participants getting feedback and sharing break-throughs. And we’ve scheduled a group call to encourage even more interaction and get all your questions answered. We hope you’ll make friends as well as get clear on your brand message.

The course starts May 21^st and the last email will land in your inbox on June 21^st, but you’ll have through the first week of July to access any of the materials you may have missed, ask questions about the lessons or receive responses to any of the work you’ve done.

Currently we’re giving away one spot in the course, details are on our blog. You have until Monday, May 7^th to get your name in the drawing. However, if you don’t want to leave anything to chance, you can sign up right now!

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Genevieve not only writes The Savvy Entrepreneur she is the Co-Founder of Lightbox SF where she empowers creatives to take over the world. Check out the blog or how to work with her.

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If you're an Etsy seller in the San Francisco Bay Area, contact Katy or Steph about joining SFEtsy!