On The Market -- Salisbury Craft and Gift Fair

So this week has been every inch a busy one since we're preparing for our first ever in-the-flesh day of trade, as part of Mynt Image's Craft and Gift Fair in Salisbury. The event will be held on Saturday 1st August in the Guildhall, a beautiful and historical building dating back to 1795. We're really looking forward to seeing how the public receive Holoholo, being able to chat to passers-by and hopefully making a few sales throughout the day.

If you happen to be in the area or are planning a day out in the city, please do pop by and say hello! You can find the Guildhall in the town centre near the outdoor market, the fair will be open from 10-4 and I can guarantee there will be lots of beautiful things to ogle throughout the Guildhall. Hope to see you there!

#EtsyRoadTrip

Etsy UK Blog / Holoholo / Etsy In Bristol

Over the weekend we made it to a brilliant event hosted by Etsy as part of their Community Road Trip, which is currently travelling up and down the UK. It was a chance for current and prospective sellers in the area to meet up and talk art, craft, making and selling, as well as an opportunity to hear from part of the Etsy UK team in the form of a talk by Seller Development Specialist, Francesca Ormezzano.

As well as getting to meet others in a similar situation - those with creative backgrounds working from home, often alongside another form of income - it was great to hear from a representative of the company with a wealth of experience and so much knowledge about what can make or break an Etsy shop. Holoholo pieces have been available to buy through Etsy for a few months now, but I have known for some time that we're not getting the best out of the platform. With such a huge community of users and sellers, as well as an established reputation as one of the biggest online marketplaces for handmade and vintage goods, it should surely bring a network of support and a great deal more customers for any business like ours.

It has always been a concern of ours that the popularity of Etsy could, in fact, work against us. With 1.4 million sellers and 32 million items available, we did wonder whether it was possible that Holoholo would get lost among the hoards of great items on the site and that it could be an unnecessary use of our time. However, having attended the event on Saturday it was clear that there are certain things that really make a shop stand out from the crowd, and that the opportunities offered by selling on Etsy far outweigh the pitfalls - as long as it is done right! This week I'll be dedicating some time to improving our shop, which will include composing new titles and tags, creating a more cohesive shop homepage and really knuckling down with planning another photoshoot.

Another exciting thing to come of the event was our introduction to Etsy Teams. The day was attended and promoted by the Etsy in Bristol Team which, as you might expect, is made up of sellers from Bristol and the surrounding areas. Becoming part of a team means joining a friendly community of local shops, learning from others' experiences and sharing information about upcoming events and news as well as taking part in team projects in order to improve your shop. I've sent our application off to join the team and am looking forward to hearing back and hopefully making some great new connections.

All in all it was a brilliant day, and I'm so glad the event was offered and that we were invited to attend. There are plenty of exciting things to get on with now, so I'll sign off and get back to planning all the new changes to the shop. Happy Tuesday, all!

Week 24

Oh, Pioneer!

A very happy Monday to everyone reading this blog post marking the start of the 24th week of 2015. It's been quiet at HQ over the past couple of weeks since I've been away celebrating a fantastic Sicilian wedding followed by my birthday, but it's back to the grind this week. This morning has seen a big purchase order of all sorts of exciting studio bits, as well as some new accessory plans that are going into pre-production this week. Plenty to do, and lots to show on the blog over the next few days. Now though, it's time for lunch. Enjoy your week!

Fast Fashion: The Facts

Because, let's face it, who doesn't love an infographic?

Presenting to you a few of the key facts about fast fashion - what it is, who is involved, and most importantly, who is harmed in the process. This should give a little further insight into our motivations for working in opposition of fast fashion, and give our followers an idea of what is really behind that £2 t-shirt from Primarni.

It's so important to share the truth behind the low cost, high volume culture we are so used to - it is of course not in the best interest of the big high street stores to publicise the dangerous and inhumane working conditions of the textile workforce that provide us with a great price but not so great quality. Hopefully this will provide a little food for thought!

As always, you can learn more about sustainable fashion at www.holoholo.co.uk and shop our collection of handmade, handprinted ladies wear.

Sustainable Fashion Facts

Last week as mentioned, we updated the website with a few new things including a page chock-full of information about sustainable fashion. It was a nice opportunity for us to share some of the reasons behind the fabric and process choices for the Holoholo line, and also a chance to explain a bit more about the darker side of fashion that is not so well known.

Please do head over to the Holoholo website to have a read, and feel free to share with everybody you think might be interested!

Week 22

Wit and Delight / Kulturtava / via Pinterest

Somehow we're almost half way through 2015! That crept up on us. This week we've got a few bits to share with you whilst we take a well earned break in beautiful Italy. Not to worry though, there's plenty scheduled for while we're away! Have a great week, all. Happy Monday!

Website Relaunch

Happy Monday, all! It has been a few weeks since our last blog post, so we'd like to get back to the usual routine with a little relaunch of the website. It's been down for a few days while I've been working on some improvements in the way of graphics and some extra info, and now it's back and ready for action.

The biggest change is our new page, which you can find by clicking the 'Sustainability' link at the top of the site. Here we've added a bunch of information on sustainable fashion in order to add any questions our visitors may have. It includes information on different types of sustainable fabrics and a list of other great shops for ethical ladies wear and accessories. Head on over and take a look, and let us know if you found the new page helpful!