Really for Real: How Did a Homewares Designer Know Her Business Was Working?

Araya launched her homegoods and design company after losing her interior design job during the housing crisis. Today, her online shop is pro, but there was a time when she didn’t know how to maintain, let alone build, a website. Araya figured it out, put her store online and went for it! Then the international vendors came calling ...

When did you know working for yourself was going to, well, work? What made you feel legit enough to say, “I own my own business!” Maybe it was your first customer (who wasn’t your mom!) or the first check made out to your business name. Perhaps you’re wondering right now if your endeavor will succeed. In this series we’re asking entrepreneurs, “How did you know when your business was Really for Real?”

Entrepreneur: Araya Jensen

Business: Willful Goods (formerly Wind and Willow Home)

Launched: 2012

Location: Minneapolis

Since launching her new biz in 2012, Araya has been featured in Domino, InStyle, dwell and beyond for her chic sense of style and handcrafted housewares. She has since expanded her entrepreneurial portfolio to include design and consulting. Araya is “officially” successful, but how did she first know her business was going to work?

“My first customers — apart from my family — were through Etsy. I used really simple photographs with my listings, which I think appeals to Etsy shoppers. Within a month of adding my spoons on the site, I got big wholesale orders from Australia and the Netherlands. Seeing that these products had international appeal made me think, ‘Woah, maybe this is going to work!’”

“I still wholesale 60% of my products and I like knowing that my products are a thread connecting me to small shop owners across the world.”

And the rest is history!

Read Araya’s full story on QuickBooks Community

QB Community members, when did you realize that you were “Really for Real” in business?

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