The Shop Files

for shop owners, makers, and etsy sellers

Build a Profitable Shop

By Taking the Guesswork Out of Retail

My goal? To help you figure out the retail space:

Earn new + loyal customers with creative marketing ideas

Be profitable by understanding the financials behind the business

Increase trust and sales with social media strategies that don’t feel like a chore

Create a sustainable business by providing irresistible value to your audience

What's the next step you need to build your profitable shop?

How to Use Social Media for Online Shops

the shop files - social media growth for online shops etsy

Retail 101 Tips for Online Shop Owners + Etsy Sellers

Etsy seller tips retail 101 basics for onine shop owners - the shop files

Customer Service for Online Shops

Customer Service for Online Shops - The Shop Files

A Retail Buyer for over 8 years... giving away all the secrets

At The Shop Files, I’m here to help makers + shop owners (like you!) learn how to improve your shop so you can focus on your dream: creating + curating products to grow your shop from a simple vision into a profitable business you love.

I’m here to support you with actionable resources for your shop – you shouldn’t have to go it all alone or play the guessing game to figure it out. With over 8 years of retail experience in buying and planning roles, I want to help you be successful and am spilling the secrets of a buyer to help you transform your business.

Wanna learn more?

  • whewww we made it through our first week!! and brady wanted to say hiiiii for #fridayintroductions 🐶 While training a new puppy is a little more physically exhausting than starting a business, I couldn't help but draw some parallels between the two... in both cases you roll in with a lot of unknowns, TONS of trial + error, excitement plus a little nervous energy, and a deep desire to succeed (in our case now: a pee free household 😂) that's the fun part of doing something new!! but then after a few days or maybe weeks or months, some self doubt might set in or your enthusiasm for the 5am wake ups drops off... and that's okay! we can't always operate at that mind spinning pace, but when that happens it can also be so helpful to look back at where you started, how small your business (or pup!) was and how far you've grown. so take lots of pictures, document your process, celebrate the tiny wins... they all add up to something bigger ❤️
  • Guyyyyyys. You all are the most wonderful squad that ever was. Thank you thank you for all the kind thoughts sent my way (and to others!) over my last post. I think we hear it a lot that "working for yourself can be isolating" and while I'm not sure why I thought I'd be above that, feeling that for yourself the first time can be crushing. ⠀ If I can share only one amazing thing that came from sharing that it's that truly truly you are not alone -- reach out to someone, maybe even today before that feeling happens, so you have someone to lean on in the future. I always thought "I like doing this on my own", but mannn was that silly. Scroll through a hashtag feed (ahhem #thecreativegrid) and pick a few accounts to say hi, leave a nice compliment, or ask how they're doing. We'll all go farther together + I'm so grateful for each and every one of you!!!⠀ ⠀ To keep on my love fest, I'd love to continue learning more about your business and how and where I can help. This was a big reminder that I feel most fulfilled and happy when I focus on others and help you achieve your dreams... so I wanna know, what's your big cray cray business dream?!⠀ ⠀ Spill 'em below!
  • Vulnerable real talk tuesday... is that a thing? ⠀ guys it's been almost 2 weeks since I last posted... and I wanted to come back and either act like that never happened, or have a really good reason. After all, I'm up here most days talking about being consistent! showing up every day! plan ahead!⠀ ⠀ .... and yet I totally failed at all of that...⠀ ⠀ and frankly when I stopped posting there was no thought or plan behind it, I just stopped one day. And couldn't get myself back into it.⠀ ⠀ I didn't realize how much I needed to take a break - not because of what you might assume like I'm overwhelmed with work - but because I was feeling so down and blahh on everything. (and please this is not sympathy fishing ;)⠀ I worked tirelessly on The Shop Files for over a year before making a single cent. I poured time and energy into it because I'm passionate about retail and content strategy and social media and felt I had something to share with all of you ridiculously wonderful creatives out there who have such talent, and I wanted to match up my talents in order to skyrocket yours to new levels.⠀ ⠀ What I didn't expect was to start kind of disliking what I created... can anyone else relate to this?? Am I crazy?⠀ ⠀ Like many of you with a full-time job, I have limited time to work on this and I'd love to work on this ALL THE TIME. So I started to resent it. It started to be painful to work on it because I couldn't do all.the.things I wanted to do. I started to ask myself if I should just stop because it won't ever be "the perfect vision" of what I want it to be.⠀ ⠀ So I wanted to say, I'm coming back. I've re-worked my priorities and where I really want to focus so I can move faster towards a revised idea of that "perfect vision" and be more accepting and grateful of just how far I've come up until now! I hope if you've ever felt this way, you take a moment today to also accept and be excited about the point you're at right now- today.⠀ ⠀ I'm literally sweating posting this. Have you ever felt this way with your business? Is it okay I put it in the dog house for a few weeks? Thanks for your understanding squad photo from @inhonorofdesign #tuesdaystogether
  • it's been awhile since we all said hello here and since i WISH today was Friday 🍷, I guess we'll just celebrate #fridayintroductions on a wednesday (hellllo rebels) So share a little about your business or yourself- I'll go first! 🙋🏼 I'm Kate- a taco loving, diet coke drinking maniac who lives to laugh and be ridiculous. I'm rarely serious, even when when talking about serious topics, I like to think I can always see the good - or strange hilariousness - in any moment. And I'm a recent dog convert- on a scale of "0-never getting a dog" to "10-melissa mccarthy in bridesmaids" I went from a zero to a solid 7 after fostering two wonderful snuggle bugs over the past couple months. So DO NOT be alarmed when you see me add a CBO (chief bark officer) to The Shop Files someday soon 😝 If we were sitting down for drinks tonight, would would I learn about you?! 🍻 #winewednesday #capturemycraft
  • "provide value. provide value. provide value." I know you've heard that before, whether it was from me here or on another site. We all talk about providing value to your customer as the way to earn their trust and increase sales. ⠀ But I know what many of you may think... I'm selling accessories or pretty clothes, there's only so much VALUE I can really provide.⠀ ⠀ So here's the good news... think simpler!⠀ ⠀ The value doesn't need to be over and above life changing advice. It can be as simple as what @popupgreens did here, which was to add "stack em for added height" referring to their planters. Simple + valuable! I've certainly never thought to do that before, but it's such a dead easy design tweak, plus it looks amazing, PLUS it makes you wanna double your order (which let's be real - is really a win-win-win!) ⠀ ⠀ What simple bit of value can you share with your customer this week? #thecreativegrid ⠀ ⠀ Image from @popupgreens
  • Crazy numbers game thought here:⠀ What would an extra 50... 100 likes, or an extra 5-10 comments do for your post?⠀ Would it help bump you into a top post? Or get featured on the explore page? ⠀ The cool thing is... together we have the power to do that for each other. By supporting the other small shops and Etsy sellers in our community, we can help lift each other into those featured spots.⠀ ⠀ If each of us shared our posts daily using #thecreativegrid hashtag and then went in and liked 20-30 images... that could happen.⠀ ⠀ Now, I'm not into likes for likes-sake.⠀ ⠀ There has to be a strategy behind it so you're using those likes to bolster your post to get it in front of your actual ideal audience... your customers.⠀ ⠀ - The additional likes could signal to Instagram this post is particularly exciting and push it out further to your followers (you know, the ones the algorithm sometimes prevents from seeing your posts).⠀ - The additional engagement could push you into a Top Post section based on your other customer-targeted hashtags (you know, so the people who will actually buy from you see it more).⠀ ⠀ How to Do this Strategically:⠀ ⠀ 1 | Post at the ideal time for your audience.⠀ 2 | Use the right hashtag mix for your business. With the right hashtag strategy, those extra likes from fellow shop owners will help push your post into the Top Post section of the other hashtags that your actual customer is following. (which is exactly what I cover in the Hashtag Discovery Guide -- the first 10 can grab it for just $7 with code: HASHTAG7)⠀ 3 | Use #thecreativegrid hashtag on each of your posts *AND* commit to going in and interacting with others in there!⠀ ⠀ So put on your favorite jam and get out there and support your fellow shop owners in #thecreativegrid!! 🙌🏻⠀ For the length of the song (I'm currently listening to Bieber's new jam, no shame) scroll through and like each image and/or leave a comment! #fridayintroductions
  • you guys have been loving the 10 free Instagram prompts just for shop owners (almost 200 of you have downloaded!! 🤗) and I've been loving the chance to get to know you better when you tag your new posts with #thecreativegrid hashtag!⠀ ⠀ I'm thinking of changing up the prompts once we hit 200 downloads, so grab it today or tag a fellow shop owner! We all could use some new ideas for those days when 'I have nottttthing to post' (see also: 'I have notttthing to wear' days 😒)⠀ ⠀ <Grab 10 Instagram prompts! Link in bio>⠀ ⠀ Nail tattoo + photo by @loveandlion, mug by acornonline.com #coffeelife
  • ha, ain't that right. One of the biggest reasons we hold ourselves back in business is because we're scared of 'failure'. As if failure gets the final say. ⠀ ⠀ We worry about what would happen if no one opens our email (psst. nothing. like literally nothing - no one will know).⠀ ⠀ Or we think it'll be so embarrassing if our new product idea doesn't sell (it hurts, it might be costly, but it happens. laugh it off, ask for feedback, and learn how to make a better decision next time. ps. my "batting average" while the fashion bedding buyer was like 60-80% for picking patterns. and that was not just acceptable, but GOOD)⠀ ⠀ We obsess over our Instagram feeds and worry one wrong post will ruin everything (as long as you're not rude/offensive, you can always just delete!)⠀ ⠀ Don't waste your time worrying about all those tiny failures that don't define your business. Instead keep the below in mind and you can never truly fail:⠀ 1 | Be kind + respectful to your audience and other business owners.⠀ 2 | Be gracious and take ownership when you screw up.⠀ 3 | Challenge yourself to test and take risks, any "misses" are simply an opportunity to learn + try again.⠀ 4 | Be humble and know when to ask for help or reach out to help others.⠀ 5 | ... What would you add to this list?⠀

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