While I was in London we explored Camden Market. It’s huge and has everything from clothes and handmade crafts to freshly squeezed orange juice. We walked through most of the market in the morning and it was still super busy so I can’t imagine what it would be like in the afternoon! My favorite part was the crafts section where you can see different kinds of clothes, jewelry, candles, etc. that you wouldn’t see anywhere else. I spoke to a few people sitting at the booths and some of them turned out to be the actual designers of the product they were selling which was really interesting. I got to hear their take on what it’s like selling in a market and the ups and downs of managing a business.
Lime Locket Designs
One of the booths I saw had really caught my eye. A young woman was working at the booth and started telling me about the amazing jewelry she was selling. She hand makes rings, necklaces and earrings and sells them as her full time job.
Her friend first taught her how to make jewelry at school when she was 17 years old. This is my age now so, I thought about how cool it would be to start learning a skill and create an entire business out of it today! She makes everything in batches to make the process go quicker. Therefore, instead of making one ring and then a necklace, she will make 20 rings in one sitting to be more productive. I thought this was really smart and efficient. She, again, hand makes her products out of brass and sterling silver and will even refit a ring for you right in front of you if one on display does not fit, which is really amazing and shows off her true talent.
She comes to sell at the market on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays because those are the busiest days and then works from home the rest of the week on her online store, Lime Locket Designs. She also mentioned that she works on the train and wherever else she can, she was even making some rings right in front of us. She said that summer time, Easter and Christmas are the busiest times of year, but their most recent Christmas was very slow and took a toll on her financially. Overall, she says running a business has a lot of positives and negatives, but the goal is to always keep moving. I loved her products and hopes she has great success.
Memento For You Jewelry
Another booth we came across was called Memento For You: Handmade Jewelry. One of the designers, Nikki, was running the booth and was really interesting to talk to about her business. Along with other designers, Nikki hand makes all of the jewelry she sells. She makes zipper bracelets, necklaces, and earrings and I bought a bracelet and now wear it everyday! She makes them in gold, rose gold and silver so they go with everything. In addition to the zipper designs, Nikki also sells rings. One of my favorite pieces that she makes is a long necklace, a choker necklace, and a wrap bracelet all in one product! She said her necklaces used to take her the longest to make, but now she can make those pretty fast and the earrings are now the most time consuming.
Nikki told us that she has been a vendor at Camden market for 14 years and within those 14 years she has grown her business a lot. Now, she only comes to the market on the weekends, but also sells her jewelry online. She also uses social media to market her designs. You can follow her instagram here @mementoforyou_jewellery and her Facebook page here! She supplies her jewelry to stores in New York and Los Angeles and has had great success. In fact, Nikki told me that she heads to New York City annually to sell her pieces at a fair show.
Nikki was so sweet and even gave me tips on how to market my posts better, which made me eager to learn more about how to market and sell a brand of my own! I really loved her brand and appreciate all her time and tips. I see her brand growing even more in the future!
