From small Christmas craft fairs at a friend’s house, Valerie Bigelow’s Island Girl Collection made a big leap to be at the first Made in Maui County Festival in November.
Her handmade line of women’s accessories, at the moment, includes tissue pack holders, key fobs, various types of wristlets, clutches and purses, and a four-way convertible bag. Items range in price from $6 to $60, and she is designing additional items all the time, both based on her own inspiration and on customer requests.
Her products currently are only sold online or at select craft fairs, which she announces via her Facebook page, but that is expected to change.
Bigelow only used to drag out her sewing machine around Christmastime to make fabric bags in which to put gifts, "and I had done drapes and pillowcases, things I’ve needed around the home."
Based on the reception her small key fobs and other handmade items got at the craft fairs, however, "I got inspired," she said.
"My husband was the one that really kind of pushed me to apply for the Made in Maui County Festival," though as a new business "I didn’t really have a lot of product made."
She completed the comprehensive application process and was thrilled to be accepted. And then she realized, "Oh my goodness, I need to start making inventory," she laughed.
She worked day and night, "sometimes until 2 in the morning," and at the festival "I got an overwhelmingly positive response," she said.
That is, despite the daylong rain.
"I might have missed some sales, but overall, even with the bad weather, I did very well," she said.
The way the festival was run is "hands-down probably going to be the best experience I ever had" with Island Girl Collection, Bigelow said, adding that experienced Made in Hawaii Festival insiders from Oahu helped organizers with the Valley Isle event.
"It was a wonderful way to launch a new business and get my business card into people’s hands so they can find you again."
When she’s not at the sewing machine or mailing off orders, Bigelow is a wife, a mom to two teenage sons and two dogs, and works part time at the Camp Grande children’s program at the Grand Wailea, a Waldorf Astoria Resort.
Bigelow’s world has been a swirl of activity since Island Girl Collection came to be.
Even before she got serious about her home-based business, Bigelow was a fan of Etsy, the online community of artisans and sellers of unique goods. While she buys her fabrics and zippers from local businesses on Maui for the most part, some of her suppliers are on Etsy.com, with whom she has connected and from whom she has learned a great deal.
Bigelow saw one of those suppliers with Martha Stewart in a video taken from Stewart’s show.
The supplier not only inspired her to make the clutch purses; she has since promoted Island Girl Collection on her own Facebook page, a "generous" move that Bigelow appreciates.
Naturally, Bigelow’s Island Girl Collection also has an Etsy shop, and she handles fulfillment from her sewing studio on Maui.
Among the lessons that Bigelow took to heart from small-business consultant Danielle Miller of Miller Media Management was the necessity of a Facebook page.
Via Facebook, Bigelow already has received an order from a woman who will be coming to Hawaii from Canada to get married and wants bridal and bridesmaids’ bags.
The wedding industry is the next big thing for Island Girl Collection, so Bigelow plans to connect with a trade group on Maui to explore the market and network. She also plans to get her products back into the retail marketplace.
"I’m the only one that does all of this," she said, which makes customer feedback all the more important.
"I tell people I hope they enjoy their order as much as I enjoyed making it, and that I would appreciate their feedback on my Etsy shop," she said. "It’s not only great feedback for me, but it’s helpful for potential customers," Bigelow said.
Reach Erika Engle at 529-4303, erika@staradvertiser.com or on Twitter as @erikaengle.
