Spotlight: Cassandra, Plush Toy Designer
Talented and cute plush toy designer, Cassie, really knows how to utilize social media as a marketing tool—even as just a high school senior. She posts albums full of her cute creations via Flickr (that's how I discovered her talent), and she sells her handmade plush toys and earrings over at Etsy. Apparently, we were even LiveJournal friends way back in the day.
When asked to briefly introduce herself, Cassie told me online, “I am seewwww addicted to sewing. I pretty much know the local JoAnn's like the back of my hand.” But her addiction wasn’t a one-night phenomenon and her talent was always a work in progress.
Cassie started sewing in 8th grade because she wasn't always able to go out and buy presents for her friends. She was “fed up with feeling guilty and whipping out super belated birthday presents”—“super belated” as in, a few weeks, not just a few days. “People would ask me what I was giving them a present for—it was pretty funny actually.”
To every designer’s success story, there is a humble beginning…
At first, everything I made was lumpy, identical, and only varying in color (imagine socks filled with ping-pong balls with little faces on them). They were lumpy because they were all stuffed with rice or Kleenex…At the time, I was excited and eager to give my presents away, but when I look back, it makes me wonder what my gift receivers thought of my gifts! I stopped sewing my freshmen year of high school and started again my junior year. I'd like the think I've improved, and hopefully people can see my progress through my plush toys.
Dear Cassie, your plush definitely do not look like identical lumps—they look like professional designer toys, and you’ve even got your own logo tag sewn on each! You’ve come a long way.
…and following every humble beginning is a series of smart, strategic decisions.
I opened up a shop on Etsy.com in December 2007. I didn't really understand how to use the website, let alone how to set up a business, so I hardly used it—but that all changed. I learned that social networking sites, such as MySpace, Flickr, and Twitter—sites I once avoided—were actually great tools for marketing and just getting myself established. I began listing in January 2008 and had my first sale a while later. Throughout the year, I’ve gotten around 45 sales. I didn't start the store for monetary reasons, so by the end of the year, I was more than satisfied. I was elated!
Now that you’ve fallen in love, you’re probably wondering what this high school senior plans for her near future. Will she continue once in college?
As of right now, I'm unsure of my future and I won’t know where I'm going to go for college until late March, early April. If I'm able to get into a college I applied for, I'll have to slow things down, because I'll need to focus on schoolwork. If I end up at community college, I plan to expand my shop, improve my plush, and get myself out there. I don't see making plush toys as a steady source of financial income, but maybe someday! Until then, it'll just be a hobby.
All photos Copyright Cassie. Support her by checking out her Etsy store!
What, you wanted Leonard? Tough luck—I just bought him.
