A lot has happened since August of 2017. New Product Categories, Website Changes (which you’ll see as a customer), more technical changes, a divorce, and an incredibly impactful learning opportunity. Read below for more details.
Lots of New Wedding Stamp categories
Lucky in Love is perfect to your Irish wedding, or March wedding event. Or maybe just because you have a special story to tell of how you and your other are lucky in love.
Fall in Love is geared towards our Fall seasonal brides and grooms. This is perfect for your fall wedding theme.
Apple Cider is also for fall weddings, or winter weddings. You can dress up your drinks with this rubber stamp, or send a special pre-mixed apple cider packet home with your guests as a wedding favor.
Enjoy is for stamping any special gift or sweet for your special day.
The Perfect Mix is for trail bags wedding favors. Ideal for Fall weddings, or any outdoor wedding for a perfect trail type of theme.
Thanks for Popping By wedding stamps are in the shop. Popcorn Bars at wedding’s are trending these days. Everyone loves popcorn! Decorate your popcorn items at your wedding’s Popcorn Bar, or send guests home with your favorite special popcorn as a wedding favor. A popcorn rubber stamp will add a nice special touch to your wedding favors.
A Baby is Brewing is for, obviously, baby showers! We reached out into a different market away from the wedding scene and we’re slowly inching our way into the Baby Shower Market.
With love is a great substitute for a wedding favor rubber stamp if you rather just show your gratitude instead of using a certain phrase that matches your favors.
Cheers is for clinking glasses, or bottles of any sort. Or maybe a wine wedding favor.
The Key to Happiness is the ability to open a bottle, is specifically for trendy bottle key openers.
Enjoy is a wedding favor stamp, or any stamp for any party occasion.
Fall in Love is for, you guessed it, your fall wedding favor rubber stamps for any object to give to your special guests. Fall cookies, leaf shaped wedding favors of any object, you name it. Let your creative imagination run wild.
Wedding Stamp Design Completion
We’re almost there. Or, well, it doesn’t feel like we’re almost there. In order to keep up with the latest trends we continue to roll out new designs on top of completing our old designs. This has caused us a mess. We have actually slowed down rolling out any new designs until we get our current projects completed.
It’s been a busy last few years, thanks to Shely who helped us survive the 2017 year.
We’ve added 340 new products, mostly rubber stamps, since we last shared an update with you all back in August of 2017. We currently have roughly 630 products to date. If you head on over to our shop, you can filter by category to see all our latest designs. Or, you can search by new products. We urge you to use the category feature as this is the quickest method to find what you’re looking for. :)
PS – We’re not even close to finishing off the current wedding stamp design. But we have made great progress!
Uploading File Restrictions
To help our process go smoother from when you submit your order, all the way to shipment, we now restrict the file types that can be uploaded to our custom wood and self inking stamp options. We have changed the file requirements a while back, but users were still bypassing the verbiage and uploading whatever they want. This caused issues/delays with their order. Now – it’s required to upload what we ask. :)
Instagram Links
If you follow us on instagram, we have now signed up for LinkTree. It’s now more easy then ever to head to our website and buy what you want.
Calculated Shipping
We’re in the process of migrating all our products over to give you up to date shipping rates. You have heard of companies switching from manual label to robotic labor (or automation), yes? Well, that’s what we’re doing. We’re finding that we’re spending quality time doing the same work year after year when things change. We’re now switching our shipping methods over to automation, so in the future any rate changes will automatically be entered via software updates vs. manual entry. You know how we’re all about time saving methods from our last post here.
Learning Economics and Macroeconomics
I don’t recall sharing this with anyone. However, I flunked out of college and went back to enhance the skills I already have (graphic design). I never completed my degree because I received what I needed to take off in the field of graphic design by opening up my business. I come from an entrepreneur family, where entrepreneurship runs in our blood with as little college education needed. So I already had a lot of skills and the brain power to make a business thrive.
But one thing that caused me to flunk out was Microeconomics and Macroeconomics. I received a D in both which plummeted my GPA below the threshold and put me on an academic warning. After some personal struggles from moving from California to Missouri almost 20 years ago (aka called “Culture Shock); I decided that I needed to hold off from college so I can re-focus and adjust to my new life in an unknown place.
Fast forward 18 years later; I’m now finally learning the benefit of why it’s important to learn Microeconmics and Macroeconomics for those majoring in Business Management.
Since starting Fall For Design, I never used economics in our business plan. This last decade has been the growing years and things have been good. I never understood Stocks, Bonds, Mutual Funds or anything about Wall Street. These things have been on my wish list to figure it out someday.
However, in February/January I ended up reading an incredible article from someone who attended a seminar where Dr. Alan Beaulieu was speaking. That article (can’t recall what it was) sent me into a research frenzy. I’m amazed what I’m learning. It’s what I’m calling a crash course in economics. The things I’m learning has completely changed our business goals and our personal goals.
As a customer, you won’t see any of these changes affect you. Since this is a family-owned and operated business, the change will happen behind the scenes. This is why I’m not diving into details. But it’s definitely been an eye-opening experience and incredibly impactful.
Going out of Business
Our main ink pad supplier (ColorBox) had notified us that they are closing doors. Right when Christmas season comes and it’s the most popular season in a rubber stamp market. However, their announcement comes right along with economic forecasts. In other words, if you want a ColorBox Ink Pad, go to your local store or order one from us. Once they’re gone, they are gone, and we’re not sure if ColorBox (or ClearSnap) will ever bounce back.
We do have other ink pad suppliers we will be working with and we will be offering those ink pads soon, once our remaining stock of ColorBox sells out.
Personal Changes made to our Family
Well, my now x-husband no longer works for our company, and Shely has since moved on as well. They are now operating their own handmade business endeavors, including wholesale wood supplies and wholesale cutting boards, making crafts for local craft fairs, and personalized cutting boards. You can find them at 417HardWoods on Etsy, or FamYeah on Etsy.
We have had a lot of changes going from a full-blown 80-90 hour work week down to a single mom who handles it all. I work roughly the hours of 8:30-3:30pm, before the kids get home from school.
Our doors are still open, I’m still operating, and I have measures in place and people to help me with the business shall I ever need it. You are in good hands.
Moving the business
With the changes made to our family, and since it’s been nearly two years now as a single parent, I no longer need the monstrosity of the house and the hefty mortgage payment (aka divorce fees) to go along with it. The kids and I are downsizing, and we’re moving to a home that still allows our business to operate.
Our new location will also help us shift our business manufacturing process to a more eco-friendly, green, and sustainable future. We’re excited.
We plan on having the transition be smooth to the point you won’t notice. Meanwhile, enjoy 25% off our rubber stamps with coupon code WEREMOVING. The coupon code will expire October 25, 2019.
PS. Looking for our last update to compare how much we’ve grown in the last two-three years? Click here.
