More youths are selling their handcrafted earrings and other accessories on Instagram.
By Andreana Acosta Cain
Jan 6, 2020
The featured earrings are from Instagram shop CharmsPalace, which sells mostly cute-looking earrings that are hand-assembled. Photo by: Andreana Acosta Cain
If you are looking for accessories that are one of a kind and affordable, look no further. Shops selling handcrafted earrings on Instagram are on the rise, with each having its own distinctive aesthetic like pastel, punk and plain.
For Instagram shops like Loopy Fruppy, Drippyhotcakes and Cindycondy.co, one of their main inspirations in opening their own shop was being able to express their creativity in their products.
“I saw a pair of earrings on Taobao that I really wanted and thought I could customise them to make them my own, so I bought materials to do so,” said Ms Jazreel Kwek, 20, owner and founder of Loopy Fruppy.
The usage of social media platforms, mainly Instagram, in opening up businesses is highly popular within Singaporean youths.
According to a 2019 digital report done by Hootsuite, a social media management platform, there are 2.2 million reported users in Singapore that can be reached by advertisements on Instagram. This makes Instagram a great place for sellers to start and advertise their business.
“You don’t have to pay rent and you are able to just create your designs freely. So with Instagram, it’s really easy because it’s free and you can reach out to many people, that’s when you grow your audience,” said Ms Lala Yap, 24, owner and founder of Drippyhotcakes.
Drippyhotcakes started in May 2019, and has 1,253 followers to date. Her latest collection is a collaboration with Noxieraa, a local artist. The 14th collection features dangly earrings with acrylic charms of Pokemon characters on Pokka beverage bottles and is priced at $17 each.
As most of these Instagram earring shops’ customers are students, they have to be mindful in how they price their products. For Drippyhotcakes, most of her products are priced between $10-$15. By doing so, affordability will not be a problem in getting customers to purchase their creations.
As more and more Instagram earring shops open, creators have to constantly be innovative and think of ways to use unconventional materials and ride on trends to maintain their relevance.
“I try to make my earrings as unique but wearable, that’s why my current ribbons themed earrings are more popular,” says Ms Cindy Toh, 21, owner and founder of Cindycondy.co
Being a youth, the biggest difficulty comes in juggling school, personal life and managing the business. For Ms Kwek, her internship period was the hardest as she would be away from home most of the time. She would then work on the shop till 2 am or 3 am.
A dinosaur and butterfly earring handcrafted by LoopyFruppy. The mini dinosaur figurine and beads were bought online. Photo by: Andreana Acosta Cain
However, there are benefits to starting a business at such a young age. In an email interview with Mr Lee Teck Hui, an associate lecturer from Ngee Ann Polytechnic’s School of Business, he says that it makes youths innovative and they will not be constricted by the traditional way of running a business.
He also adds that youth entrepreneurship can be further supported by mentorship from experienced entrepreneurs or funding from the school.
The journey in managing an Instagram shop from scratch may be difficult, but it does bring lots of happiness to the owners.
“It’s such an amazing feeling knowing that you’re finally able to create the physical form of something that’s been in your head for a while,” said Ms Kwek.
Not only are the shop owners able to express their creativity freely, but they also feel rewarded in other ways.
Ms Yap invited her sister to help her out on the administrative side of the business, as she was better in using Microsoft Excel.
“[It is] strengthening my relationship with my sister. Before I opened this shop, our relationship was really bad. But after we opened the shop, our relationship got way better,” said Ms Yap.
If one is interested in opening up an Instagram shop of their own, Mr Lee advises doing proper research on the products they intend to sell. For example, reading more about the market online.
Ms Yap adds, “How far do you see this business going? If you just wanna try it out, then maybe have a lower capita. If it goes well, you can invest more.”
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