Rebecca F. Pittman - Scrapbooking for Profit: Cashing in on Retail, Home-Based, and Internet Opp

OTHER BOOKS BY REBECCA F. PITTMAN

How To Start a Faux Painting or Mural Business ,

Second Edition, Allworth Press, 2010

The History and Haunting of the Stanley Hotel ,

23 House Publishing, 2011

The History and Haunting of the Myrtles Plantation ,

23 House Publishing, 2012

Copyright 2014 by Rebecca F. Pittman

All Rights Reserved. Copyright under Berne Copyright Convention, Universal Copyright Convention, and Pan American Copyright Convention. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Allworth Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

Allworth Press books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Allworth Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or info@ skyhorsepublishing.com.

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eISBN: 978-1-62153-203-3

Published by Allworth Press, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.
307 West 36 th Street, 11 th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

Allworth Press is a registered trademark of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation.

www.allworth.com

Cover and interior design by Mary Belibasakis
Page composition/typography by Integra Software Services, Pvt. Ltd., Pondicherry, India

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file

ISBN: 978-1-62153-269-9

Printed in the United States of America

So much goes into writing a book that it is hard to separate the elements of creative support and pragmatic contributions.

Many wonderfully talented people gave their time and effort to make this possible.

The time and talents of so many gifted professionals in the world of scrapbooking were utilized in this book in the form of interviews. They are all given full accreditation in their segments of the book and are also listed in References and Recommendations at the back. Please take a look at their websites for further information on their wonderful enterprises... A heartfelt thank you to all of you.

Tad Crawford, Delia Casa, Thornwell May, and all the wonderful people at Allworth Press and Skyhorse Publishing who took their time and talent to make this book what it is, I say a heartfelt thank you! What a joy to work with you!

There are numerous others who slipped me an anecdote, added a sideline, or put me on the path to information I needed. Thank you so much for caring about the outcome of this book.

On a personal note, there are the people in my life who make me passionate about being here. My four gorgeous sons, Mike, Brandon, Casey, and Ryan, and my beautiful daughters-in-law Janel, Kate, and Ashley, who make my heart sing and fill my days with laughter and spontaneity. For my grandchildren who remind me that life is filled with magic and things unseen, I love you!

My mother, Collette Wells, who has been my inspiration since I could hold a pen or a paintbrush: I love you, Mom. No one had a better mentor, and I was lucky enough to grow up around your positive attitude and your never say die mentality.

And for the friends who encourage me and celebrate with me when the final word is typed... Sondy, Sheryl, Jim, Patti, Rhonda, Kelly, Barry, Todd, Matt, Tom, and LeRoy. Thank you for keeping me sane when I am tied to the computer.

As a final note here, I wish my readers to know that every effort was put forth to make this book as current and up-to-date as possible. Due to the publishing timeline, often months have passed from inception to printing. With the breakneck speed at which businesses come and go on the Internet and in the retail world, it is not possible to gather everyone under one convenient timetable. There will be, no doubt, new additions to the whirling web by the time this book is released. There are two people represented in this book who have moved on to other pursuits, but their advice and years of expertise in the scrapbooking arena are timeless and valuable and have therefore been retained in this second edition.

So much has changed since the release of the first edition of Scrapbooking for Profit in 2005. What was then a burgeoning industry has taken on a life of its own and flowed into new territoriesnot surprising for a business that has its roots in creativity. From cruises and retreats to an online juggernaut, scrapbooking has left the dining room table and is being taken seriously as a billion-dollar industry.

I grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah, surrounded by craft shops, boutiques, and hobby stores, all calling enticingly to the artisans, crafters, and homemakers wanting to add beauty and enchantment to their lives, and in some cases, extra income. Being a craft nut myself, I found this to be a haven of ideas, materials, and information on every craft project imaginable. Next to my mother and the mountains, those stores are what I miss most about Salt Lake.

The Mormon heritage, with its emphasis on genealogy and crafting, has turned Salt Lake City into the scrapbooking capital of the world. It does not surprise me. Ive witnessed the attention to documenting ones ancestors in the Mormon Church since I was little. The Family History Library in Salt Lake City is unequaled. You can access it at www.progenealogists.com. When you add this to the plethora of stores bulging with decorative materials for every scrapbooking whim, you come up with the recipe for some pretty amazing albums.

It was growing up surrounded by this atmospherecoupled with the huge burst of interest in scrapbooking in the past few yearsthat led me to write this book. In its pages, you will find everything you need to know to start your own business in this fascinating and pragmatic world of documenting and savoring ones memories. Whether youre wanting something small and cozy from home or youre dying to see your name emblazoned on a backlit sign above your shop door, youll find the necessary information here, from taxes to advertising; setup to inventory; opening to expansion. We will go into great detail about creating your website and learning the ins-and-outs of online advertising, SEO, and using the ever-prevalent social media. Whether you are a small, home-based business selling wares and classes from your basement, or a retail store, you must have a website to compete and offer a professional face to your crafts industry.

I wish you a world of discovery and the perseverance to see your dreams come true!

S crapbooking and its myriad outlets have not been immune to the reshuffling of the recent recession. When the first edition of this book came out in 2005, the scrapbooking industry had just hit its peak in the previous year. At that time, Don Meyer of the Hobby Industry Association had this to say: People all over the country are gathering their most precious memoriestheir photosand transforming them into creative masterpieces. By adding stickers, decorative papers, rubber stamps, ribbons and a plethora of other embellishments, simple photos become scrapbook pages that last a lifetime. As such, there is an entire day dedicated to the craft. Scrapbook stores nationwide participate in National Scrapbook Day on the first Saturday of every May.