Craft business

[MummytoCSJH]

I've been making jewellery and figurines (think wedding cake toppers and popular character personalised gifts) from fimo clay for a while now, I think I'm good enough to set it up as a business and from the feedback I've had from giving them as gifts and people asking if I make something for them I think there's a gap in the market for it locally. I'm not fussed about making a lot of money, this is just on the side whilst I'm doing a degree and possibly seeing where it goes.

I've had a look on the gov website but I don't even know where to start setting up, whether I need to register as a sole trader? Can anyone give me some ideas on where to start? Is it better to use sites like etsy, or a facebook page, set up my own website? I'm thinking of facebook and eventually my own website as I've seen lots doing similar things on etsy and I think that means people may be less likely to buy from me just because I'm local.

I was thinking of going this morning and stocking up on materials - should I write everything down? Is there anything I need to know? I'm sure you can tell I really don't know how it all works. I just want to make sure I know everything I need to know before I start to offer them for sale.

[ChessIsASport]

Folksy is a good selling site for UK crafters as long as you are intending to do your own promotion. You will need to register as self employed and you will need craft business insurance.

Remember that you won’t be able to sell models of popular characters as you will get in trouble for copyright infringement.