We were lucky to catch up with Andrea Tarwater recently and have shared our conversation below.

Andrea, appreciate you joining us today. Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

Back in the 90’s I was obsessed with British music – especially new and unknown bands. I found a band called “The Unbelievable Truth” and one of their albums , released in 2000, was called “Sorrythankyou”. I thought that phrase was perfectly suited to me because it was a phrase I used often at the time. I still find myself saying it fairly often. I started using Sorrythankyou as my online name prior to knowing about Instagram or having a shop. I used it in online game forums — and it became part of my identity. (I was still a teenager at the time) When I decided to open a shop on Etsy , the name was the easiest thing to decide since I had such a strong connection to it already. I added the 79 on because that is my birth year and I thought Sorrythankyou79 had a nice ring to it.

Andrea, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Andrea and I’m the owner and creator of Sorrythankyou79. As long as I can remember I’ve loved books. Not just reading books , but also decorating with them. I love that something that is so beautiful to look at – is not just decorative but serves a purpose. I collect vintage books for myself and I love reading them. I find mostly vintage books for decor and for reading. I work with businesses , influencers and readers to find the perfect stack or individual books for each situation. One of my favorite things to do is find a stack of books to match a painting , or a rug , or a paint color. It’s so rewarding to find the perfect shade of book!
I’m also passionate about home decor — and building my home library goes hand in hand with that – as books form a large part of my decor.
I got into selling books when I had three children under 3 and I was looking for a creative outlet — something that I could do while staying home with the babies. It was the perfect setup because it gave me an excuse to shop for and buy more books than I was personally able to keep. I have such a love for hunting for and finding vintage book especially — I truly enjoy handling them , even if it is for a short time (until I find them new homes). I love the look, the feel , the smell and most of all the promise of a good story !
I got into bookish crafts because I was looking for some way to use a lot of the damaged dust jackets that I have collected over the years. I absolutely love being able to use the creative side of my
brain — while re-using materials that might otherwise be discarded.
I love creating unique pieces out of vintage materials.
I think what sets me apart from others in the same space is my aesthetic— I try to the best of my ability to take beautiful photographs and post content that is relevant and hopefully lovely to look at as well.
I think the thing I’m most proud of is that I love what I do — and I have a loyal community of followers who seem to enjoy it too. I’m so thankful for them — loyalty is so important to a small business. I truly have the best customers !
The main thing I want people to know is that I work hard to make their experience the best that it can be. I hunt, find, photograph , post , sell, pack and ship. I love the books I sell – and I love the customers I get to work with. I’m passionate about making people happy — and I will always try my best to do that.
I want people to love what they purchase from me.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

So I started on Instagram in 2011 after my sister set up a personal account for me. Shortly after joining I realized you could search any hashtag and find what you were interested in ! It was such a revelation to me when I realized that not only were people posting photos of their lives — but some people were actually selling things on Instagram! I was determined to try to sell too, and I learned as I went. I’m still learning as I go. Initially I grew from doing share for shares with other shops. Then I grew from giveaways and group giveaways. The biggest growth comes from influencers in the home decor space. When they give my account a shout-out I gain hundreds of followers — if you can connect with an influencer in your market – it’s very helpful for growth ! I am far from expert – I’m still learning every day – but I’m so thankful for the people who follow , share , comment and support my social media account.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

My very favorite sale was early on when I was just starting my shop. I was contacted by a buyer at Fossil to provide books for a photo shoot they were doing for a catalog. They wanted 800 blue books ! It was the sale of a lifetime and I still have the magazine in my closet with the post it note stuck on that says “these are the books from you!” (Written by the buyer at fossil) — they created an entire wall of books for the model to stand in front of and it was amazing ! I was so excited to be part of it , and it’s still my biggest sale to date. I still can’t get over the fact that they chose me to work with them. The most difficult part of that sale (besides packing and shipping the books) was FINDING them ! It was a fun couple of months hunting for enough books to complete that order. I’ll never forget it.

Contact Info:

• Website: Sorrythankyou79.etsy.com
• Instagram: Sorrythankyou79

Image Credits
Sorrythankyou79