We recently connected with Brittney Crain and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Brittney thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Almost all entrepreneurs have had to decide whether to start now or later? There are always pros and cons for waiting and so we’d love to hear what you think about your decision in retrospect. If you could go back in time, would you have started your business sooner, later or at the exact time you started?

This is something that I think about often. I absolutely wish I would have started my business way earlier in life. Knowing what I know now about my career and path I would have done a lot differently. I wish I would have had the small business bug back before I started college. I always had a feeling college wasn’t for me, but at the time that’s just what everyone did. They went to college and then pursued a career. When I started my business I was actually pursing a career in education. I had graduated with my Bachelor’s degree in 2015 and decided that I wanted to go back to school for a Master’s Degree in education. Then I moved to South Carolina and my entire trajectory changed.

I started working for a small business owner as her assistant and fell in love with the lifestyle and flexibility of entrepreneurship. I wanted to create my own business and hopefully watch it grow into a full time career, and thus Charleston Moon was born.

After the initial decision to start a business, it still took me several months to have the confidence to launch my website. I wish I could go back in time and tell that version of myself to do it scared, do it unfinished, do it messy. Everything will fall into place, just do it. So many times I feel like I need to wait for the right time or the right product to launch but my most successful launches are always when things aren’t “perfect.” Of course I wish I could go back and start this process earlier but I am so glad I started when I did. Now I lean in with full trust on the timing of my business/life.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Charleston Moon is a collection of intuitively selected crystals and handmade goods but that’s not actually where I started. Initially, I sold clothing. My focus and mission were simple, inclusion and empowerment. I wanted every single person that shopped with me to feel welcomed and important. I addressed body positivity and the gap in inclusivity in fashion in many of my early campaigns. Things shifted when I was gifted a book about crystals from my sister in 2021 . I was instantly drawn to their unique and interesting properties. It wasn’t as if I was learning something new but remembering something once forgot. It was then that I knew, I wanted to shift my business.

I already has a few handmade items in my shop and decided in additional to crystals, I would also focus more on handmade goods. It was a complete shift. I started an Etsy shop in addition to changing my entire website, and took the leap into in person markets later that year. That was the start of what Charleston Moon has blossomed into today. It is the perfect representation of who I am and what I want to offer the world.

Do you sell on your site, or do you use a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc?

Currently, you can shop Charleston Moon through my direct website, charlestonmoon.com, Etsy, and at in person events in the Charleston, SC and surrounding areas. Originally, I only sold via my direct website. However, when my business shifted to a “maker” model, I knew Etsy would be a key addition to my ecommerce sales. Driving direct traffic is tough. If you don’t utilize SEO and social media a direct webpage is like a yard sign in the middle of nowhere. It’s there but no one can see it.

Etsy is great for makers and small business that are starting out because they drive the traffic. Now don’t get me wrong, you absolutely have to put in the work on Etsy for sales. They have a specific algorithm that changes constantly but overall it can lead to success if you are willing to put in the time. Every sale I had had on Etsy in the past year has been from a customer that Etsy brought to my product. Then, once I have that customer’s attention I try and direct them back to my own website for any repeat sales. I know there are a lot of controversies surrounding Etsy and the notoriously high fees, but in my case I find the number of sales justify the fees. My business would not have the leverage it does today without Etsy.

I will continue to run my direct website as I do eventually see that being my main source of income. For now, I enjoy having both and it is helping my business scale.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

In addition to running an online website and Etsy store, I frequent in person markets. I have to say, markets and pop-ups have been the absolute lifeline of my business for the last year. Almost every single weekend you can find me set up at a different location in the Charleston, SC area. Markets and pop-ups are by far my favorite thing about my small business. It’s like having a brick and mortar without the commitment. I get to put my products in front of people and connect with my customers face to face in a way that is just not possible online.

Every single time I do a market or pop-up I meet new customers. They have helped me with social media growth and brand recognition faster than any other strategy I have implemented. It has also helped me cultivate a small community of other vendors that support has become so valuable. I encourage markets and pop-ups to anyone looking to connect in new ways to customers and their community.

Contact Info:

• Website: charlestonmoon.com
• Instagram: @charleston.moon
• Facebook: @charlestonmoon
• Other: Etsy: ShopCharlestonMoon