Since 2015, people across different industries have been using Ucraft to build unique, professional websites for their businesses, projects, and their personal brands. Over the years, we have accumulated a user base of talented, dedicated visionaries from all over the web. It’s safe to say that our Ucrafters have made us incredibly proud, and we never get tired of scrolling through websites created with our builder, seeing how each individual user personalizes Ucraft for themselves. And now that eCommerce is on the rise, so is the number of Ucraft users opening their online stores with our builder.
Speaking of which, we have an exclusive user case study up our sleeves this month, dedicated to the girls of Ucraft. We’re talking about the female visionaries and entrepreneurs, always moving forward, doing their thing, and bringing something new to the table. And let us tell you - deciding on who to pick for this task was a whole challenge in itself. After scrolling through a long list of exceptional websites, we narrowed our choice down to two websites (and business ideas) that caught our attention the most.
The three lovely ladies we chose were kind enough to answer a series of questions related to their businesses, challenges they overcame, and other questions of that nature. Continue reading to find out more about their journey with their businesses and with Ucraft, as well as some crucial advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Let’s dive in!
Lark + Roo
Lark + Roo is a beautifully-curated online store for baby shower gifts, established by new moms May and Vi after the birth of their daughters. Since the two were already being asked for baby shower gift ideas by friends and acquaintances, they went the extra mile and opened their own online business to satisfy this demand. Let’s learn more about their story.
1. Describe your business idea/model in a few words:
Lark+Roo curates functional, quality, and unique gift sets for baby, mom, and dad.
2. What inspired you to get into this niche?
Pregnancy and early parenthood is such a precious time for new parents and the family and friends that support them. We wanted to create beautiful and functional gift sets with tried and true unique items that the new parents are sure to love and a seamless gift-giving experience for the friends and family. As mothers ourselves, we often got questions about baby items from new parents and baby shower gifts ideas from family and friends. We realized there was a way to serve both new parents and the communities that love them.
3. What factors or life events motivated you to become an online business owner?
As busy mothers eager to make an impact, the flexibility of an online business was appealing, and platforms and tools, such as Ucraft, made it possible for us to create a virtual storefront and start our business easily and connect with a broad audience a brick and mortar store would not.
4. What are some challenges you faced while building your business? How did you overcome them?
As a small business, we learned many things from trial and error and are constantly learning how to run a more efficient and impactful business. Keeping an open mind, getting comfortable with the unknown, and evolving as we learn from mistakes have served us well. Finally, while working as an entrepreneur, you can sometimes feel isolated. Still, it's important to remember that you are part of a broader community, and there are many others who have tackled/are tackling the same issues you are now. It's a matter of taking the initiative to stay connected!
5. When designing your website, did you find the process straightforward or challenging? What was your source of inspiration (if any)?
We loved the website design process and found it fun to imagine and relatively straightforward to execute. We tested out a few different platforms and found Ucraft to be easy to navigate and appreciated the responsiveness of the customer service via chat. When you run an online business, your website is your first and lasting impression on the customer, so the look, feel, content, and ease of use are critical to engaging with the customer. To design our website, we thought a lot about our target customer and the type of interface, design, and branding that would appeal to them.
6. Do you have any advice you would like to share with aspiring entrepreneurs?
Don't be afraid to tap into your network and community for support! Entrepreneurship can be a roller coaster, and there will be ups and downs, but learning from your experiences and the experiences of others make the journey fun and worthwhile.
Vania Ayala (Van Clegg)
Web designer and motion graphics artist Van Clegg has undoubtedly had an interesting life. Born in Mexico City, married to an Irishman, and currently residing in Vancouver, Van is pursuing her goals as a digital designer - one win at a time! Let’s see what she has to say about making a name for yourself in the competitive world of digital design.
1. Describe your business idea/model in a few words:
My business model is simple. As a web designer and motion graphics artist, I aim to collaborate with clients on their ideas and walk them through the creative process to bring to life what they have imagined for their project!
2. What inspired you to get into this niche?
Motion graphics and web design have the ability to evoke and express the kind of vibrancy and emotion that I value as a Mexican. It is a form of communication, and through my business, I can help people communicate their needs in similar, vivid, and poignant ways.
3. What factors or life events motivated you to become an online business owner?
As a creative and digital media artist, moving my business online was vital to reaching clients and providing them with the best possible service.
4. What are some challenges you faced while building your business? How did you overcome them?
Growing up in Mexico, there are not as many opportunities to develop a business like mine. In the future, I would love to be a part of growing the digital design industry in Mexico. However, to overcome these challenges, I moved to Canada to study at the Vancouver School of Film before working for several media companies and starting my own digital design business.
5. When designing your website, did you find the process straightforward or challenging? What was your source of inspiration (if any)?
Ucraft is an intuitive platform that makes it easy for business owners of all levels of online experience to launch and promote their ideas and products. It is a very simple tool to build a website with. And yet, as a designer, I found it also had the complexity to really demonstrate my skills and services at a level I was satisfied with.
6. Do you have any advice you would like to share with aspiring entrepreneurs?
Give it a go! You may fail, but you will also never know if you don't try! Be wise, have a backup plan, work hard and see what happens!
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That’s a wrap!
We really enjoyed writing this segment and hope you found it equally interesting and engaging. It was difficult to choose between so many stunning websites, but we think our chosen two provided great answers to some critical questions in the sphere of online business.
If you are still waiting for a sign to take that leap and start something of your own, then consider learning from this article a step in the right direction. As emphasized above, it’s always preferable to chase your dreams - regardless of any doubt. Plus, there are many useful integrations on the market right now, both free and paid, that can make the task of opening an online business easier.
Although starting an online business can be stressful initially, designing your website definitely doesn’t have to be. Follow in these girls’ footsteps and create your own stunning platform with Ucraft.