Reinventing your hobby as a business: 8 tips from Zewood fantasy decor manufacturer

Since childhood, co-founder of Zewood Andrii Panko loved Harry Potter, binge watching all the movies dozens of times. Once upon a time he shared his passion with his wife Anna, who was also a fan of the magic universe. And later, the couple decided to turn their passion into a business, combining love for fantasy with legacy carpenter tricks to conjure a fantasy decor manufactory.

Today, Zewood creates fantasy-themed wooden clocks, maps, keyholders and other décor styled to the setting of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones and other universes. The company owns an expanding proprietary workshop and a fellowship of hundreds of connoisseur-customers around the world.

The founders, Anna and Andrew, reflect on their experience and share tips on turning your passion into a profitable business.

Adapt ideas to the market realities 

Idea makes half of the success, it must drive and inspire you. Zewood chose a strategy — make a product that you would like to have in your home, on the wall, or give as a present to friends and family.

When you have the idea, you need to put its market relevance to test. This is best done through careful marketing research: scan for the competition, define their pricing strategy, and explore other aspects. Still, it is important to stay faithful to the idea and offer clients not just what could be easily sold but what relates to you as well.

If the research results show that the niche is already occupied, the client’s expectations are all met, and it looks like there are no prospects...

Be ready to change the idea

Alas, the path of your business should not be taken for a fairytale: sometimes you may not make it work for the first, second, and even the third time. At some point, it is important to have a down-to-earth look at the situation and, if necessary, pivot, find another idea, and implement it.

The first products created by the Zewood founders were the world maps. However, the competition there was already running high, and the young company lacked experience and resources to take hold of its share in the niche. The owners continued to experiment and probed simultaneously into several various directions. When the wooden Weasley Family Clock appeared in the range, the product quickly gained popularity and soon became the first Zewood’s bestseller. This is how the company chose its direction and made the first actual profits.

It is important not to rest on the laurels, and continue to seek new ideas and invest time and money every month in developing new products.

Exceed expectations 

If you manufacture something, it is crucial that you offer clients the quality they would like to come back to, the one they would recommend to their friends. A desired outcome or a yardstick to measure progress means that you have feedback in the review section with people saying you have exceeded their expectations. You can achieve such a feedback by combining three key ingredients:

• The best cost-quality factor 

Offer the customer the best you can produce. Carefully work on every detail – even at the beginning, even if it is very challenging. This can be a key factor to your success and better reputation for your brand.

• Bespoke approach 

In addition to the range dedicated to famed fantasy universes, the manufactory offers customers the opportunity to order an individual map. For example, one of the clients ordered a wedding gift for his wife – a map on the fantasy world she created herself in her childhood. This is a unique bespoke approach that the client remembers and appreciates anyway.

• Immerse in the idea 

Company’s products are often purchased as gifts. For customers, it is more than just a decor then, as well as for the company team. These are emotions and memories that have enormous value. That is why the company invests in each design in a way that it is soaked in the vibe of the particular universe as deep as possible, And all the designers of the company are not only the top-notch craftspeople but also actual fantasy fans.

Do marketing big brand way from the start 

A product alone is not enough – clients should get to know it somehow. Therefore, no business can do without marketing. Even if there is no budget for it, you can get moving by registering on Etsy or Amazon marketplaces and make something up yourself.

So, in Zewood, most of the photos and creative artwork were created by Anna herself. The founders ordered some promotional videos from their friends who specialize in video production. The main requirement was to do everything high-quality from the start and create visuals akin to big international brands.

Next, you should use promotion tools, such as targeted advertising on social networks: it can produce great results. An effective tool can be influence marketing: try to negotiate an exposure in exchange for your product with bloggers.

Over time, marketing investments should be increased – ideally, to build an in-house marketing team or hire outsourced professionals. Currently, Zewood invests about 20–30% of its budgets in marketing to promote products.

Always improve 

Even if you have found your niche and target audience, do not stop anyway. Always look for new paths and technologies, test, improve your product and service.

In years of its work, Zewood repeatedly switched suppliers of plywood and equipment, replaced frame supplier with frame craftsman (now working exclusively for the workshop), tried dozens of various paints and oils until it found the proper option with perfect colors, texture, and even smell.

Try to look at this process at an unexpected angle. For example, create a bonus system for workers who offer production improvements. Make a crash-test of your product and post it on your social profiles. For example, Zewood checked the quality of its packaging by throwing dumbbells on it. According to the results of the test, the packaging changed so that the client receives the goods intact under any delivery conditions.

Another tool that allows you to improve – collecting feedback, while offering a discount or bonus. Invite clients to fill in the form after the product delivery: their opinion can inspire you to new ideas and improvements, and they will be motivated by a bonus to come back to you.

Calculate the smallest details 

In business, especially at its start, it is vital to do meticulous math on each step. After all, an uninvited cost of several dollars can result in losses of several thousands. For example, the founders have long ordered a plexiglass from one supplier. At some point, during the market analysis, they realized that there were many offers available with a similar quality but at a better price. It was barely tangible in the product cost, but the overpay was up to $50,000 annually.

Regular analysis and calculations help spot opportunities for cost optimization. It is also important to consider various indicators. For example, there might be a situation where the figures look good, but profit does not meet expectations. In this case, a recalculation is welcome with the help of unit economics modeling. It might be reasonable to price up to a more relevant level.

Move fast 

Especially if you do create a niche. First, you will have to heat up the market, and only then start selling. Other players will enter the niche over time, so you have a vantage point for about 1.5–2 years to become an absolute leader in it.

If business is moving fast, do not be afraid to invest in it as much as possible. Invest, increase sales, push demand. This will create more profit in less time, and you can further invest in brand development, advertising, and more.--- 

The last but not the least tip: is not to give up, of course. Growing up, Zewood got its marketplace accounts closed three times, used a garage as a workshop, sometimes the money was catastrophically low. Notwithstanding, the founders continued to believe in their business, support each other, and develop their brand.

Try to take even unsuccessful efforts as experience, and difficulties – as a growth point. And surely celebrate even small achievements.