Beatriz Zuazo

I am a woodworker and craftswoman based in Barcelona. I currently combine a part-time job as a designer and production manager in an industrial carpentry while defining my approach to woodworking and cabinetmaking as a business on a more artistic basis.

I experienced a career change 4 years ago, after years making a living out of translation, which was my first background, and looking for a more vocational work. I finished a short degree in Design and Furnishing, but with regards to my activity as a craftswoman and cabinetmaker I am mostly self-taught.

I design and manufacture home furnishing solutions as well as other little decorative articles as wooden boxes, rings, etc.

My business objectives are:

• My aim is to offer a sustainable and quality product while getting and staying profitable.
• I basically expect to make a living out of an activity I master and enjoy practising.

My learnings from the Crafting Business Programme:

• I learned how to develop my own business strategies using the business model canvas framework.
• I acquired financial notions that helped me understand the logic behind pricing.
• I also learned the basics of marketing and trading and how to develop a marketing plan.
• How to apply the principles of eco-design to our production process.
• And the importance of internationalization and digitalization for any kind of business nowadays.
• None of the information above mentioned was completely new to me, but the course has expanded and consolidated what I knew and has helped me to focus and better organize my work.

My 5 top tips that I have learnt on this journey:

1. Everything takes its time. Setting up a business may take at least a year, so be patient.
2. The first step is to define your target as detailed as possible. This will help you to make following decisions.
3. Delegate as many tasks as you can afford. It is better to focus on what you can do well and let professionals handle the tasks you are not so good at.
4. When people buy crafts, they are looking for something more than a mere consumer product. The added value is the story behind the product itself and the craftsperson. So, you somehow need to communicate that story.