“Ultimately we are trying to cultivate a community that we are proud to be part of, but in the end it is the members that establish this essence.”
- Annalisa D’Andrea and Greg Fujii

The Essence of Memories, launched in Spring 2004, strives to make its community, its members, the #1 priority. With that mission always in mind, owners Annalisa D’Andrea and Greg Fujii knew that there were two traits that The Essence of Memories had to display consistently: top selection of quality products - that are in stock - and outstanding customer service.

They have been succeeding on both counts - shoppers are raving about their customer service, and their quality product selection keeps scrapbook enthusiasts coming back.

“Our current products are only the best and finest scrapbooking products,” notes Greg. “We keep very involved with manufacturers and go to both the HIA trade show and ACCI trade show to make sure we know what is new and what is hot.

“We take pride in really listening to our clients’ needs and desires and try to have in the store all they dream of,” he continues. “We have noticed that many online retailers fail to keep their products in stock, and this is something our customers will not experience.”

This firm commitment to customer service is something Essence customers notice – and their positive shopping experience compels them to tell others about it.

“My shipment came so fast - they actually shipped it the same day!” one customer expressed. “I will definitely shop there again!”

“I do have to say I was in shock when I ordered one day and it was shipped the same day!” commented another shopper.  “It didn't take but a day to reach me and I know that the owner was very willing to help if I had any problems... It was one of the best online shopping experiences I have had.”

“I love this store!!!” one loyal customer told a scrapbooking review site. “I have been shopping here for the past three months and I am not going anywhere else. The store has great products and the owners are kind and responsive. It’s a wonderful experience!”

This positive word-of-mouth – or word-of-mouse – helps in establishing The Essence of Memories as a trusted and reputable site, and helps assure that it will be the site recalled in the minds of future visitors when deciding where to shop online.
 

The Essence of Memories didn’t suffer the growing pains that typically befall a new business, such as debuting with an amateurish web design, running out of inventory, or any of the other hundred things that tend to strike new businesses. This is especially exceptional considering the entire business is run by just two people: Greg and Annalisa. Oh, and they both also work full-time jobs…and are parents to two boys, Alex and Ryan.

So how did they launch the business so successfully? Research – an extensive amount of market research. This is one trait that sets these partners apart from some scrapbook retailers and e-tailers, who excitedly jumped right in to opening a business without a fair amount of research. That impatience is one of the reasons some scrapbook stores shut down. But putting in the hard work before the business launches – making sure all the research is complete and you are 100% positive this is what you want to do – that supplies the foundation of a successful business. And that’s what Greg and Annalisa did.

In addition to consulting with accountants, attorneys, business owners and bankers, they conducted general business research regarding policies in their city, county, and state. They also studied the scrapbook industry – and the retail aspect of it in particular.

“We have learned so much from speaking to many brick-and-mortar scrapbook retailers to get an idea of the business and the clientele,” Annalisa says. “In the beginning, we were planning on opening a storefront in our town of Menlo Park. We consulted quite a bit with some great people - Lorraine and Monty - at O’brien Systems. We actually had the lease papers in front of us!

“In the 11^th hour, though, we decided we just wouldn’t have enough time in the day to work full-time, have a family and seriously make a go of the business,” she explains.

So they modified their plan to create the atmosphere they wanted in the store to now be offered online. And the atmosphere is certainly there, providing a warm, comfortable experience for visitors. How was it achieved?
 

Greg and Annalisa hired Michelle from Treasured Pages to design The Essence of Memories web site, which they both agree was an excellent idea: “She has made this experience as pleasant and painless as possible," Greg notes. “She's a phenomenal designer, and worth her weight ten times over in gold.”

Annalisa worked with Michelle to put the site's look together.

“Annalisa has an extraordinary creative side to her, and a great feel for color and visual effect,” Greg says. “So she was able to work with Michelle to get the result she desired."

Together they created The Essence of Memories experience using various aspects of the web design, including color and layout, to invoke the kind of inviting atmosphere they wanted.

The site offers a welcoming community, with active message boards and layout galleries. There is also a design team, The Essence Girls, and The Essence Challenges, ongoing challenges in which points are accumulated to claim awards.

Aside from the community, of course, there is the online store.

“We have also collaborated with Qbaroo for our e-business needs,” Greg explains. “They are fantastic and really take a lot of the uncertainty away from the storefront and shopping experience we want to offer our customers.”
 

“Marketing is the key to success in any business, especially online retailing,” Annalisa says. “We have experimented with several mediums and have had mixed results.  Our goal in any marketing campaign is to introduce our site and the community it offers first, and the store and products, second.

“We believe that the true success of our business will be told by the community created at The Essence of Memories, and the loyal and return business of our committed customers,” she affirms. “The old ‘80% of the business comes from 20% of the customers’ adage. Therefore, we have done everything from marketing to friends and family to full e-broadcast campaigns to targeted markets.”

Greg and Annalisa began their marketing by first asking everyone they knew to take a look at the web site and provide honest feedback. This helped them to see the site through the eyes of both web-shoppers and surfers.

They then began to participate in link exchanges and partnerships with organizations such as Scrapbook Expo.  Through these partnerships, The Essence of Memories sends out a partner flyer with each order shipped, and in return the partner business provides a link on their website, or an advertisement in their brochure.

Their next marketing tactic was listing their site in various online directories, such as Scrapbook Top 50 and Scrapjazz. “We are using banner ads on Scrapjazz and receive a fair amount of traffic from that approach,” Greg says.

Next, they moved on to pay-per-click advertising to bring in targeted traffic. They experimented with Overture, 7Search, Xuppa and the like, and the result was:

“Overture was by far the most productive,” Annalisa affirms. But….?

“We could increase traffic to our site, often tenfold, but this traffic didn’t seem to ‘stick,’” Greg explains. “The ROI wasn’t really revealing itself.”

Their next step in the marketing plan was third-party email broadcasts to “opt-in” lists of major industry publications.

“We have had significant returns from these campaigns,” Greg affirms. “As stated earlier, our goal is to increase membership and create a community, and these campaigns have satisfied these parameters in spades.”  

Greg explains what type of start-up costs they were dealing with originally: “To open the brick-and-mortar store we were looking at about 150 to 200 thousand to really get going and be healthy for the initial period of adjustment, marketing, payroll and stocking of inventory and equipment.  We were thinking of a store about 1600 to 2000 square feet.

“Now, with the online store, our start-up budget was only 1/10^th of that amount.  It’s still a lot of money, but nowhere near the exposure we would have had with the business loans and debt we would be in with the brick-and-mortar version.

“So far we have not seen a business profit,” he continues. “To be honest, it is very difficult to predict when that may happen.  Being our first year in the industry, we really have to understand the trends in the market, and the difference, if any, between the online shoppers and the brick-and-mortar shoppers.

"Because of our low-overhead costs, we have been successful in meeting our monthly fixed costs, but actually breaking-even at this stage is a distant dream.  We really have to commit a lot of resources to marketing and spreading the word about our community.”

Greg and Annalisa admit that working on the business takes up quite a bit of each day – “We spend at least 6-8 hours each day in dealing with our business-related issues” – but the fact that they are a team helps not only cut down the hours, but also helps enhance the experience.

“Greg and I are in this together and I think this is the best part of it,” Annalisa expresses. “We have defined roles (I assemble the orders, he packs and ships them), and it is fun to share the enthusiasm with your partner.”

Still, with Greg and Annalisa each working full-time jobs, as well as being parents of Alex and Ryan, and running an online retail store that provides excellent customer service – how do they do it?

“We have learned to live on few hours of sleep!” Greg replies, smiling.

And he admits that time management is a huge issue.

“When you start the venture, you have a lot of energy and you look forward to working,” he begins. “Later on, the nuts and bolts of everyday operations can be heavy.  Keeping an eye on the horizon and remembering why you wanted to start the venture in the first place is critical.

“If we aren’t having fun anymore, then we will stop,” he asserts. “If the business seriously takes away time we want to spend with each other, the kids, friends, or family, then we need to seriously reconsider going forward."
 

“The competition is brutal,” Greg states. “You see an online scrapbook store popping up every day and you have to ask yourself: What makes my site different? Why should consumers come to us rather than going somewhere else?

“When we attempt to create an original atmosphere and community, it’s always a target for copying and emulating,” he says matter-of-factly. “If something works, others will use it.  With the accessibility of the web, you are openly exposed, so it is very difficult to keep anything proprietary.

“The best defense to this is to be creative and innovative,” he continues. “This starts from recruiting talented and loyal members for a Design Team.  These members really add a great deal to the site, and offer great creative inspiration to the community. 

“Other key members are challenge or contest moderators to keep things exciting in the community.  We also like to give the members incentives to be involved, and this can really demand creativity.”

“Ultimately we are trying to cultivate a community that we are proud to be part of, but in the end it is the members that establish this essence,” expresses Annalisa. “Therefore, you really need to listen to your members, because they really are the ones to please, and they are more than willing to tell you what they want.  Having open ears can take you along way.

“Finally, understanding what the competition is doing is very important,” she stresses, “but it is crucial not to get caught up in trivial competitions, but to rather really focus on your business and your customers.”

Greg agrees. “From the business side, we really don’t attempt to compete on price,” he says. “Everyone pays the same for the products, and charges basically the same price.  What sets people apart is service, and we will always offer greater-than-expected customer service, often same-day shipping (this is not easy when you remember that we both work full-time!), without incidence at the actual shipping costs, both domestic and international.

“And we will keep adding to our inventory and keep it in stock,” he continues, “so our customers will always have a reason to shop here and be able to shop in confidence, regarding security and ability to find the products they want.” 
 

“It is key to really have a good plan,” Greg begins. “Do your homework, research, and communicate with as many people as you can about business in general, as well as the industry.  Understand the requirements, both personal and financial, to really make a go at it.”

Annalisa agrees that research and planning are necessary. “We see way too many businesses popping up in this industry, especially online, that don’t have a clear plan and haven’t put enough thought into the product offering, or the financial requirements,” she says.

“Finally, make sure that you are doing it because you want to have fun,” Greg advises. “Not because you want to be rich, be your own boss, or be famous.  None of that is going to happen to any of us, so get that out of your mind right at the start!”
 

“Industry research forecasts Scrapbooking to be a 12 billion dollar industry in 5 to 7 years, I believe,” Greg says. “Many people may disagree where exactly that growth will come from.  I can definitely see online shopping and communities having significant growth. This might happen with the consolidation of a number of sites, along with the increasing of membership on the ‘top-performing’ sites.  However, when these communities get too big, people get lost, and look for a smaller, more satisfying atmosphere.

“There are definitely enough ‘scrappers’ out there to populate all of these communities, but the level of commitment it takes to really keep these going is enormous,” he says.

“I can also see the advent of large warehouse type scrapbook retailers like ReCollections impacting the scrapbook enthusiasts’ dollar,” he continues. “One can also see that these stores may introduce the craft to many new potential scrappers, and therefore increase the size of the market.”
 

Greg and Annalisa are committed to continuing to provide members and shoppers with an exceptional experience.

They are also in the process of entering the manufacturing side of the industry. The two are working on designing an original line of products focusing on the Italian scrapbooking community, expected to debut later in 2004.

Whether you want to shop the store, experience the online community, or take your shot at scoring points in The Essence Challenges,
please pay a visit to
The Essence of Memories

And tell them Fun Facts Publishing sent you!

 

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