When you’re a kid you can’t wait for summer. Sleeping in, days of long light, catching a wave at the beach, ice cream trucks to rush out to. When you’re a on line shop owner your still sleeping in, only now it’s to avoid turning on your computer. Those days of light turn into the long journey till Fall and coming up with creative ways to fill your formally busy working hours. Catching a wave might would be nice. Catching a break would be better. Chances are if you spot a woman in her fifty’s chasing a ice cream truck in the next few months she sells online, if she’s also covered in rhinestone bracelets and a diamond tiara it’s probably me.
The end of May had me subconsciously humming “I wish that I had Jessie's Girl” and I knew with 100 percent confidence I was, “The woman like that”. By June 3rd it was “Old man River”. Yes I even changed genders. While I have a high stress level I do believe my rubber band has snapped. The good news is after the Ruby Lane and Plaza shops where revamped my traffic increased immediately. The bad news is most of those new visitors are coming suited up in coats of armor, yielding swords and ready to battle. I don’t think these people where burned on sites like eBay. I think they where roasted to a crisp. I’ll take trepidation for a 100 Alex. There’s no other worldly explanation for the sheer tone of panic and distrust I’m receiving in my emails.
In a word it is Exhausting. Last month I saved a phone message from a buyer whose tears of joy over a purchase in my lane shop for something she had lost that her mother had given her and searched for months to replace only to find it in my shop and have it be exactly as she had hoped, had me over the moon happy. This month I’m replaying it over and over again as if we just broke up and I need to hang on to the good times. While this to shall pass and you unlike myself might not be terminally menopausal. You may be experiencing some of these same concerns.
I think it will be this way for a while on Ruby Plaza with some trickle down effect to Ruby Lane. Having put over three years of twelve hours plus a day total commitment to having my lane shop be everything I dreamed of a with beautiful carefully selected pieces of quality, show cased in a elegant manner and devoted to customer service, it does bother me that the shops effect each other. However, this also eventually should work to our benefits. Think we have to be prepared for the unexpected onslaught of doubt from buyers that are still trying to figure out what in the world plaza is about.
Between the summer time drought, the only thing, by the way, drier then my skin these days and the added pressure of shell shocked new visitors. One woman had so many questions over a relatively small purchase, I was surprised she didn’t ask me to provide a DNA sample. It’s easy to get distracted from your intent. Do I hear a ice cream truck? No, sorry just a kid’s bicycle bell. While it’s important to enjoy every single day in every way you can. Summers a brief few months and before you know it we will all be Jessie’s girl again.
If you enjoy, my Blogs, for Notes from the Lane, please visit, my blog site: "Vintage Shari Jewelry Sales and Life Tales" http://vintageshari.blogspot.com
Wear me out Vintage Jewels
http://www.rubylane.com/shops/vintageshari
Wear Me Out Vintage Jewels 2 Now
http://www.rubyplaza.com/shops/vintageshari-rp
