Success Story: Anna-lee Kewley from Baby Moo's

Anna-lee Kewley, runs Baby Moo’s, designing and selling baby clothes on her own WooCommerce website.

Why did you start selling online?

I started Baby Moo’s in October 2010 just after I’d had my son. We were at a point where we couldn’t afford for me not to work, but at the same time I couldn't afford to go back to work and cover childcare costs - starting an online business meant that I could work from home.

I started off selling on my own website because I design my own products. I was part of a few parenting forums, so there was a few other mums there that knew me, and they helped me spread the word about my business to others. Then in 2015 I started selling on eBay, as well as Amazon and Etsy.

I also have a physical store, mainly because I was running out of space in my garage. It was actually cheaper to rent out a shop than to rent a big unit, but online is definitely my main focus.

What have been your biggest challenges selling online, and how have you overcome them?

Because we mainly rely on our own website trying to make sure that our SEO is up to date so that we rank well in Google is really hard. It’s constantly changing, so you’re working towards a goal post that’s always moving and it’s beyond your control. You just have to keep on top of it, keep tweaking and adjusting your website.

How do you handle returns?

We have quite a low return rate because of the type of product we sell and our prices are really reasonable, and the products are good quality so people are usually pleased with their items. I also try to describe them really well and use clear photos, so that customers know what to expect. If there is an issue with something you just have to be honest with the customer, and deal with it quickly.

Why do you use Zenstores?

We started using Zenstores Dispatch because we wanted to use Royal Mail 2D barcode labels - especially now that delivery confirmation is coming in. We’ve had a few people getting in touch to say that their items haven’t arrived and it’s turned out some of them were trying it on, and a couple of them had made a mistake in their address, so it’s been saving us money.

I like being able to go back in and check when an order has been dispatched. It saves me from hosting all of the order and shipping information on my website, which is an improvement.

Zenstores Insights is also pretty handy, it’s good being able to see my average order value, which is something I’m always trying to increase. And, it’s really easy to aim for something because you can set the targets.