The Flop That Lead Me to a Bigger & Better Business

Hi! My name is Sabine and I was born and raised in Germany. My husband was stationed there with the military when I was only a teenager and well...I came back to the states with him three years later! I worked full-time in retail and was with the company for 10 years working in all kinds of different job positions. Then, a Facebook friend of mine introduced me to photography and got me hooked with her passion for it. 

When I first started taking pictures I did mainly portrait photography and charged friends (and their friends) just a little bit of gas money. It was only a hobby to me and I would have never thought this could be something to make real money with. Now I have been running a successful Styled Stock Photography/Mockup business for the past two years. I never would have thought that this is what I would end up doing to earn money (especially since my first attempt had clearly failed) but it’s definitely one of the best things that has ever happened to me!

The Business Flop

When my daughter was born I thought I could try to run a portrait photography business. I had nothing to lose since I was going to stay home with her and didn’t plan on going back to my regular job anytime soon. It was scary but exciting at the same time. My photographs were great if I may say so myself! My inner salesperson… not so much. I couldn’t put myself out there to bring clients in and running a business with a baby was not as simple as I thought it would be. My daughter was not the easiest baby and I will be sure to continue to tell her this every chance I get, ha! 

Fast forward three years and my husband and I had a serious talk after going over finances. The conclusion was that either my business would need to take off or I would have to go back to a “regular” job. I was totally crushed. My passion for photography just wasn’t enough to make it all work. My husband didn’t know, but I went to bed crying that night. It was really hard for me to accept my failure at something I enjoyed doing so much. 

The Ah-ha Moment

A couple of weeks later an old friend of mine, who runs Chameleon Cuttables LLC, asked me if I could photograph some mockups for SVG designs. Honestly, I didn’t have the slightest idea what a mockup was and it took me several weeks to really understand what designers and crafters are looking for in a mockup. She made me aware of every little detail that I need to pay attention to so that she would be able to use the images. My friend loved my work (after making me aware of all my mistakes… stock photography for mockups is definitely way different than portrait photography) and told me to try out selling them on Etsy. I had nothing to lose at this point, so I just went for it and I am forever grateful to her for pushing me in the right direction. 

I do pride myself in my images being actually photographed by me and not photoshopped together like so many other mockups out there. This is exactly what my clients have been looking for. Although most of my friends still don’t get what I do, ha! 

The New Business Model

Now I have clients sending me their products from all over the US. I photograph their products for them and send the items back once I’m finished. They use the blank images to digitally place their designs on them and showcase what they are selling on their website and marketplaces. It saves them a tremendous amount of time and money and they also tell me that it makes their stores very attractive to their shoppers. They pay me money to make more money in the end! I love hearing their success stories. 

My work seemed to speak for itself though and people noticed my unique style on Etsy right away. Now I am confident enough, which I had to learn over the years, to agree with my clients. Even when my portrait business failed, it led me to something way bigger and better, something I am sometimes still in disbelief about but so immensely proud of.

Of course, I would like my business to grow and be even more successful. Maybe my husband would like to run a second shop with me after he retires. Maybe my daughter will join us in the future and we can run a family business together! Ok, I am getting ahead of myself here….but a girl can dream!

Mostly, I want my family in the US and in Germany to continue to be proud of me. In Germany, you can’t just start up whatever business you like. The laws are way different there and you actually have to have an apprenticeship even if you try to work at a fast-food chain. So becoming a photographer is not just paying a fee and signing a piece of paper like it is over here. I am so grateful the US gives people more freedom and endless possibilities when it comes to running our own business.

My advice for everyone starting their own business is to be unique! Don’t look at the competition and copy their ideas because it seems to work for them. Find something that is not what everyone else is offering and maybe listen to your friends’ ideas. ;-) You want to stand out and make a name for yourself. Believe in yourself. If it doesn’t work out, try a different route.  And most importantly you have to have a passion for what you do! 

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