Owner: Marti Smith
Company: Ashmart Crafts and Gifts
Phone: (816) 353-3330
Web site: www.ashmartcrafts.com
E-Mail:
Type of Business: Handmade Crafts and Embroidered Apparel

The Business: Ashmart Crafts and Gifts offers primitive, handcrafted merchandise, including everyday, autumn, Halloween, holiday crafts and embroidered apparel. We specialize in Christmas crafts, as well as ladies' sports apparel, fleece sports boxers and embroidered tops in the fall and winter. We use a variety of embellishments such as home spun fabric, rusty bells, rusty stars, cedar garland and rusty star garland to give our crafts a unique style and to remind customers of those "simpler times" in life.

Main Challenge: I started Ashmart Crafts and Gifts after being diagnosed with two illnesses and was told by my doctor that I had to give up my 13-year cleaning business.

I constantly struggle with marketing my business on a slim budget. I also was surprised by how much work and storage space I need. I run the business from my home and garage and travel to craft shows throughout the Midwest. I also am working on my online store and hope to have it up and running by October.

Advice: Write a business plan to make sure your business idea is feasible. After that, be prepared to work long, hard hours. Stick to your goal even when you feel like giving up. It's when things seem the worst that you must not quit.