Meet Samantha Weiss

We were lucky to catch up with Samantha Weiss recently and have shared our conversation below.

Samantha , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
When I turned 50, I went on a personal journey of self-awareness and self-reflection to find value and meaning in my life. While I have always been creative, it took a willingness to explore new opportunities and get outside my comfort zone to discover that I could use my creativity to enrich the lives of both people and animals. I spent considerable time reflecting on my professional and personal achievements. This helped me identify my strengths and passions and where I wanted to focus my energy going forward. I realized that my values and priorities had changed over time. While professional growth was important to me in my thirties and forties, I was now more focused on personal growth, being creative and giving back to my community.
I am passionate about dogs and have supported dog rescue groups in each city I have called home. Over the years, I have fostered, adopted, and organized multiple fundraisers for local dog rescues. I have seen firsthand the challenges these organizations face with the large number of homeless dogs and the constant need for funds. My heart goes out to these dogs, the rescuers and the shelters. I felt a strong desire to support this important cause and wanted to start a business that would make a difference for rescue dogs.
I started exploring opportunities to develop unique dog themed home décor products that would celebrate the love owners have for their dogs. On the weekends I visited craft stores, experimented with many different materials and spent time on Pinterest. I found the creative process energizing and was excited to experiment with different ideas. The day I started working with coaster tiles, I knew I had found my first product. I was very excited about the endless possibilities to create the coasters with photos and custom images.
After several months of working with different product ideas, I was able to produce a great coaster product. I launched Handmade 4 Good online and offered personalized photo and dog-themed coasters. I differentiated my business by using high quality materials, offering personalized customer service and supporting rescue groups.
In August 2020 I left my corporate job to focus full-time on Handmade 4 Good. Since then, I have expanded my product line and launched several new products including wall art, keepsake boxes and decorative tiles. One of the most popular new products is the stained-glass inspired wall art. I create a large selection of dog, cat and nature-inspired designs and will be adding new designs regularly.
I have had an opportunity to hire and work with amazing team members that are creative and share a passion for animal rescue. As my sales have grown, I have been able to fund a 40-dog rescue transport, sponsor multiple rescue fundraiser events and donate products and funds to support Cody’s Friends Rescue, Archangel Animal Network and SPCA of Texas.
Along this journey, I have also discovered that my products give people joy. When I transform their pet and personal photos into coasters or art, I receive a significant number of personal notes of gratitude and positive reviews. I feel a sense of purpose that I am creating products that people value.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Handmade 4 Good allows me to combine three interests – my love of dogs, my creativity and my passion for supporting dog rescues. I create unique pet-themed home décor products that celebrate the special relationship people have with their pets. Whether it be personalized photo coasters or decorative wall art, my products are handmade and unique. I differentiate my business by providing outstanding customer service experience and offering a wide variety of unique pet-themed designs.

Last year I launched a line of stained-glass inspired pet wall art that has transformed my business and proven very popular. The designs are very realistic looking, and the colors are quite striking. Given the positive customer response, I decided to offer the same designs on coasters, decorative tiles and keepsake boxes. So far, I am encouraged by the sales results and look forward to expanding the number of designs this year.

One of the parts of my business I enjoy the most is giving back and supporting animal rescues and local non-profit organizations. This April I am excited to be one of the sponsors for Cody’s Friends Rescue spring golf tournament and one of the supporting businesses for the SPCA of Texas’s Strut Your Mutt event. I am also partnering with Cody’s by donating magnets for the rescue to sell at The Barking Project mega-adoption event and other events around town.
Last year I volunteered at Minnie’s Food Pantry, a food bank in Plano, TX, and taught a wonderful creative magnet making class to 30 of their clients. The class was very well attended, and the participants had the opportunity to paint and learn paper crafting techniques. Given the positive feedback from participants, I will be teaching additional crafting classes this spring. The classes provide a welcome break for participants who are going through a stressful period to enjoy a creative, free activity.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I have a business education and pricing background that has helped me with several aspects of my business. I take a significant amount of time understanding my costs, and accounting for my own time when setting pricing for my products. It is important not to underprice your handmade products – especially if you have a unique product. I also spend time benchmarking my products and evaluating the competition. Even if you have a bestseller product you should never get too comfortable. It is important to continue to innovate and differentiate your product. There is always the risk of low-cost disruptors and new product entrants that can quickly erode your sales position. Staying on top of product and pricing trends in your category can reduce the risk of being blind sighted by a new entrant.

I have a process improvement mindset, so I am always looking for ways to streamline my business model and improve the customer experience. While it is difficult for a handmade, made-to-order business to automate, there are some steps I have taken to reduce re-work and remove process bottlenecks. Even small changes like creating a dedicated shipping area located near my work area has made a significant difference. In addition, my team does several activities in advance such as pre-making boxes or cutting bubble wrap to have them ready to go. This saved significant time when we were trying to get out close to 100 orders each day during the holiday season.

I have always been willing to take risks with putting out new designs and products. Some were very popular, and others were not. I would encourage those starting out not to be afraid of rejection and to experiment with selling your new products at a show or online. You never know what will be successful so don’t stop being creative. For example, I came up with the idea for a marble tile cardholder when I was experimenting with creating new magnet products. It was elegant and unique, so I decided to put a limited number for sale in my online shop. To my surprise, the cardholders have been very popular for weddings and events and are now one of my best-selling products!

Any advice for folks feeling overwhelmed?
Holiday season can be an especially overwhelming time of year with high order volume and everyone expecting their orders before Christmas. I have found that breaking activities into smaller more manageable tasks works well for me during periods of high stress. I also take the time each morning to write down all the activities I need to accomplish that day. Instead of having all the tasks in my head creating stress, writing down the tasks is a valuable use of my time. It also allows me to group similar activities together and plan out my day. Each time I complete a task, I cross it off and that gives me a sense of accomplishment and motivation to continue. I would highly recommend carving out time to create to do lists and you will feel more in control of the stress and less overwhelmed.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
@atalisamuelphotography

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Resilience
Portraits of Resilience

Sometimes just seeing resilience can change out mindset and unlock our own resilience. That’s our

Productivity
Perspectives on Staying Creative

We’re beyond fortunate to have built a community of some of the most creative artists,

Confidence
Kicking Imposter Syndrome to the Curb

This is the year to kick the pesky imposter syndrome to the curb and move