SECRET 16SELL SHOVELS

The ones who make the money are the men who sell the shovels.

—SAMUEL BRANNAN

CANDLETINI

Jan makes candles. Not just any candle, mind you, but candles that look and smell like martinis. You know, the “fashionable” and trendy kind—chocolatini, lemon drop, appletini, and more. She refers to her creations as “candletinis.” And she sells them exclusively on the leading online arts and crafts marketplace Etsy, through which an estimated $1 billion in sales are conducted every year.1

Because most of Etsy’s customers are women, it is the ideal environment in which to showcase her products. Also, Jan doesn’t have to compete against the broad range of categories found on sites like eBay and Amazon. Etsy limits sellers to one of three ...

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