#HoCo16 in the Books

I think it's safe to say that HoCo16 Mum season is over for me. I haven't gotten an order in over a week. Last mum went out the door one week ago today. There is certainly still a chance that I could create mums during basketball season, that is when some schools have their homecoming.

I tallied the season's results this morning:
- 50 mums and garters total! That is double what I made last year, and was my original goal for this season.
- 19 schools! To me, this is the coolest! I only actively market to 6 schools.
- I shipped mums to 4 different states, Three in Texas, one to Kansas, one to Indiana and one to Michigan. Also just super cool!

Last year, I worked part time and I made 25 mums. I had to turn down 12 orders. This year, one of my goals was to not turn any orders down. My intention was to pre-make mums and sell them at a community tailgate. The tailgate did not materialize and my mind could not wrap itself around pre-making mums. I thought too much about it and in the end didn't make any. This year, I am working full time and I had to turn down 15 orders! Every one of those killed me just a little bit.

This year, I set stricter policies and for the most part, stuck to them. Setting boundaries in business protects everyone.

This year, I learned to ask for help and to accept it and the help was amazing!

I had a couple of major screw ups this year. I misspelled a sweet little girl's name. The really bad thing is that it was a mum that was a gift from me to her mother, who passed away before homecoming. I didn't even notice until I saw her on Instagram. Just mortifying. I had to refund two customers because I was working on their mums until 4/4:30 and I just couldn't see straight anymore. I left a lot of extras off because it was better, in my mind, to leave them off than to put them on and to be all screwed up. And then, there was the misunderstanding about a bear. I made a super cute dressed bear, and when the customer came to pick up, she stated they didn't want a bear at all. ACK! It was totally my fault. I did not read her messages clearly. Moral of the story is that that will be a change I am making - Leave a larger notes section in the order form instead of relying on emails and texts and FB messages. ugh.

Looking forward, I will be making some adjustments to what is offered at the different levels. More on the Texas-sized and less on the Supers. I will likely leave the Classics the way they are. I am also introducing what I will call the Middle School Special. I had a couple of orders from middle school parents that were custom because they didn't see the need for full size mums and garters and I tend to agree. I will definitely make some last minute mums and garters and hold those in reserve for those kids that are asking one another to homecoming on Wednesday. And next year, I will take vacation during our local homecoming week. That 4:00 am pickup was just the limit of ridiculousness, how I got through work that day is a total mystery.

Here are a few mums and garters that I am particularly proud of. And then, I have to get some cool weather gear up in my store! It is finally "fall" in Texas.