Aurora Hope Pins is an online business that caters to the fandom of the Korean band – BTS. A fan since 2016, the owner of the online store – Nitisha Sham, creates and designs BTS themed jewellery, T-shirts, and griptoks.
Her speciality -dainty, subtle, self-designed jewellery made out of stainless steel has been winning the hearts of the fandom for more than 2 years now.
We talked to Nitisha and learnt 7 tips that every fan who wants to sell to their fandom should know!
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Take the leap
There will be a thousand reasons not to start something new. Nitisha Sham also had her own reservations before she started Aurora Hope Pins.
She had no prior experience in running a business. She was studying physiotherapy, and it was expected that she would also start a career in that field.
Nitisha did not have external funders and she had no idea how her small business would fare.
What she did have:
- The spirit of a fan and immense love for the K-Pop band – BTS
- The knowledge that she had design skills
- A knack for creativity that she translated into her jewellery designs
- A supportive family who gave her the initial capital that she needed to start something of her own
She had heard the quote somewhere “if you never start, you don’t know where you could have reached”. What started out as a side business and hobby for Nitisha, is her main source of income today.
Not only that, she has a thirty thousand strong community on Instagram and also has the support from thousands of other BTS fans (or as they are called “Army”) out there who believe in her and her work.
Be consistent in your niche
When you are part of a fandom, you belong to a community. There are physical and invisible symbols that bind you together. For someone outside the fandom, the symbols would make no sense. Whether it is certain phrases, certain songs, dialogues, characteristics etc. It is like a secret language that only you and your fellow fandom members know about.
Nitisha leveraged exactly this. She wanted to connect and sell to only BTS armys with her online store.
“Even though I have creativity, if I made designs for normal jewellery wear for a larger audience, I would be competing with millions of brands out there. But since I make distinctive designs that are recognized and appreciated mainly by the people of the fandom, it’s easier for them to emotionally connect to it and then buy it” – Nitisha
Staying consistent about the niche you are in helps your brand gain credibility and face lesser competition. Plus, true fans would understand why the products are priced the way they are.
Related read: Download this free eBook for a step-by-step guide on setting up your own online business from scratch.
Recognize your unique strengths
Nitisha’s designs are one of a kind. She personally designs each jewellery piece, and then according to customer demand and feedback, restocks those products.
One of her most popular products – the ‘love yourself’ necklace saw 75 units being sold out in an hour!
This kind of popularity only comes when the creator truly understands what their customer wants, and is able to give them a product that cannot be obtained anywhere else in the market.
“You should learn from your competitor, but don’t copy them. Get inspired by other brands, and gain skills. But when it comes to your own marketing strategy and your own product designs, staying unique will be the only way your business thrives” – Nitisha
Related read: How to sell jewellery online in India: Tips and LIVE examples
Instagram is your superpower
Nitisha has a robust social media presence. The discovery of her online store is primarily through the channel – Instagram.
Her Instagram strategy is not limited to just posting the images of her products, she regularly engages with her fellow armies on the platform, discusses BTS and their achievements, shows sneak peeks of her upcoming products and also supports other small businesses in the fandom.
If there is a design that Nitisha is planning to launch, she teases the product on Instagram to get pre-orders and tries to gauge the audience’s sentiment toward the product. This helps her manage inventory better.
Another factor that doubled Nitisha’s Instagram followers was – Reels. Even though Nitisha was quite hesitant initially, she took the leap (circling back to the first tip) and just started recording videos about her products and putting them out with trending audio.
Aurora Hope Pins is the perfect example of how you can use Instagram reels to grow your business on Instagram.
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Don’t chase numbers
Another pro tip given by the owner of Aurora Hope Pins was that numbers are not everything. Her followers on Instagram are proof of her community building, however, she has never chased the numbers. Her work, her ethics and her dedication attracted people to her online store.
She doesn’t like keeping a close watch on profit margin, order numbers etc. Even though she does give these metrics importance, they don’t form the crux of her business aspirations.
by ARMY, for ARMY
thank you so much for supporting us, borahae! 💜
For Aurora Hope Pins, the purpose of the brand is to make another army happy, and not numbers.
Not to mention, if a member of BTS does appreciate her work, it is going to be her wildest dream come true!
Get your own eCommerce website
Aurora Hope Pin’s online journey started out on Instagram. But once its popularity grew, Nitisha began facing common issues like managing orders, responding to people in time, inventory management and keeping track of payments.
A friend recommended the eCommerce website builder to Nitisha, and she was hooked! Here are some of her favourite features of her Instamojo premium store –
- It was easy for Nitisha to set up her store
- She could easily streamline her orders
- The Instamojo dashboard gave her a business overview at any point in time
- She could link her store and her products on her Instagram account
- It was easy for her to share product links or payment links with anyone
- Nitisha loved the 30+ themes that she could now choose from
- Another favourite – mojoplus rewards (A loyalty program for businesses where you can collect reward points when payments are completed, the points can then be used to avail discounts on Instamojo fees, premium apps, coupons and much more)
Want to know more about premium features for Instamojo online stores? Here’s a short video for you!
Start your online business with a free online store on Instamojo and then upgrade to our awesome premium plans!
1 comment
I really like to wear bands. They are light and very easy to carry and also look very elegant. The information provided by you in this article is truly very helpful and I am sure many people will love this article just the way I did reading it. Thank you.