Designs by Nature Gems CDAP

Designs by Nature Gems' vision is to champion Canadian art crafted by local artists.

Client

Designs by Nature Gems is a bohemian boutique in Toronto that combines passion, beauty, craftsmanship, and a love for raw natural crystals to offer high-quality Canadian handmade artisan jewelry globally.

Brief

Designs by Nature Gems applied to the Boost Your Business Technology Grant from the Canada Digital Adoption Program (CDAP) for an opportunity to receive the following: 

1. A grant of up to $15,000 covering 90% of the costs for a digital adoption plan developed by a registered digital advisor (me);

2. Up to $100,000 in interest-free loans from the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) to help implement their digital adoption plan;

3. $7,300 in wage subsidies for each youth (18 - 30) hired to help execute its digital adoption plan.

Challenge

Because over 80% of Designs by Nature Gems' revenue comes from Amazon, when Amazon changed its algorithm, it dramatically impacted Designs by Nature Gems' bottom line, resulting in staff layoffs. Designs by Nature Gems wants to diversify its revenue channels to prevent this from happening again. It also plans to create new brands with unique websites and target audiences without increasing staff, so it wants to improve efficiencies across its operations.

Strategy

Designs by Nature Gems is a woman-owned business. The founder conceptualized the company in 2014, designing and crafting jewelry part-time on the weekends, eventually turning it into a full-time business with employees. In 2023, she received the 2023 Female Entrepreneur of the Year TITAN Women in Business Award. In 2022, she won the Stevie Award for Fastest Growing Company. She often shares her expertise at the Women's Enterprise Organizations of Canada (WEOC).

Designs by Nature Gems' vision is to champion Canadian art crafted by local artists. It rejects the idea of the 'starving artist,' firmly believing that art is a vital part of our world and every artist deserves fair compensation.

Designs by Nature Gems sells its products through Amazon, Etsy, and Faire. It practices sustainable and ethical business practices, such as minimizing waste production, revitalizing the local economy by hiring local employees, working with local crystal shops, and sourcing raw materials from sustainable sources.

Results

I've listed recent Shopify feature enhancements (the Shopify Winter 2024 Edition comes with over 100 foundational product updates) and Shopify-approved apps to supplement and enhance its current processes. These updates offer more effective purchase conversion rates, ensuring that Designs by Nature Gems can earn more revenue and better attribute its marketing performance.

For a direct-to-consumer handmade jewelry market in North America, where competition is more intense and reaching the right audience is crucial, I recommended Designs by Nature Gems increase its advertising media spending to match its projected revenue growth.

I've recommended order management systems (OMS) to help Designs by Nature Gems manage operational efficiencies through its increasing sales volume.

The Designs by Nature Gems implementation roadmap includes work plans, timelines, dependencies, technology, implementation, and training costs for moving forward with the recommendations. In addition, I recommended hiring staff to help execute the Digital Adoption plan using the CDAP wage subsidy.