What started out a few years ago as a tentative enquiry into the supply for inexpensive Beading Products for myself & a few of my crafting friends has blossomed into a small online supply business, still aimed primarily at the Beading Community, but also including peripheral products that somehow wormed their way into my initial intention.
Locally (in South Africa & neighbouring states) in the past and until recently the supply of good quality crafting products was limited to larger speciality traders and with the lack of general access to import wholesale products, you can guess the prices were grossly inflated and variety limited. With more smaller traders now having access to online purchasing directly from suppliers, the prices are just getting better by the day. I guess this will level out as soon as the market becomes saturated, this being true of a very large variety of imported crafting products in general.
As far as this concerns myself - No, I am NOT one of the larger traders, nor do I possess a frontend shop. I am a Crafter firstly - buying my supplies in bulk and trading off the excess helps me afford the large variety of beads and findings I have access to. I have kept my initial aim in mind of sourcing nicely priced products to share with fellow-crafters, I do not aim for riches by over-exploiting buyers and will carry on supplying lovely goodies at the lowest pricing I possibly can. With my kids now grown up and left (or busy leaving home), I have time on my hands to perhaps expand a little more, but I will carry on selling from home and online to keep my overheads and prices low.
I do not keep massive quantities in stock as I purchase directly from the factories and am able to supply any larger orders within a waiting period of 14 to 31 days - this gives me time to visit the factories or for them to deliver to me - being a valued, regular customer of theirs, I receive large discounts and preferential delivery which means I can pass my savings on to you, the buyer. I also provide some lovely goodies from China, of variable quality, but if a product does not meet my or buyers approval I invariably discard it and move on to a better quality.
The links on the product pages will take you to my listings on Bidorbuy, an online auction portal where you will be able to view comments and ratings from buyers, and make direct purchases and also to my website, Beads and Baubles.
I recommend this constantly to my regular buyers, please use the search function to compare, compare, compare - you will notice that my prices are reasonably low with a decent variety of goodies being constantly added - but please be aware of what you are purchasing and educate yourself as to the general trend.
Unfortunately I only ship locally in South Africa, the small quantities I supply do not justify the costs of delivery elsewhere - maybe in the future if the exchange rate betters I will consider supplying elsewhere.
Enjoy your browsing experience and hoping to hear from you soon.
Sandy
