Recent Oakland University alumnus Elizabeth Foster has been booked and busy. Since the dreaded year of 2020, Foster has been focused on her small business, Craft-E.
Upon the arrival of the pandemic, Foster was sent home from her dorm room at Oakland, and it did not take long for the boredom to set in. She soon began selling her artwork to family and friends. Her successes in selling her pieces later expanded her sales to a slightly wider clientele.
“It’s helpful to be able to do it from a very close net,” Foster said. “I wasn’t trying to reach people on the other side of the world. I was just trying to reach people who have an interest in my business.”
Foster utilized the graphic design and advertising skills she had learned from her classes at OU and her time at The Oakland Post to expand her business. Foster continued to create more unique and personalized designs, taking inspiration from social media and successful businesses.
Foster was able to pre-make designs for every season and holiday and bring them to craft shows to sell. While she still took personalized orders, it was easier to pre-make the merchandise so potential customers could see and recognize her talent.
By selling holiday items, Foster hoped craft show attendees would place an order online and show off their items to friends and family.
“Before I did the craft shows, I was making everything on a custom basis,” Foster said. “I was only creating things that people had requested of me saying, ‘Hey, I want to give this to my friend,’ so I did their name and some flowers on it. But, when I was looking into doing the craft shows, I realized I can’t bring my Crucuit on the spot, so I had to do pre-made designs.”
Foster manages her business operation independently. In fact, part of her time at OU was spent working towards opening her own business.
While it may have been unknown to her at the time, Foster’s advertising minor had set her up for greatness, even before deciding to start her own business.
“I took a few marketing and advertising classes for my minor, so it definitely helped me in terms of how to present my business,” Foster said. “I would say I use some of my graphic design skills for the business because I have to obviously create the design digitally before I can cut them out, but yeah, OU definitely helped how I present and do my small business.”
While she was at OU, Foster had to create a senior thesis. This thesis came in the form of a children’s book, which Foster wrote and drew herself. She spent three weeks working on the book to make it just perfect.
Foster hopes one day, she will be able to publish and sell her children’s book on Amazon. Until then, the book sits lonely on her shelf, giving her a much-needed break after working tirelessly on its perfection.
It was only this summer Foster began attending craft shows, but she is looking forward to attending as many as she can this winter. Since she has graduated, Foster can spend more time focusing on her art and business.
For more information about Elizabeth Foster and possible inquiries, please visit her website.
