Young business owner left in tears after failing to sell a single product at her market stall
A small business owner was left wiping away tears after spending an entire day working at a market stall without making a cent.
Caoimhe Stewart, originally from Ireland and who now lives in Sydney, started her activewear brand BEAU last year and recently took her gear to the popular Glebe Markets, in the city’s inner west, thinking she’d make a killing.
She spent $450 to prepare for the day only to end up devastated after failing to make a single sale.
The 27-year-old also had some of her clothes damaged after a shopper accidentally knocked over a rack.
Ms Stewart shared a clip of her market stall to TikTok with the caption: ‘And that’s why I’ll never do a market again’, with a clip showing her wiping away tears.
She said she was ‘so excited’ for the day and arrived hours before the market opened to set up.
Despite the rain, the market was full of potential customers, making it all the more ‘heartbreaking’ when she failed to make a sale.
Things only got worse when a woman accidentally knocked over a clothes rack.
Caoimhe Stewart was in tears after failing to make a single sale from her activewear range
After sharing her horror day out at the markets, Ms Stewart is starting to make sales
‘My gift bags got soaked, my flyers were ruined and, at one point, a lady accidentally knocked over one of my clothing rails into the wet ground, ruining over 40 pieces of clothing,’ she told news.com.au.
‘It was heartbreaking. Not only had I invested so much into the day but losing that much stock also set the business back financially.’
Ms Stewart said she went home completely exhausted, mentally and physically, and ‘had a good cry’.
After she overcame the embarrassment of not making a sale, Ms Stewart decided to share her horror day on TikTok.
Her video attracted more than 78,000 views and 1,500 comments, full of people supporting her with well wishes.
Many also pointed out that Glebe may have been the wrong place to sell activewear and suggested she try the markets at Bondi or Kirribilli instead.
But in a twist of fate, sharing her unsuccessful day out at the markets turned the fortunes of her small business around and the sales have started to come in.
‘Just placed an order after seeing this,’ one person wrote.
Ms Stewart models her own activewear called BEAU
‘I’m so sorry this happened! I will happily buy some of the stock that was dirtied. Your pieces are beautiful,’ another said.
Ms Stewart said she was again feeling ‘excited’ about her activewear label, which she started completely on her own, and some of her products online are now sold out.
‘Seeing other people wearing and loving BEAU is what keeps me going. I’m doing something I truly love and when I see that it’s having a positive impact on others too, it makes everything worth it,’ she said.
