Flat Out of Heels, LLC Founder & CEO Dawn Dickson created Flat Out of Heels rollable flats out of necessity. Dawn was volunteering at an event on South Beach dressed to the nines in sixinch heels. After standing for six hours her feet were on fire and she desperately searched for a place to purchase some affordable flats and couldn’t find anything under $100.
It was at that moment that Dawn set out to create a fashionable, durable and must-have rollable flat that was chic and sturdy enough for everyday use.
Create she did, and Flat Out of Heels has taken the ballet flat world by storm and has become a favorite among celebrities and trendsetters alike. In 2013, Dawn launched her Shopify store to make Flat Outs available to women all over the world. She has sold over 20,000 pairs since May 2012.
How did you earn your first sales? Which channels are now generating the most traffic and sales for you?
Our first sales were earned from posting on Facebook and social media. To date, social media and celebrity and customer endorsements continue to be our #1 revenue driver.
In May 2014 Kandi Burress of Real Housewives of Atlanta gave Flat Outs to everyone at her wedding to rescue their feet after hours in heels and she posted on social media about how much she loves them. This resulted in a spike in sales. Additionally, Dawn was featured on CNBC series 'The Biz Fiz' and the company received a tremendous publicity as a result.
Tell us about the back-end of your business. What tools and apps do you use to run your store? How do you handle shipping and fulfillment?
Since Shopify is so easy to integrate with many fulfillment companies it makes our backend system seamless. We use a 3rd party fulfillment company to ship web orders and we rely heavily upon Shopify discount tools and account tools to stay in touch with and engage our customers. Shopify has excellent reporting tools that allows us to track customer orders and reward them for their loyalty.
What are your top recommendations for new ecommerce entrepreneurs?
Make your page professional and visually appealing
Choose a payment system that is easy for the customer to use
Give customers the option to set up accounts so they can manage orders and set preferences
Take advantage of the many add ons available and upgrade your Shopify to get maximum benefits