{"id":7391,"date":"2026-05-08T12:23:03","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T10:23:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jimdo.com/blog\/?p=7391"},"modified":"2026-05-08T12:26:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T10:26:25","slug":"selling-online-as-a-craft-business-claudias-story-with-jimdo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jimdo.com/blog\/selling-online-as-a-craft-business-claudias-story-with-jimdo\/","title":{"rendered":"Selling Online, Staying Offline: Claudia\u2019s Journey with Jimdo"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Anyone who meets Claudia Voss for the first time immediately notices: this is someone who truly lives what she does. Since 1997, the 57-year-old has been running HUTWILLER<\/a> in Kiel – one of the last traditional millinery businesses in Northern Germany, with its main store on D\u00e4nische Stra\u00dfe and a small branch in the seaside town of Eckernf\u00f6rde. What once started as a small shop with old carpets and wooden cabinets has grown into a thriving craft business with nine employees, a growing online store, a loyal Instagram community, and an owner who isn\u2019t afraid to speak uncomfortable truths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Claudia discovered her passion for craftsmanship in school while sewing as a hobby. She originally wanted to become a tailor and applied to HUTWILLER without even fully knowing what a milliner does. What followed was love at second sight:<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfter three years, it had such a hold on me that I just couldn\u2019t walk away.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n After completing her training, she stayed with the company and quickly realized she didn\u2019t want to work in high-end design. Instead, she chose to create practical headwear \u2014 \u201cnot for events, but for everyday life.\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When her boss had no successor in the family, she offered Claudia the business but with one condition: she had to earn her master craftsman certification first. The path was long: evening classes, weekends, and sometimes waiting years for the rare courses available to milliners. In January 1997, she passed her exam. In February, she took over the business at just 29 years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Claudia doesn\u2019t sugarcoat things. When asked what she loves about being self-employed, she answers honestly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBeing self-employed is a real challenge. It truly means you\u2019re \u2018on your own and always on.\u2019 You have the business on your mind basically 24\/7.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n And yet, her work continues to fascinate her. There are more ideas than time, more work than hands. But she wouldn\u2019t have it any other way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Beyond her craft, Claudia is deeply committed to an issue close to her heart: fighting the decline of local retail in German city centers. When a friend in L\u00fcneburg had to close her store, and more small businesses on Instagram began sharing their struggles, Claudia took action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She cleared out both shop windows and replaced the displays with large posters showing what it might look like if HUTWILLER no longer existed. The message was clear: if you don\u2019t support us, we\u2019ll be gone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf we don\u2019t start giving retail a voice, it will quietly disappear, and no one will say anything.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The reactions were mixed, but loud. Customers came in worried, asking if the store was closing. Local newspapers reported on it. Sat.1 filmed a segment. Other shop owners asked to use the posters themselves. Government? No response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Claudia took that in stride and kept going. Because human connection is what drives her. As someone who always chooses the staffed checkout at the supermarket and knows the cashier by name, she says:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA smile from a person triggers something in your body. You don\u2019t get that sitting in front of a computer.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Claudia never planned to have an online store. As a craft business, it simply wasn\u2019t part of her world until just before COVID, when something changed. Not because she had to, but because she found a solution that felt right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m a craftswoman, not a computer person\u2014but with Jimdo, I was still able to build my own website and online store.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Jimdo customer since 2020<\/p>\n\n\n\n She chose Jimdo for a simple reason: she liked the design templates. Clean, not overloaded, aligned with her aesthetic. And most importantly, she could do everything herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI didn\u2019t have to hire anyone to build a website for me. I saved the cost of an agency entirely. For small businesses, that makes a huge difference.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Other providers would have charged between $4,000 and $6,000, often for a website she wouldn\u2019t even be able to manage herself. For Claudia, who knows exactly what she wants down to the millimeter, that wasn\u2019t an option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is my website. My craftsmanship and my personality are in it. I liked Jimdo\u2019s templates, and I can still change colors, update content, and adjust the shop seasonally anytime I want.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Claudia runs her Jimdo online store differently from typical e-commerce businesses. Only 10\u201315% of her products are available online: the most special pieces, handcrafted items, and premium products. The rest? Only in-store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe online shop is like a business card, but one that also generates revenue.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The idea is simple: the shop shouldn\u2019t replace the physical store; rather, it should spark curiosity. Someone who discovers a wool hat or a handmade Panama hat online should think, \u201cI need to go there.\u201d And anyone who visited HUTWILLER while on vacation in Kiel can easily reorder their favorite piece from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What sounds like a simple feature is, for Claudia, a true game-changer:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI can showcase products on Instagram and link them directly to my online shop\u2014that works really well for us.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nFrom Sewing to Master Craftswoman: A Calling That Stayed<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
What Self-Employment Really Means<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
Standing Up for Local Retail: Claudia\u2019s Window Campaign<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
The Website as Craft: Why Jimdo Was the Right Fit<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n
\n
The Online Store: A Business Card That Generates Revenue<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nInstagram Meets Jimdo: A Powerful Tool for Small Businesses<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\n