Running a Business in a Studio Apartment

If you've been here a while you know I moved to Dallas about a year and half ago now (how time flies!). Into a less than 500 square foot studio apartment at that. 

L&K has fully taken over my house but I’d like to think I’ve disguised it well. My pantry holds envelopes and shipping supplies. Under my bed in plastic tubs is market supplies and displays. And half of my closet holds all my inventory.

There are definitely days where I feel overwhelmed by my business but here are the things & practices that have helped me stay sane in such a small space.

1. Everything needs a home. Obviously this is hard when you first move into any space but the more I had designated places for things the better my sanity was. It’s not so much knowing where things are, as it is knowing where to put them away. Knowing where they live makes cleaning up so much easier. Things can’t just be haphazardly about the house anymore because they have a designated home.

2. Bins and plastic tubs are your best friends. This is two parts. 1. Keeping things contained and with their alike items. Nothing is worse than having to run around the entire house looking for that one thing that goes with the other thing, ya know? Part 2. Is being able to stack. Stacking tubs saves sooo much space! Before I got shelves for all my inventory I used plastic tubs. Kept my floors clean and left some breathing room. Just be sure to label them! 

3. If you can, invest in storage/shelving. Speaking of shelves, the shelves I got for my inventory have been a game changer. I got the classic Ivar shelves from ikea and some cardboard piece bins for all my cards. Being able to see my product (and not have to move all six tubs to get to the bottom one every time) not only lets me see what inventory I have but it keeps me motivated. There’s something about being able to walk into a space and see what I created that reminds me to keep going. Wouldn’t be a Katie blog without something a little sappy right? Haha.

4. Take advantage of the space (& and the circumstances) that you have. I live alone and luckily my apartment came with lots of storage. I don’t need a full, to the ceiling, pantry. So the lower half became envelope storage. My closet (walk in) is big enough for two people. I don’t need that much space so that became storage. See what I mean? Now if I lived with a partner or roommate it would be a different story but I can take advantage of this space for the time being.

Was that helpful? I hope it was! To those also running a business in a small space I feel you! It’s tough but it makes us resourceful - a good skill for any business owner to have!