Annika Schauer has had quite the year since we last chatted with her.
From serving as a US Diplomat to making the move to Asheville, NC, a growing startup city nestled in the Blue Ridge mountains, she’s kept up her momentum to say the least. When Annika decided it was time to dive into the tech industry via Tech Talent South’s Code Immersion Program, she knew it was a challenge she was ready to tackle head on. Being one of those people who simply does not quit, Annika’s entrepreneurial spirit and eye for solving problems were recognized early on by the TTS team. Naturally, we’ve been cheering her on since!
Annika Schauer, the founder of Beeswax (Photo courtesy of Tech Talent South)
When we heard about her team’s latest venture, we were intrigued. Not just because a lot of our team members are women and when we hear ’Etsy’ something immediately sparks, but because her passion for helping small businesses is pretty on-point to our core values here at TTS! If you’ve ever tried to set up a shop on Etsy, you’ll feel a seller’s pain. So, the idea, you ask? Help Etsy sellers (you know, that company now worth over $3 billion?) quickly and efficiently grow their brand while showcasing their talents through customizable websites that can be set up in a matter of minutes. Insert: Beeswax Websites. We caught up with Annika to chat a little more about what this could mean for Etsy members and what they’re up to leading up to their launch!
1) Tell us a short and sweet bit about what you’ve been up to lately since our last post?
Annika: I’ve been up to lots! I got heavily into web design while I was attending Tech Talent South, and I made over 200 websites in the last year. After I completed the program, I started getting fascinated by search engine optimization, too, so I started following those forums closely. I told Betsy I had a deep interest in helping maker culture thrive, and many of the businesses I built websites for were makers and craftspeople on Etsy with microbusinesses. I thought it would be cool to find a way to automate the site creation process, while still leaving a lot of flexibility and power in the hands of the user. I started a company called BeesWax that does just that. And because the initial site design is automated, it’s incredibly fast and cheap for people who are thinking about getting a website but worried that it will take too much time, money, or effort.
Beeswax is an effortless way for Etsy sellers to create a web presence. (Photo courtesy of Tech Talent South
2) Now, you’re on to launching a new startup business. We definitely want the details on how Beeswax Websites came about…
Annika: I was making websites for a few Etsy sellers here and there. They were complicated, elaborate websites with lots of features. I started to realize that every single Etsy seller needs the same set of standard features to have a functioning website that really helps them grow their brand…
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