I'll just be splitting my items with categories within one store...

One or more stores - that's all up to you. It's a matter of how you want to grow / operate your business.

Thanks for your replies, I would rather keep everything in one store. i was just surprised when I read some of the replies on the etsy board about this subject. Some one said if you have too many things in your store it shows that 'you are a jack of all trades and a master of none and no one will buy from you' that was just one of the comments.

That's a pretty funny comment you mentioned that you found. What's wrong with being jack of all trades? And being a jack of all trades really means a master of none? How about Leonardo DiVinci? That's an old cliche that flies against the popular notion about diversification and limiting risks, doesn't it? There is no right and definitive answer. Some people are great in being broad, while others needs to concentrate.

The full saying is actually - "Jack of all trades, master of none, though oft times better than master of one!", and the origin appears to be 'jack of all trades' being a compliement, and the rest were all added on over time.

Read the boards or internet with caution. Do what is right for you - meaning - you must first feel comfortable. Also, what works for one person doesn't mean that it'll work for another. If there is a formula for success, it would be short-lived, as everyone would replicate it, and nulls out any advantages very quickly. That's why you need to experiment constantly, even when successful.

You can achieve that diversification with multiple stores, but one key thing to consider is multiple stores requires more time/efforts/costs in maintenance, and that's a tradeoff that you need to weigh vs the benefit of specialization.

As for sales - it still all comes down to at least products, price, placement and promotions - the basic 4Ps of marketing. If you have great products, great prices and services and people knows about you - they will look for more, not less.

I am stuck on the issue too.... I make fashion scarves as my primary - however; i do baby items, household decor, some jewelry... as sf1 put it kind of a "Jack of all Trades" - so I am torn as to what to do! My website is based on my scarves but my mini store HTML add will some times show by baby booties..... what to do??!!
As for Etsy forums... I have learned the hard way... do what is right for you... I have listened to the "Advise" (very often not asked for) of others and ended up going back to my way of thinking so I will agree with sf1 on that issue too.... DO WHAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU! So my new theory is... My shop, My site, My Way! May sound "Stuck Up" but if you listen to all the "Chatter" out there it can get very confusing and overwhelming at times and then you.... remember the old saying "You can please some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time" It is a matter of personal taste so if you like it - then it's "All Good"!

Exactly! We're trying to put 'OPTIONS' in your hands and minimize on setting up 'rules'. Business is like life - you can get plenty of opinions and advices, but it's still yours to run.

If you look at overall the directions we're going, it's about customizations. And that means giving you the means to set things up your way. The facilities to do business is built here, and ultimately, it's up to each individual how to best seek and use the opportunities.

Unless some technical constraints, we try to minimize in the interference of your business. We can help give ideas, tips, opinions, but ultimately, the decision is yours. With the upcoming store customizations - it's a further step into that direction, and we're also establishing some other initiatives on the business level to further assist all parties.

Thanks for the info on the mini store. The mini store - that was done before custom categories came out, and perhaps we should modify the mini store to incorporate in the custom categories.

That would be great if you could set up the mini.... certainly would resolve my dilemma on a 2nd store! I really don't have time to manage more than the one, plus, I am forever searching for new ways to promote myself and inbetween all that try to make more scarves :)!!!! Whew!!!
Another thought ... I don't know how hard it would be... but it would be fun to have a seperate page...within one's store... kind of like the old department stores with different floors and departments??... (dating myself now) That way for example I could have a seperate page within my store for by Baby Booties with a look all it's own?? I am sure that would be alot of work... but just me blabbering away!
I always like to be sure to mention that Silkfair has truly been a joy to me! The people here seem so much more friendly and business like! Also I don't feel like I have to be part of the "In" group! Anyway.... thanks again Silkfair and thank you sf1 for being so on top of things!

You're welcome!

With mini store - just queued it on our to-do list.

That separation by department - that's kind of like using the custom category, which you're using. The separate page - what do you have in mind to appear on it? Like a separate banner/splash page? This in a way would tie into the upcoming custom store option and visitor personalization function (visitors can select to view by standard look or whatever's been customized, but that customization will be a different one than the one presented for the custom domain).

Yes.. I think that is what I mean... so if they click on my say Kids Korner folder it would open in a new page as it does now but I could customize it like you said with a banner splash... kid theme but would not replace my store banner, etc. Right?!
That would be so awesome... perhaps a seperate mini for our categories???
Am I asking for too much??lol :)
I just get really into being creative... sometimes I over-kill!
Thanks for all your help and input!!

Understood. Will take quite a bit of time though to get to this developed, and we'll have to analyze to see how we can make this work. But understand the purpose - basically separating out themes/interests without having multiple stores.