Craft Fair: What Sells?

[julie Graf]

good advice phil.

i'd also say have a range of price points.
i do festivals - art festivals, not craft shows - and it seems people go for the higher end stuff.

have something unique. if it's like other peoples stuff, then you are in competition.

most of all - do it well. if it's not well done, it will be hard to get your money out of it.

it will take trial and error to get some "hot" products, but if you do, it can be fun and worthwhile.

[Phil Clark]

My experience is with both craft and farmer's markets, the latter being the most successful for me. At our market we have vendors selling whimsical items, outdoor furniture and screen doors, toys, pens, and chain carvings. The outdoor furniture and chanin carvings are by vendors who make a living with their wares. The venor selling screen doors sells 15 - 20 a season at $650+ each and then charges for installation.

[Tim Dorcas]

Mostly I build things for myself. I make a lot of boxes and generally give those away as presents. This year I've been thinking I might try to sell some stuff and take an order or two. Woodworking is most definitely a fantastic hobby but it is also very expensive. I don't want to think how money I have spent just on tools in the last two years.

While I agree that turning my hobby into a "profit center" would quickly make it not fun. I do think if I want to make this affordable it's worth it to sell a piece or two here and there.

For those that currently sell your work either at crafts or arts fairs, do you still enjoy what you do? Is this a secondary income hobby or is the primary way in which you earn your living?

Tim

[Bob DiGiacomo]

I am not looking for a full time Career. I am a shop teacher, and it is one of the most rewarding jobs there can be for a WW. However, I have my summers off and tinker with the idea of getting in making some crafts. I made some signs that sit on the moldings of doorways, and sold them on ebay. They only sold for a few bucks and I had all the trouble of mailing them all over the country. I have also made some plant stands, but they take a few hours to make and no one wants to Pay $75 for them. So, now I am toying with the idea of maybe a consignment shop, but I am wondering what to make. I like the idea of being original, and finding your own niche, but I'm not sure what will sell. So if you have any more ideas or pictures of small items that will sell let me know please post them.

P.S. I am also interested in the easiest finish to apply to these projects.

[Robert Waddell]

I like the idea of being original, and finding your own niche, but I'm not sure what will sell. So if you have any more ideas or pictures of small items that will sell let me know please post them.

P.S. I am also interested in the easiest finish to apply to these projects.

Bob,
Please understand that those of us doing this as a business are not going to share what we know so everyone else can copy it. There's way too much of that now. At one show I ran three people out of my booth with cameras trying to copy my stuff in the first two hours of the show. People are always looking for short cuts to success. Success in this area comes from selling your own art. If you are the only one selling the product then you control the pricing at a point that sustains you. We're all guilty of being influenced by what we see others making. The key is to take all that imput and make it your own. Almost anything will sell if marketed right and you spend the time to research what the customer picks when given choices. And then there is the "you" factor. I've seen great ww'ers that don't sell because they are not comfortable around people. I've seen some not so great ww'ers sell like crazy because they know how to engage people.
Packaging and wheither you take credit cards have a great deal to do with sales as well.
Lastly and probably most importantly is the venue sellection. Volumes could be written about show selection and retail. It is an art all on it's own. Knowing your target customer and knowing where they will be is probably the biggest variable that translates into sales.

One other thing that was mentioned in another post regarding using CNC to produce craft items. I got nothing against CNC, it has it's place in manufacturing, but in the craft show world it is considered by most as cheating. Any serious art and craft show would not jury in work done by that method if they can tell it was produced that way. The work is to be handcrafted. That means the work piece and /or the machine is under the control of the craftsman. In using CNC, the computer controls the cut and supports the work piece while the operator, who's suppost to be a craftsman, takes a break.

Rob

[Phil Sanders]

Julie:

Thank-you for the kind words.

Bob:

...I am a shop teacher.... However, I have my summers off and tinker with the idea of getting in making some crafts. ...but I am wondering what to make. I like the idea of being original, and finding your own niche, but I'm not sure what will sell. So if you have any more ideas...

Let's go with the school teacher thing...
What ever you sell, you will be selling as a summer income for a Teacher...
That means you are selling something that informs the general public about wood working....

Off the wall, and I know coming at you from far left field....
fancy craft made saw horses.

I Read once (Fine Woodworking) there are three traditional saw horses: Rough Carpenter's, finisher carpenter's, and painter's (paper hanger's).
Each type has it's own style, height, and splay width of the legs.

(example: Carpenter's saw horse is a bit under knee high, because the lumber is held on the saw horse with the knee. Also the legs splay (at a compound angle) out at most 12 inches wide so it can go between studs at a home being built. The top is wide, a 2X6 on it's side. A painter's saw horse is high, long, and the top is narrow, so a plywood top can be stretched between two for a wall paper work bench. Guess which of the three styles uses carpet scraps on it's top so it won't mar the interior doors.)

You craft show talk about compound angles of the legs, and angle layouts. You could talk for long time about traditional craftsmanship, and modern woodworking power tools...Yada, Yada, Yada.

Will they sell? heck if I know... But they might!
Light weight, pine wood cheap (southern Yellow if you can), easy to make, and finish should be basis also.

Oh, link to painter's saw horse:
link to Roy Underhill's "Woodwright Shop" saw horse pdf
(I hope it is OK to post a link to a PBS TV show. If not a moderator can delete this whole paragraph.)

Of course you will have to figure out how to fold the legs for your customer's to take to their cars...
And also, make the design something to call your own. As a school shop teacher.

Now, think it through for yourself, and you may come up with your own idea.
Phil

[Rob Will]

Many State Parks around the country have gift shops that sell handmade items from that state.

Rob

[ROBERT ELLIS]

Bob,

The question could rightly be asked not only of what sells but also what do I like to make and that sells well. That's the other important aspect of selling crafts is do you like making the things your trying to sell. My point I'm getting at is you really need to like the things your making or eventually you will get burned out with wworking by making only things that are good sellers. This happened to me. For a number of years I made Cherry Furniture for a living and my best seller was the piece I was loathed to make. So my answer was to stop the ww for a living and take a regular job. This break from fulltime ww allowed me to switch gears (actually a 360) and develop a line of very fancy cutting boards. This has brought much joy to my ww again, because now the pressure is off from making a living at it, I can make things that are colorful and fun to make, I have more energy and time to market these at my own pace and get to use up a lot of scrap wood I have been hording up in the shop for years.

Something you'll want to consider and I highly recommend is develop some pieces you like to make and submit them to be juried by the professionals. I don't know about your state, but here in Kentucky we have probably one of the (or maybe the best) best craft marketing programs in the nation. It's a state run agency and Ky puts a lot of focus into making it a good tool for the craftperson. A couple of years ago I submitted my cutting boards to be juried by their program, and ultimately (wasn't a shoe-in like I thought I would be) won their seal of approval. It opens lots of doors and invites to the finer craft shows. Right now I don't know if I will do ww again for a living (it seems once it gets in your blood you can't really ever shake it) but if I do I hope to avoid some of the earlier pitfalls I experienced when I done it full time a couple of years ago.

p.s. Some really good responses to your thread...a lot of good reading keep them coming!

Robert

[Richard Dragin]

If you choose to do this plan on having two hobbies or activities. One is actually making stuff the other is doing the show which is a subculture and activity unto itself. There are two types of shows you can do, one is where the visitors have to pay to get in, the other is an open show where people can just walk through. If people are paying to get in you will have a more upscale show where visitors are more educated to craft work and appreciate hand made items. The shows will generally not allow resale so you won't be next to someone selling scented candles and dream catchers, much better for wood workers I believe. These types of show will be more expensive to show at and you should probably gain experiance at smaller shows first.

As to what sells for a profit.....

Turnings tend to be fast to produce, bowls and pens.
Cutting boards can have a low cost of materials.
Really nice boxes, bandsawn or otherwise.
Custom signs.

The best sellers I have seen are inlay work. This is especially true for juried shows where awards are presented. Anything can have inlay from signs to furniture and it seems to comand a premium.

[Pat Germain]

I think Robert's comments are spot-on. While I've never sold woodcrafts, I have travelled most of the country and much of the world. I've seen a lot of people selling lots of stuff; everything from locals selling bits of glass and rubber on the sides of the roads in Kenya to elitist artists asking tens of thousands for abstract nonsense in Europe.

Venue and area are crucial. For example, my sister-in-law lives in a small, rural town in Southeast Kansas. There is no local industry. There are very few jobs. Nobody around there has much money. Even the nicest woodcrafts aren't going to sell there.

Here in Colorado, very wealthy people visit to ski, climb, snowshoe, camp and just take in the mountain scenery while lounging at a spa. Such people will spend a lot of money on a unique, handcrafted woodcraft: especially if it's got an elk, moose or bear on it! Thus, "know your customer" seems to be the first priority here.

Wooden toys just might be a very good market to tap right now. Many parents are fed up with lead-tainted and recalled toys coming from China. Toy stores are reporting their customers want to know where the toys were made and prefer 'Made in the USA'. Little Tykes toys are doing well because, amazingly, they are still made in the USA. Even more amazing is parents will pay more for that American flag logo. I think a well-made sign reading 'Hand crafted locally with safe, non-toxic materials' would go a long way for that little toy train set.

[julie Graf]

i agree with the location comment. location and venue. if you want high end prices, you need to be in a high end venue.

i just moved to a small town - not very "rich" (which is why i moved here - cheap housing!)

anyway, showing some neighbors the stuff i make, they were amazed at the prices. this is the art festival stuff - one item i sells for between $45-90, and she was shocked that i could sell something for that price. shocked.

But go to the "big city" and people think it's a great deal!

[Walt Nicholson]

Bob, you mentioned what type of finish to use. I made some quilt racks (floor standing and wall mount) and plant stands for donations for a church bazaar. A neighbor gave me a 1/2 full can of Zinsser Quick 15 (alklyd varnish) and I was very happy with the finish for these types of projects. The best part is that it dries hard in 15 minutes and you can re-coat 3 times in one day if you need to. I used 2 coats on oak and pine and everyone was very happy with the finish. It is not the final finish for fine furniture but it is great if you are cranking out a lot of projects in a short amount of time.