Craft Shows -- a few last thoughts

Well, I have a few last thoughts before I wrap this series up.  I appreciate all the kind feedback and I”m glad that it’s been helpful for some of you!   I was going to split this post up but wanted to get it all finished in March .. JUST made it!!

Plan for easy set up and tear down.  You don’t want to spend a lot of  time getting set up before a show and when it’s done, you’ll be ready to hit the road and head for home.  Craft shows can be a LOT of fun, but they can also be tiring – when it’s over, you’re ready to be out of there!  So, when planning your display, plan for keeping it easy before  and after.  Easy tear down can be especially important for an outdoor show – sudden bad weather can cause you to have to hustle.  We were at a show where a tornado watch closed the show down – we had to get packed and out in minutes!

Plan for security.  Make sure your whole display is easily visible from wherever you are going to stand or sit.  It’s not pleasant to think of people stealing from you, but it happens.  Don’t make your display part of the problem.

Plan for storage.  Not that this will affect your sales at a show, but if you’re considering your display, keep storage in the back of your mind.  You may have a gorgeous display – but if you can’t get it in your vehicle and get it to the show, it won’t help you much.  I’m “space challenged” (I live in an RV full time) so it’s a much bigger consideration for me than for most but just because you have a whole room where you CAN store your displays doesn’t mean that you want to USE a whole room to do it!

If possible, show how your craft will be used.  Some things are obvious – if you make aprons, wear an apron.  If you make jewelry, use some busts.  If you make crocheted hats, put some on mannequin heads.  Something I’m considering (another item on my wish list) is using a digital photo frame in my display that slideshows through photos of my jewelry, including people wearing it.  As I want to do more to market to brides, I can show photos of brides and wedding parties wearing my jewelry.  But I don’t want to limit myself to that – so I’ll also show photos of women in business suits or teen in t-shirts wearing my earrings.

Now, go wander through your local building and craft stores – keep your eyes open for ideas and be prepared to think outside the box.  If you’re not handy, you probably know someone who is – tap those resources.  There are lots of ideas on the internet – some are good, some not so much.  Take your time and think through your display plan.

I have ideas for different types of displays (because we are builders, I spend a LOT of time at Home Depot and Lowes).  If I were selling bath/spa products, I might make a display of risers, maybe 2 steps high, using 4x4" spa green bath tiles – the fronts of each step would be a tile high and the shelf of each step would be a tile deep and to keep the weight and size manageable, I’d make it about 4 tiles long.  If I wanted more display space, I’d make additional units..  Something like this would give the display a spa feel while doing double duty in giving it vertical dimension.  I might also add a tall glass column vase filled with bath puffs or soaps.  The whole display would be in spa green, white and tan and maybe next to the vase, I’d put a seashell.  Add a small stack of folded towels and you’ve got a great display!  If I made candles, I’d definitely use the digital photo idea – you can’t have open flames at most craft shows, so I’d take short digital movies of candles in different settings and play them continuously.  

If you’re having a hard time being objective about your display, you may want to give this a try: set up your display in your garage or backyard, and then PLAY with it.  If you have more than 1 table, move it around in every possible configuration, even if you don’t think it will work that way.  Once you feel like you have a good traffic flow, start arranging and re-arranging the way your display is set up.  And my biggest recommendation here is that you take a picture of EVERY change you make .. in arranging the tables and then arranging your display.  If you have different colored table cloths, try them. If you have or can borrow different colored table skirts, try them.  Use cardboard boxes to stack things.  If you find an arrangement you like, you can use appropriately sized crates or fabric covered boxes or acrylic shelves.  If you don’t use tables, try ladders, shutters, or shepherds hooks.  Could you use a small antique cabinet or an antique child’s chair?   Look around your house and your garage – be open to try anything -- think outside the box.  But keep taking those pictures.  Our brains overlook or look past things sometimes – the camera sees it all.  I discovered this principle just this week.  I’ve changed my display from last summer and needed new photos for some juried craft shows.  So I put my whole canopy set up together to take photos – when I looked at the photos, I saw some things I hadn’t really seen before.  I have 3 small tables that I’ve loved because I could configure them any way I needed to depending on my booth space – so I took my photos in several different configurations.  Turned out that one of them is really awful – looks crowded and if more than 2 people are there browsing, it’s going to be tight.  I’ve used that configuration a couple times – never saw if before but it was SO obvious in the photo!

And then, always be READY.  

I took those jury photos in to be printed.  When I picked them up, the photo lady RAVED about my jewelry, my photos, and my display.  She said that everything looked professional and was so beautiful – it was a great massage for my ego!  I gave her a business card. 
Last Saturday night, after we’d been at our craft show/expo for the day, my dear honey took me to our favorite restaurant for dinner. We have gotten to know some of the staff and the hostess who seated us knows what regulars we are – we always chat for a minute when she takes us to our table.  Of course, coming from a show, we told her about our day.  Turned out her sister is getting married this summer and hasn’t found jewelry for her wedding party yet.  We got a few necklaces from the car and showed them to her – she loved them!  She took my card to give to her sister.  She also gave me her card with her sister’s name and wedding colors.  I stopped at David’s Bridal on my way home and picked up the swatches.  I have crystals to match.

I don’t know if either of these situations will result in sales – I’m hoping.  But my point is, there are opportunities if you’re keeping your eyes open and ready to meet them.  You don’t have to be pushy (I’m really quite shy in person) – just let people know that you’re AVAILABLE and you have solutions to meet their needs.  If you love what you do, you’ll talk about it .. with enthusiasm .. and enthusiasm is contagious!  

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(¸.•´ (¸.•`¤~♥ ♥ ♥ ¸.•*¨)Sales fairy dust on you all!!

The Bad and The Beautiful

Having just written this series of blogs, during a lull in the show I just did, I walked around and observed the displays and vendors of various booths.  This show was an expo, not a craft show .. so the vendors were not only crafters, they represented various home based sales companies and small local businesses.  Some of the displays were very professional, some were not.  I don't want to sound critical or arrogant, but display issues have just been on my mind and it would have been hard not to notice the bad as well as the good.

One lady had a nice display – not spectacular but pleasant enough.  But as I walked by, she didn’t even look up from the book she was reading.  I didn’t stop. 

Another lady was selling some kind of hand care product .. she nearly chased me down as I passed.  I politely told her “no thanks” and smiled as I walked away ...she was still calling after me when I was 3 booths away.  I wouldn’t have wanted to be the booth next to her. 

There was a lady there, selling jewelry, whose display needed serious help.  She had the part right about different levels, but nothing else.  I felt bad for her actually.  Her booth was in view of ours, and very few people stopped to look at what she was selling.  She had 2 long tables, covered in cloth ... but not table cloths ... and the cloth had edges that weren’t finished, so had a couple fraying strings dangling down.  There were 2 cloths on each table (so 4 pieces) in 3 different colors – black, white and blue.  One cloth hung over the edge of the table with a 6" drop, the other at a 10 or 12" drop.  Then she had quite a hodge podge of different jewelry display pieces – some in white, some in black some in gray and some that were wood – they were all different shapes and sizes and there was no rhyme or reason to their placement.   It made for a pretty chaotic looking display. Simply having 1 cloth on each table, edges finished, well fitting and having even drops would have seriously improved her display.  And if she had at least grouped the same colored display pieces together, her booth would have looked worlds better.  I know she didn’t see her display through the eyes of a prospective buyer.  Her work was nice .. some very cute stuff .. but her display really detracted from it and I’m sure her sales suffered for it. 

On the other hand, there was another gal there, who sold handpainted wooden knick knacks and yard decor – also very cute – and her display was very cool.  She had taken louvered closet doors and painted them all a distressed white.  Louvers were strategically removed and white shelves were placed through the gaps, creating a rustic and very interconnected look.  Her wares were then placed, grouped by color and she’d used the space from the floor to just above people’s heads.  She must have had 2 booth spaces because she had several of these units forming a U shape with an “island” unit in the center..  Customers walked through her display like a little path – and I don’t think a single customer walked PAST her booth.  Not everyone who looked made purchases, but everybody looked!

A home sales jewelry company was represented.  Their display was very attractive and well designed (I’m suspicious that the company offers design plans or some kind of professional training or help) and the ladies in the booth were well attired – made me think “I need to spiff up – this is my competition”.

I took a look at my own display – not bad but needs a little spit and polish (well, maybe we better stick to polish!).  The lights are great – really make the crystals pop!  My table cloths are a little too big – sewing project coming up.  My current cloths are white but not long ago, I picked up couple new colors (Bed Bath and Beyond was having a clearance!) – we’ll experiment with which colors look best.  We may consider scaling down a bit but display to give more emphasis on specific styles.   Note to self – making my display look “fresh” to me isn’t necessarily looking fresh to customers -- keep looking at it with objective eyes..  And we’re going to start looking for folding chairs that are more of a directors style or bar stool height – it would put us at better eye contact with customers without having to stand all day – which might help us feel a little “fresher” later in the day. 

Display Thoughts - Making a Plan

First and foremost, what is the most important point in developing your display?  Why, sales of course!  So the focus on your display should put the focus on your display.  What do you need to do to draw favorable attention?  What will catch the customer’s eye and cause them to stop at your booth?  You used imagination to create your product ... now use some imagination to create your displays!   And remember that this is a shopping “experience” – how can you make the experience pleasant?

Your display should show off your product to it’s best advantage.  Does your product fit a certain “style” – is it Victorian or cottage or modern?  Make sure that the displays you use are in keeping with your style.  How would these items be displayed in a brick & mortar store ... can you get any ideas from visiting one?  Product should be clearly visible and easy for the customer to pick up.

Use multiple layers/levels.  I’ve seen shows where vendors just laid everything out flat on a table ... BO-RING!  Use stacked crates or something to give your display a stairstep feel.  Hang items from a pole.   If you are using busts to display jewelry, use some taller and some shorter busts or if using all the same sized one, figure out a way to elevate some of them   A length of dimensional lumber (like a 2x4 or 4x4), covered with a piece of cloth, could be an excellent way of adding height to busts or your small craft objects. 

Group similar items together.  If you make gourmet jams and salsas, keep the jams together and the salsas together.  This may seem self-explanatory, but I’ve seen displays where it wasn’t done – it was hard to find what I was looking for and the whole thing seemed disorganized and cluttered.

Keep it clean.  Table cloths and skirts are going to get dirty, especially if you’re doing outdoor shows.  Make sure your product is clean.  Make sure your business cards have no bent corners.  Everything should be crisp and sharp.  Because I make custom items during the show, I also want my work area to be neat and clean.  Organized is good – it makes things easier for you and your look more professional to your customers.

If using a table, use well fitting table cloths and table skirts.  Too big looks droopy and dumpy .. too small looks like you were too cheap to buy enough to do the job.  If you are just starting out, and you’re doing a couple small local shows, you probably don’t need table skirts for your first couple events – but don’t wait too long either – they really do add a professional look to your display.  Oh, and one last thought about tables – I use 3 tables that are 2'x4'.  Booth spaces vary and I can adjust my configuration to accommodate different size booths.  They are also easy to transport and easy to store and most vendors won’t need more than 2 feet of table depth – if it’s deeper, it’s also more awkward for customers to reach near the back of the table.

When planning your space, be sure to have a comfortable traffic flow.  You may need to experiment with the space ahead of time at home – set it up and walk through it as a potential customer.  Is there a natural flow?  Is payment made at the end of the shopping experience?   When I can, I try to set up so that customers can watch me work on my custom orders – it seems to draw a lot of interest and some customers love to see it happen.  Some customers have their own ideas of what they’d like so it’s helpful for me to have some “design space” where the customer and I can create together.

Coming tomorrow -- Creating a theme.

The Great Hunt

How do I find good craft shows to participate in?  Because of our ministry, we usually move every 6-15 months and usually the moves are to entirely new states.  All the advice I've seen about finding good craft shows says that you should attend one year as a customer to get a feel for the show, then apply the next year if you want to be a vendor.  I don't have that luxury ... I'll probably be gone next year.  So how do I pick the shows I apply for?

I start my internet search by using Google.  I use key words "craft show" then the cities and towns in my very near area.  I make a list of my finds with a few pertinent details -- date, location and fees if I can find them, and whether the show is part of a festival.  If the info is available, I also note how long the show has been in existence and whether it's juried.  Then I use alternate phrases like "craft fair", "art fair" and "art show" and keep googling.  I also expand to include the state, rather than the specific towns near me.  I've found that some states have very organized directories -- those are wonderful!   I also check the various towns for their own Chamber of Commerce, visitor information or city events listings.  Compiling this list can take some time but is well worth the effort.

Once I have my list, I begin the sorting process.   I first eliminate anything that is both a Saturday and Sunday sale -- our ministry comes first and we've committed not to do sales that take us away from our Sunday worship.  Most shows want the actual vendor in attendance, not just a representative .. and some are very specific about it.  I then look at distance -- how far is a show from my location?  I like to keep them within 45 miles, although if a show sounds really great, I'll go further.  I next look for juried shows -- even if I've missed the application deadline, I"ll check to see if they have space available -- sometimes they do, especially if someone dropped out.  In my experience, a juried show that has been in existence for many years is a good bet -- they will likely have quality arts and crafts with a good reputation which usually draws serious buyers.  But sometimes, that's not the kind of show available .. so then what?

Open shows can be good or bad .. and there are several factors that I look for.  How long have they been an event?  Are they supporting a school, team, or community group?  Are they part of a festival?  What is their booth fee?  If I can find out previous attendance and how they advertise, that can be valuable information.  The longer they've been around, usually the better they are and the better they're known.  A long running annual event will generally attract repeat customers and because of word of mouth, will have a larger customer base.  Those shows benefitting an organization will depend on how actively the community is involved -- and I can't always tell that by looking online.  I've done one show benefitting a fire department that had hundreds of people -- another show, in the very next town only had about 150 attendees.  Festival related shows have also gone either way.  I've come to the conclusion that if the festival sounds like lots of fun to ME, the show is worth the gamble.  The 2 best shows I've ever had were part of festivals .... as were the 2 worst shows I've ever had.

Often the booth fee can be an indication of a show's success.  For one, shows with higher booth fees have bigger advertising budgets.  Most of the shows I do fall in the $50 - $100 range.  Shows that are cheaper are usually poorly advedrtised, with fewer attendees -- and lower profits.  Shows that cost more require that I sell a lot more just to break even. 

Organization and a "friendly professional" attitude are also factors that I consider.  Once I've decided to apply to a show, I generally contact the organizer to make sure there's space available.  Their response is important to me -- how quickly they respond, the tone of their message and how organized they sound are critical factors.  There are some shows I've thought sounded like good possibilities until I heard from the organizer.  If they sound like they don't have a clue what's going on, I avoid it.  If they sound cranky, I avoid it.  I do like shows that have applications that can be downloaded from the internet or are sent as attachments in that response email -- it seems that if someone is tech savvy enough to make their applications electronically available they are savvy enough to use tech as one of their advertising tools.  Frequently, the potential customer who is tech savvy is usually better educated, younger or from a higher economic demographic -- all of whom tend to be better spenders.  And since my objective is to make sales, it's nice to have customers who want to spend money.

When I first started doing craft shows, I did all open shows.  They are usually less investment up front and don't require displays that are as professional.  Every juried show I've seen required table skirts and sometimes other display options.  The profits weren't as large in those early shows but I learned a lot from them.

There are other kinds of shows for the crafter to be involved in and there can be differences in shows in different seasons ... next time!

Bridal Show

This Saturday, I have the opportunity to display my jewelry.  The event started out as an open house for a church that wants to promote their facility as a wedding venue.   As the organizer has been planning, she has been approached by several vendors who also wanted to display their products, and last week it was opened to vendors.  A local gal who makes wedding cakes will have samples and a florist will do some decorating ... and I will be there with a display of my jewelry.  So my BIG project for this week is to prepare for this open house.

I have no idea what to expect, really.  We have no clue how many brides-to-be may attend.  I do know that I'm not planning to sell "off the rack", but do plan to take orders.  So now I need to figure out what my display should be like -- I don't think my craft show set up it quite the right thing.  And I'm working on developing procedures and policies.   Because everything that I've done before was direct selling, I haven't had to worry about deposits, cancellation policies or payment plans.  I've created a worksheet form for taking orders and I definitely need to remember to take my credit card machine.  I'm working on a brochure -- this will be a bit experimental so I'm not having it professionally printed -- may need tweaking before I do that.  And I still need to decide exactly which pieces (and which colors) of jewelry I should take -- right now, I'm thinking that I'll take one of everything in white/clear to look bridal and take a second of everything in colors to show what things would look like for a bridesmaid.   I'm thinking that the whole display will fit onto one of my little tables (2x4' -- that I use 3 of at craft shows) but I should also take a second table where I can sit with a bride to plan her designs.  I'll bring the fabric samples I have from David's Bridal -- they could come in handy.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed .. and hoping for a successful day.  We'll see what happens!!!

Wanna Ride, part 2

A few days ago, I made a checklist of things I need to do to make a transition to doing bridal shows with my jewelry. The last item on my list is the need to update my display.

My current booth display is great for craft shows, where customers "cash and carry" their purchases, but it's not really a very "boutique" style display. For one, we need to do something that varies the heights of the displayed items -- right now, there is some variance, but everything falls within the same 2 feet -- I'd like to go beyond that (see the photo on May 22, 2009). I think I need to add some busts to show off my necklaces -- right now I only use 2.
I need to decide on a color scheme -- right now, my displays are all white (with deep green table skirts) -- do I want to stay with white? Or would the jewelry be more striking on black? Or some other color?
I probably need to decide which pieces and colors of jewelry I'll show and whether or not customers will be able to purchase on the spot or if I will only accept orders.
My current show displays are also great because we can set up and take down quickly -- an important factor in craft shows, but probably not so important in bridal shows.
We need good lighting systems and a nice little music system might be nice.
My current setup is quite flexible and will accommodate a variety of booth sizes. I'm thinking that we're going to tape off the floor with several different booth sizes and use cardboard templates to plan the spaces.
I have some ideas to utilize some of what I already have (a budget concern) as well as develop a more "boutique" look -- and fortunately, I'm married to a wonderful woodworker who can do cabinetry work -- we'll be utilizing his skills! More thoughts later ....

Wanna Ride?

My husband is such a sweetie! And he's very encouraging about my jewelry business, especially about taking it in the direction of marketing to brides. Doing craft shows has been good but we get a lot of feedback from people indicating that my style is really perfect for weddings. Keith has researched a bit and found a number of Bridal Shows coming up in our area and figures we should attend a couple of them to see how they're run, what kinds of setups vendors are using, what kind of traffic there is, etc.

I've already done a bit of research myself to find out booth sizes and fees -- needed to start somewhere. Found that "bigger" shows are pricey .. at least, compared to what I've been paying for craft shows. Most of my craft shows fall between $50-100 for a booth of 10x10 to 12x12. The bridal shows I've found run closer to $800 for an 8x10 or 10x10 space. I'll be continuing to look! And I'm developing a checklist of things I think need to be done before I dive headlong into doing Bridal Shows:
1- continue show research to find out which shows are the best attended, as well as requirements, space available, booth fees, contacts, set up and take down arrangements
2- focus new product development on bride's accessory needs (bracelets, hair and veil accessories)
3- develop a catalog/brochure
4- develop a procedure for taking orders, including a policy for quantity discounts, special requests, and financial arrangements (deposits, cancellations, returns, payment terms)
5- develop displays, pricing and policies for consignment sales through bridal shops (shows will put me in contact with bridal shops as well as with brides and there may be consignment opportunities)
6- packaging -- right now, it's simple tags and bags -- may need to spruce that up
7- upgrade my booth display
There's a lot involved with this ... we'll save it for the next post.
With Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday coming up, I'm not sure how far I'll get with my list but this should be an interesting journey! From time to time, I may need to ask for input too. Wanna ride?

A Business On the Move - Part 4

I didn’t have much capital to start a business and every penny made (and then some) has gone back into buying supplies and improving displays. While in Florida, I had purchased folding tables – the kind that are 2' x 4' and fold in the middle for storage (since my storage space is so extremely limited). They’ve worked out really well for me, too, because it seems that the booth size of every craft show is different. I have 3 tables, and can configure them in several different ways, depending on the size of my booth. I also acquired a canopy and got matching table cloths. My craft show set up was starting to look professional.

We also developed an idea for new jewelry displays. I needed displays that would be easy to transport, take minimal storage space, and assemble and dis-assemble quickly at craft shows. Because my jewelry is made with Swarovski crystals, the displays needed to allow plenty of light to show off the crystal’s sparkle and they needed to be as elegant as we could make them. I wanted them to be white so that no color would distort the color of the crystals -- but I didn’t want just any white -- I wanted the white of a grand piano. I wanted that deep, rich elegant white. And in our design, unfortunately, we also had to be able to have a good view of everything because some people just aren’t trustworthy. So after much research and thought, we came up with an idea: Keith would make some wooden boxes that would serve as a base. On the ends of each box, we have uprights that look a bit like stairsteps. In each step there’s a little notch where we place a steel bar, loaded with earring cards. Each box has 7 steps and each step holds 13 earring cards – so we can put 91 pairs of earrings on each display and 2 displays fit on each of my tables (they’re about 22" long).. But there’s more!
On the front of each display, there is a detachable shelf, sitting on a slope, with 4 ovals in a row – each oval is the perfect size to display a necklace, so we also have 4 necklaces on each display.

We finished in Florida last year in April and our next building project brought us to Wisconsin. I was able to participate in several craft shows in the fall (including my first juried shows) and I’m planning my 2009 show/market schedule now. Our show set up has been improved again with the addition of table skirts, which I designed and made (I sew too). Things are looking pretty good and I’m looking forward to the new selling season. Now, if only the economy doesn’t kill me .....