As spring comes around in the Midwest, I am trying to prepare for soggy outdoor shows. I did one last May and had beautiful sunny weather that was nice and dry. I then did a show in June that was like selling in a lake! It had rained for three days prior to the show and the ground was sloppy; those who did show up were cold and crabby. Do you have any ideas of things I can do to make customers a little more comfortable while in my booth? I would like to look into some kind of waterproof flooring, as well as maybe offering a hot beverage. Is this allowed? If so, any other suggestions? I also, of course, want to be sure that I am comfortable in these conditions.

Well, as they say when you get lemons make Lemonade.  There’s nothing like a good rain storm to wreck a show and diminish profits but perhaps you can keep your spirits up and those of the customers who do show up.  You can’t change the weather so the first thing is to be prepared and then to go with it.  On the prepared side start with your booth floor and put down several layers of thick plastic and them use an inexpensive indoor outdoor carpet on top of this. Since the carpet will tend to slide on the plastic drive very large nails into the ground to hold it in place.  This will help with moisture coming up from below should it rain.  The carpet will get messed up from the mud, unavoidable if you’re at a show in the rain.  At the end of the show take it home; hose it off and you are ready to go again.  If you’re in a free standing tent make sure you have sides and that the poles are weighted in case the wind comes with the rain.

Now the important part, your attitude.  Don’t get caught up in the complaining feeling sorry for ourselves crowd, be a positive light in the storm, weather happens.  Accept  that your sales goals won’t be met at this show and reach for the lemonade.  Or maybe a cup of warm tea or cider depending on the time of year.  Your booth must have power so bring a hot pot to heat liquids whatever they are and a large thermos to store the brew.  Adding a cookie or a brownie wouldn’t hurt either.  Offer these with a smile and then walk the customer around your booth telling them about your wonderful work, ignore the weather, they have come to the show with the idea of spending money.  My guess is that they will be happier and more likely to do this with a smiling craftsperson.  Get their contact information so you can invite them to the next show you do in their area.  Then send them away with a brochure so they can shop from home, maybe with a note on it saying, “Hope you enjoyed the tea or whatever..”  This will help them remember their experience with you.

My gift shop (located in a tourist town) has been doing well lately, and I would like to expand my current inventory. I have researched the idea of fair trade and am unable to decide if I should look further into offering fair trade items. However, I don’t want to offend my current supplier artists. Some of them seem to look negatively at the idea of fair trade items being sold alongside their own. However, I don’t intend to sell items in direct competition with their own. I would be looking for gifts that will compliment the work currently in my shop. For example, I have a potter who makes brightly-colored, food-safe dishes. I have been looking into fair trade textile items that would compliment her work, such as place mats, table runners and napkins. Are there any problems you see in this? I love supporting the local artists, but I also feel that artists in other countries who do not have a reachable market should also be represented. And handmade is handmade regardless of country of origin, right? I would like to strongly promote the idea of handmade, and I think this is a great way to do it. Any thoughts?

I have lots of thoughts on this subject.  I am a great Tom Friedman fan; the world is flat and getting flatter.  With beautiful items being made by hand all over the world there’s no reason you shouldn’t offer some in your shop.   Since the criteria you set for new inventory is Fair Trade be certain the handmade items you choose are labeled as Fair Trade.  You don’t say whether your shop offers exclusively American handmade items or if you have some manufactured goods as well.  Either way, it is your shop and you can proceed in ways that you feel are best for the shop and that support your beliefs. So I would suggest you do the research to find the goods you want. It makes a lot of sense to choose items that compliment but don’t compete with existing goods.  Make open to buys for the lines you want to bring in and plan how you will use them.  You could go on line and check out Aid To Artisans, this is an organization working to develop Fair Traded product all over the world.  Put together a letter to your current accounts setting forth your plans for additional inventory, how you made the decisions and how you will use the goods in your shop.  At the same time begin talking to your customers letting them know that they will soon be able to choose from a broader mix of goods. Be clear that you are going forward with this plan and are asking them to be a part of it.  As you said handmade is handmade and there is a lot of support from the public for businesses that sell handmade whether American or Fair Traded.  Be prepared for some resistance and perhaps loosing some accounts or customers.  This shouldn’t keep you from going forward with a plan you believe in and again I would point out it’s your shop. 

I design and make hand-knit, original hats. Some of the yarn that I use, I have designed and spun myself. For many years, I have thought about selling my hats at craft fairs. I am at the point now where I would like to actively begin to make this happen. The question I have is about inventory–I have no idea how many hats I would need to stock a booth for a fair. I realize that I would need plenty of hats for display and “decoration” around the booth, as well as hats to sell, and hats to replace those that have been sold so that the display/booth would look well stocked. Can you help me with this? I would be very grateful, since I have been trying to figure this out for a long while. Are there any “rules of thumb” for helping a craftsperson determine the amount of inventory they may need for their business? 
-Ann Wang

I’m not sure there’s an easy answer to this or any rules of thumb.  I do know that when I have guests for dinner I’m always fine having food left over, better not to be short.  Many factors are going to determine the level of inventory for a show, with price point being the most influential.  I assume since you spin some of your own yarn you make expensive hats.  This would suggest you will sell fewer than the person with inexpensive hats but in the end you could show more profit for fewer sales.  Expensive is a very subjective concept, the location and the overall makeup of the show will determine what’s expensive for each show.  Go with more of your most popular designs, fewer of the new designs that are unproven.

Be sure you have a full written inventory of the goods you bring to a show.  Take along a note book; record the weather and any other significant information that might impact sales. After the show contact the promoter and get attendance numbers.  In this way you’re building a history that will enable you to stock more accurately for future shows.  For now, knit away, better to have more than you need, your hats won’t go bad, and the leftovers can go to the next show.

My wife makes wheel-thrown goblets and vases and we would like to get her work published into a book. However, we don’t know how to get something like that started. We’ve seen fiber books about knitters and even a book by a wood-turner on how to turn the perfect bowl. How do artists get something published? Is it better to be a how-to book or more of a coffee-table gallery book with high-quality images? And, once the book is made, are we expected to market and sell it or will the publishing company help us out with that? We want to get something started in the next few months so the book can supplement our regular income for 2009. We would appreciate any help you can give us.

Getting a book published requires patience and an eye on the long view, it isn’t easy or simple and the severe financial downturn is making it harder and more complicated.  A good place to start this project is in the crafts section of a large bookstore or at an Internet site that sells books.  You want to make a list of the publishers who are publishing crafts related books.  Then Google the publishing houses that you have identified.  Go to their websites; check out the topics covered by the books they publish.  You also want to be sure they don’t have a book like you would propose; they aren’t going to put out another on the same topic. When you find a publisher that seems to fit your needs look for the author submission guide lines, read them carefully, and follow the directions. As you go through this process you will get clearer about your proposal for the book you want to pitch and write.  Publishing etiquette requires authors to present their proposals to one publishing house at a time so rank your choices and work your way down the list.  You are going to have to adjust your timing on this a bit.  There is typically at least a year between the time you sign a contract and the release of the book.  I signed the contract for my book in March of ‘04 and the book was released in January of ‘06. Good luck, I always encourage the exchange of ideas among craftspeople and a book is an ideal way to do this.

I saw on The Crafts Report’s discussion board  that some artists use flea markets and/or swap meets to sell old, non-selling work and extra or outdated supplies. Is this a common practice and something I should also be doing? What kind of profit can I expect from one of these venues? There is a general craft and gift swap meet in a town a few miles from my house, and I’ve often considered going. I never have because I didn’t want to bring my regular stock—I don’t think attendees will pay my regular prices. Should I try it out and just bring my leftover work and extra supplies? What do you suggest?

Every manufacturer, and you are a manufacturer, regardless of size or attention to inventory control ends up with left over product.  These items may be seconds, overstock and product development samples. It appears that you have product tying up your capital and it would be smart to turn it into cash.  Finding the right plan for this may take some time to develop. 

I agree that you have to protect the integrity of your work and agree that these venues are not right for your first quality items.  Flea markets and/or swap meets may not be the best choice for you at all. These events typically draw customers looking for deeply discounted items and your work even with generous discounts may still be too expensive to appeal to this crowd.  I would suggest you visit any of these events before you decide to participate.  Hang around, watch what is selling, note price ranges, chat with exhibitors about their sales and to attendees about why they are there.  Perhaps you will find a more upscale flea market where you might do well.

Watch the calendar for events in your town/area that might include venders and think through whether this might be a good place for you and your work.  Another approach, the one I feel most comfortable with, is to hold a studio sale and move the leftovers out that way.  Studio sales are a long established highly respected way to solve this problem. Craftspeople who have had studio sales for a number of years report large numbers of return shoppers.  Choose a date, Saturday and Sunday are best. The forth quarter is always best.  Send out press releases to local papers and any other places where they might be seen by prospective customers.  Print a few well designed posters and get then around town. Clean the place up a bit, price the items and group them together on a table/s.  Be sure to have some of your firsts where they are visible, you will most likely sell some of these also. Alas, selling seconds and overstocked items is seldom profitable, these sales are valuable because they turn your unwanted merchandise into cash that can be reinvested in your business

 What do I need to do to get bar codes for my products? Is there some special software I can use or do I need to contact some type of authority in the matter? I’ve been selling my handmade wreaths and decorative accessories at a local gift shop for the past few years, and I have just been using stickers with the prices written on. While that store doesn’t require me to use bar code labels, I would like to sell my work in others that do. Are these really necessary and worth it? If they are, how much work/cost is involved in a system to generate them and make them work?

This question sent me right to the Internet for support.  Although I am well aware of bar codes, who isn’t, they’re everywhere; I hadn’t a clue where they came from.  Here’s what I now know about Universal Product Codes, UPC.  They were first used to keep track of train cars in the 60s and then in the 70s began to show up on products in supermarkets, the first retailer to consistently use them to track the movement of huge amounts of product.  Let’s look at how they work. Barcodes are assigned by the Uniform Code Council, UCC. Every product is given a code in which the first 6 digits are a manufacturer identification number; the next five digits are the item number.

A unique barcode must be purchased for each of your products.  For instance you would need one number for a wreath with a red ribbon and another for the wreath with dried flowers, one for each size you make them in and so on.  Each barcode costs $89.  In addition you need a barcode printer; there are regulations about how they are printed and how big they must be.

So are you sure you want to do this?  Do you make so many wreaths that you need help tracking them?  Do you sell to enough large retailers with barcode scanners to justify the expense? And how do you feel about a handmade product having a tag that is so synonymous with big industry?  Here’s how I feel, I don’t like the message it gives.  As we work to strengthen the place for handmade in the marketplace I think it is important to keep our tagging consistent with the handmade message and barcodes are not part of the message I want to send.

I’m a middle-aged fiber artist who took time off from my craft business for the last four years due to a family illness. I would like to get back into the shows and sales aspect of my craft, but it looks like my old contacts have either forgotten me or have been replaced with new people. It’s like I’m starting all over again!  How can I start my business back up where I left off? I don’t have the money to market myself as aggressively as in the past, but I don’t know what else to do. How can I remind people what I do and get back into the scene?

Unfortunately I can’t give you the answer you want.   Retailers and retail customers continue to have the need to fill shelves and gift boxes whether we are there for them or not.  So while you were doing the right family things other craftspeople have filled your shoes.  So now you do have to repay some dues and work your way back into the marketplace.  Let’s think of ways to do this in the most efficient way.  You might begin by printing a nice color sheet showing your new work, mail this to all your old accounts as a way of reintroducing your work.  You’ll find out for sure which accounts are still in business.  This would be a good time to put together a great simple website for your work.  Maybe creating your own site is more than you can take on now so how about looking into some of the group sites.  Check out Etsy.com, TheGuild.com and WholesaleCrafts.com, one or all of these may be a perfect and easy way to get your work in front of potential buyers and customers all over the planet.  You will probably find yourself back on the show circuit and will no doubt make useful contacts on the show floor.  Read the periodicals that have information pertaining to your media and be sure to send your information to any galleries/shops that look like good prospects.  If it’s any help I’m sure it’s easier the second time around.

I am concerned that there is too much change going on in the crafts industry. I would like to ride out this whole economy problem and not change my prices or practices, because it will all get better soon enough. Right? Others have told me, however, that I need to be more flexible and that I need to be ready to make new choices should the need arise. I think I have a pretty open mind, but I don’t want to compromise my business or art. My beaded handbags aren’t selling as well as they used to, but I think they are popular enough that my sales should increase soon. I’m just worried that I’m going to go through all of the work and changes and then have to go back to my old ways. What do you suggest I do in the current economy to stay afloat? Is there a happy medium to this

Why single out the craft’s industry.  From my viewpoint I can’t find any facet of life that isn’t being impacted by the global events of the past year.  Whether change is good is totally subjective, good for you may not be good for the metal worker.  But change is.  We need to figure out how to flourish in a changing environment.   You don’t say how long you have been making your bags and how often you change the designs, I would hope that since you are in the fashion business your designs change each year.  This is probably a time when any maker would benefit from a careful analysis of their price points.  There will always be people who can buy at the high end, there may be less of them and they may be reluctant to spend money the way they have over the past 15 years.  The people for whom buying a handmade item was a stretch may be priced out of market for now.  So what is now?  I have been reading extensively about the financial situation at hand and I doubt there is an easy or quick fix on the horizon.

Greetings, I am a stained glass artist of 28 years and I think I have come up with a new style, or at least I think it is a new style.  Can you ask around? You know the Art scene better than I and who would be the one to ask.  If this IS a new style should I give it a name and try to promote my creation or is it wiser to stay silent and keep doing and selling what I do? 

I wrap in tiny H lead each piece and place them side by side, mosaic style. Any larger openings I fill with curled sections of lead. The piece is then soldered on both sides. The majority of the pieces are jewels or glass nuggets. Sometimes fused or blown chunks are use. I mix this also with regular leaded glass to have combinations of styles. Please check out my web page and go to the Mosaic section for further examples.  Nachtrabglass.com. I thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you,

Susan,

Nachtrab Glass Studio

Based on your description of what you do and a look at your web page I think when you say style you really mean technique.  Style generally has to do with a look rather than with how that look is created.  Unfortunately I don’t know enough about cold glass work to know whether you have a new idea, but let’s assume you do.  Craftspeople are always interested in new ways to use their materials and surely will make note of what you have come up with, especially since you describe your process on you web site. Once you begin to bring this work to market other makers may begin to use your technique in their work.   So go ahead and name it and as others adopt your technique it will carry the name you gave it.  You certainly could then use the name for the new technique in your publicity.  You could write a press release announcing this breakthrough in your field and probably get some serious free press and at the same time establish yourself as the originator.

I really love Crafts Report.  It’s one of two magazines I always read cover to cover (the other is Wood Carving Illustrated). Do you know what medium would be best to use to reproduce my carvings? They’re plaques ranging in size from 5″ x 6″ to 3 3/4″ x 8 1/2″.  Thickness ranges from 1/4″ to 7/16″. I’m currently having them made in resin outside the USA but am not happy with that arrangement.  I tried for over a year to find a place in this country put the prices I received were prohibitive. I’d really like to reproduce them myself so they’d be more personal and also keep them in the USA.  I’ve made polyurethane molds and have experimented with 6-7 different types of plasters but all were too easily broken because of the thickness of the plaques. Any suggestions about what I can try next or where I can go for more information? I would really like to have samples ready for a big show I’m doing in January. Thanks for any direction you can give to me.

Lynne Krestan
Simple Wisdom, Inc.
“Each Plaque Tells A Story”

888-322-5373

www.simplewisdomfables.com

Sorry I can’t help you with your January show, we put this magazine together 3 months before you see it.  Have you tried clay?  It sounds like your plaques could easily be made using press molds.  The pieces could then be bisque fired unglazed and then painted in much the same way you would paint the resin or plaster.  There would be new issues to deal with, none insurmountable however, one of the biggest is figuring out how to control warping with clay that thin.  Congratulations on wanting to be a made in America artist.