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Category: Shows, Fairs, Classes, Markets, and More

  • How to Host a Craft Holiday Market in Your Home

    Let’s wrap up this quick series on at home parties and workshops with your Silhouette or Cricut with how to host a holiday craft market in your home. If you’ve never attended an event like this, the concept is simple: it’s a mini craft show hosted in someone’s home – and similar to the home parties I wrote about yesterday. I have a good friend who has been hosting a large holiday craft market in her home each November for more than 15 years. She chimed in on this article and gave me her biggest secrets.

    How to Host a Craft Holiday Market in Your Home

    Before the Event

    1. Gather a group of crafty friends and decide on an evening to hold the event. Like I previously noted, a weekday evening for an hour or two usually works well.
    2. Decide what products each vendor friend will contribute to the evening. This concept works best if there is an assortment of products around a central theme, like Christmas. Products should complement each other and not work against other vendors. For example: Invite your good friend who makes jellies or jams, your favorite embroidery friend, someone who sells knitted goods, a pallet sign maker, a tee shirt creator, even independent consultants for large companies, and so on.
    3. Decide on the number of guests that your home can accommodate, and be sure that each vendor has a limited of attendees.
    4. Create a flyer with the details of the event for participants to distribute. Again, it is a good idea to offer an email copy and a printed copy.

    At the Event

    1. Set up tables around your home as well as light refreshments to serve to guests.
    2. Have each vendor set up their products for sale as they would at any other craft show.
    3. Set up products around your home from different vendors for sale. You could replace your current wall decor with products for sale or add a welcome sign for sale near the front door. Get creative and show guests the products in action.
    4. Use a centralized checkout. It is easiest to have one person in charge of checkout and guests pay for the products from all the vendors at one time. This is easy to do if you provide everyone the same price tags in different colors. Each vendor then writes their prices on their assigned color coded tag, and attaches the tags to their products. When guests checkout, the cashier records each vendor’s sales and packages the products.
    5. Consider having door prizes, a raffle, or goody bags with samples and business cards for each guest to take home. One strategy is to raffle off a one-of-a-kind gift basket that has a small sample from each vendor that participates in the event.
    6. Matching tee shirts for all vendors can help pull the event together.
    7. At the end of the event, the sales are totaled and money is distributed to each vendor.

    How Do You Make Money at a Holiday Market?

    First, you’ll sell the products you make at the event. Since the event is geared to be a close knit affair with friends of your friends, this is a great way to expand your local reach. Additionally, you could consider taking a small percentage of the total sales to cover your expenses and generosity of opening your home for the event or have the vendors pay a small entry fee. At-home holiday markets are definitely some of my favorite events to attend, have you ever been to one?

    How to Host a Craft Holiday Market in Your Home by cuttingforbusiness.com

  • 5 Ways to Find Local Craft Shows and Fairs

    Having a hard time finding craft shows – or finding out about them too late? Today, let’s take a look at ways to find local craft shows and fairs.

    5 Ways to Find Local Craft Shows and Fairs - cuttingforbusiness.com

    5 Ways to Find Craft Shows in Your Area

    Use a Craft Show Directory Online

    Some good places to start include: Festival Net, CraftMaster News (by subscription only), and my favorite CraftLister. (They also list non-craft events, and I have discovered lots of neat places to go with my kids!)

    Don’t forget, you can also search Google for “craft shows (your state)”.

    Look in Your Local Newspaper or Arts and Crafts Magazines

    Often times, craft show organizers put up classified ads in local newspapers to help find vendors in the months before their show. They advertise once again for shoppers when the show or fair is closer.

    Also, look in the back of arts and crafts magazines for upcoming shows or fairs. If you don’t want to purchase a copy of major crafting publications, feel free to visit your local book store or library.

    Reach Out to Local Churches, Schools, Service Organizations, Women’s Groups, and Athletic Leagues

    Groups and organizations often have craft shows as fundraisers. Reach out to them to see if they have any upcoming shows or fairs planned.

    Talk to Other Crafters

    Visit your local craft store and ask around. Having worked at Michaels Arts and Crafts as an instructor, I can tell you that most of the people that work in craft stores also craft. Many have their own crafting businesses on the side, and may also attend shows or fairs.

    Additionally, our local Michaels, Joanns, and Hobby Lobby are have bulletin boards in the front of their stores with upcoming craft show information.

    Follow Organizations on Social Media

    Take some time and start looking through social media. There are bound to be crafters and organizers talking about upcoming shows.

  • Juried vs Non-Juried Craft Shows – What is the Difference?

    I’ve talked a lot about craft shows lately on Cutting for Business.

    Today, I’m discussing the differences between the two main types of craft shows: Juried vs Non-juried craft shows.

    In general, juried craft shows require potential sellers to submit an application and product samples; while non-juried craft shows accept sellers on a first come, first serve basis.

    Juried vs Non-Juried Craft Shows - What is the Difference? - cuttingforbusiness.com

    Juried vs. Non-Juried Craft Shows

    Juried

    • Usually large shows.
    • Sellers/Exhibitors must submit an application and product samples to the show/show committee their work. Based on the applications, the show chooses which sellers to accept.
    • Shows will usually have a large range of product types.
    • Products that have not been “juried in” may not be sold at the show. In fact, sellers with non-approved products for sale may be shut down.
    • Juried shows are more expensive than non-juried shows. Fees can range up to 1000’s of dollars per event.
    • Usually extremely well organized, as the show organizers have put on multiple shows before.

    Non-Juried

    • Usually smaller shows. May be held at a church, school, or community center. May be a part of a larger festival or event.
    • Sellers/Exhibitors are accepted on a first come, first serve basis.
    • May be many, many sellers with similar items.
    • Seller fees usually range from free to under $100. Alternatively, you may be asked to pay a small entry fee and donate a portion of your sales to a cause.
    • May or may not be well organized, well promoted, or well attended.

    Which Type of Show Should You Choose?

    Generally, newer sellers will want to get several non-juried shows under their belt before moving onto a large scale show.

    At smaller shows, you’ll be able to practice setting up, providing great customer service, and learning how craft shows work. When looking for non-juried craft shows, be sure to ask about the organizer’s experience, the expected attendance at the show, and methods of advertising used. Remember, no craft show is going to be a guaranteed hit. At some craft shows, you may take a loss; while at others you will sell out.

  • 22 Craft Show Tips and Tricks

    To wrap up our talk on craft shows, I’m sharing my favorite craft show tips.

    22 Craft Show Tips and Tricks - cuttingforbusiness.com

    22 Craft Show Tips and Tricks

    Before the Show

    • Have a wide variety of price points throughout your products. For example, have some items under $10, some in the $10 to $50 range, and some in the $50 plus range. This will help you appeal to the budgets of many buyers.
    • Practice your set up several times before going to the show. If you’ve just bought a brand new tent for your outdoor show, be sure you can set it up and take it down before you go to the show. (I have this tent from Amazon, it’s middle of the road quality and does the job.)
    • Tweak your product displays at home. There are lots of craft show setup ideas around the internet, so browse to find something that works for your products. My best advice on your product arrangement is to use varying levels on your table. If products aren’t visible, customers can’t buy them.
    • Invest in (or create!) a banner or sign with your business name on it. Think of your booth as your storefront – and storefronts need signs.
    • Advertise the event on your social media. You could even offer a coupon code to your social media followers for use during the show. For example, “(Business Name) will be at the (Event Name) on (Event Date). Be sure to stop by and use coupon code “Facebook” to receive a 10% discount.”

    At the Show

    • Do not be late! Be ready to go at the specified time with everything set up.
    • Bring a snack, but don’t eat in your booth. Craft shows can be long affairs, and you’ll need to eat, but don’t eat while tending to customers.
    • Bring change. Many people will pay in cash, and you’ll need to be able to provide change.
    • Bring quick and easy packaging to wow your customers after they purchase. Get packaging ideas.
    • Accept credit cards. There are several credit card processing programs to choose from.
    • Provide receipts and care instructions to customers, preferably with your business name on them. If you need them, you can download my care cards.
    • Bring business cards, post cards, or rack cards to pass out to customers who may want to purchase from you online at a later time. If you can, include a small sample (a sticker, a small vinyl decal, or a keychain) with your promotional material.
    • Invite customers to join your mailing list by collecting their name and email address. This can easily be done on a clipboard or by writing their information on a card and dropping it into a jar. If you don’t have a mailing list – read why you need a mailing list.
    • Put prices on your items. I firmly believe that I’ve done better at shows when I’ve attached easy to see price tags to my products. While others may debate this, it can be awkward for customers to ask prices on each product.
    • Bring an assistant! Bringing someone to help you not only allows for you to take a break, but an assistant can help package items, keep things neat and tidy, and collect money from customers.
    • Be friendly and greet everyone that walks into your booth at the show. While this seems obvious, I’ve attended several shows where the sellers aren’t so friendly. People buy from people they like – be likeable!
    • Handle sales as quickly as possible. Being friendly with customers is a must, but after the sale is made – keep the chit chat to a minimum. You will want to turn your attention to the next potential customer.
    • I might not be popular with this suggestion, but if you are personalizing items on the spot – have your assistant do it. As the designer and creator of the items, your time is better spent meeting and greeting customers. For example, if you are creating personalized shirts on the spot, have several designs cut and weeded so you’ll just have to add the name. Quickly put the name into Silhouette Studio and set it to cut. Have your assistant remove it from the machine, weed it, and press it – while you are tending to other potential customers. (See how I use a binder to store pre-cut and pre-weeded designs.)
    • Stay off your phone or tablet – no phone calls/texting/social media. If you are sitting around bored, potential customers may get the impression that you aren’t really interested in being there.
    • Do not pack up early. Plan to serve customers until the show ends, and then begin tear down.

    After the Show

    • Take several pictures of your booth setup. Future shows may ask for photos of your setup.
    • Make sure your space is neat and tidy before going home. No organizer wants to have to clean up after you. Always leave your space cleaner than you found it.
    • Write down notes when you get some. What went well? What didn’t work well? What did you see at other booths that might help you for next time? Save your notes for your next show, and as I’ve mentioned before, always keep evolving!