If you make your living by selling hand-made crafts, you've undoubtedly
spent many hours at local and regional craft shows. As you already
know, finding the right shows, getting accepted, and creating the
display takes a great deal of creativity and time, but a good show
makes the trouble well worth the effort.
Another possible way to sell your crafts, through gift shows, is
often overlooked by people who sell hand-crafted products, even though
these shows can be quite profitable. Trade shows are attended by shop
owners on the lookout for new and innovative gift items to add to their
inventory, and a good show in a large market can bring in enough orders
to keep you busy for weeks. Of course, items ordered at the show will
be sold at wholesale prices, and the shop owners will expect delivery
of the items in a reasonable amount of time.
When I sold my collectors' dolls through gift shows, the high
volume of orders actually became a problem for me, because it was
difficult to keep up with the production on my own. If I were still
selling the dolls, I would 'fix' this problem simply by increasing the
price enough to slow down the number of orders, without (hopefully),
bringing the orders to a stop.
Since many craftspersons are most comfortable selling directly to
their customers, taking the step to wholesale orders through trade
shows can require a few adjustments in your business model. There will
also be some fairly important decisions to be made before committing to
a show. The first important decision will be whether or not you want to
set up your own trade show display, or if you will sell through an
independent sales representative.
Setting up a booth at a trade show is a bit different from the
craft shows you may be used to. Application and space fees are likely
to be much higher, and regulations about what materials you can use for
your display, and what type of advertising is allowed, may vary from
one show to the next. There may even be union-required regulations that
require you to hire someone to move your display and products from your
truck to the sales floor. Working through these regulations will take
time, and you should definitely read through the fine print before
agreeing to rent a space.
Most companies who sell at these shows will either rent or purchase
the booth itself from a local trade show display company, and have the
signage created on a custom basis by the same company that provides the
booth. Since the cost of these displays can be quite high, most
companies just starting out will choose to rent instead of buy the
booth. Hand-made display booths may or may not be allowed, depending on
the rules of the show and any fire and safety regulations that they
need to adhere to.
Probably the easiest way to get started at gift shows is to find a
well-qualified independent sales representative who will add your line
to the other items he or she already sells. Your sales rep will
probably attend many gift shows each year, and a good one can change
your small local business to a national business almost overnight. Your
sales costs will usually consist of a commission for each order.
Although the sales rep probably handles the costs of buying and setting
up the booth, she will be acting as an independent contractor and can
make her own rules. It is vital that you know in advance what both you
and she expect from the experience long before your first show.
When choosing a sales representative, you'll need to keep a number
of things in mind so you can find someone who will best serve the needs
of your product. For instance, it will be important to know what other
products will be displayed alongside yours, since the other products
may be the first thing a potential buyer will see. Do the other
products complement your own style of crafts? Is the quality as high?
Will your products be given a prominent place in the booth?
You should know exactly how much commission will be paid for each
order, and when the commission is due - when the order is taken, or
when the item is delivered. If you will be charged for any other trade
show costs, such as booth fees, you must know this in advance. Since
many gift shows take place all over the country (and the world), you
should know which shows your products will be sold in.
You'll also need to know if seasonal designs will be expected -
even if you don't normally create Christmas-oriented crafts in July,
the visitors to the gift show may be ready to write orders for their
Christmas stock. Your sales representative should help you put together
a display that meets the needs of the particular gift show.
Both you and your sales rep will need to know how long each order
will take you to complete - there can be nothing worse for a
professional sales rep than having a good show and taking orders for
200 items, when the producer can deliver only half of the orders on
time. Many companies have gone out of business by becoming too popular
- be sure you set a limit on the number of orders your sales rep can
take at any show, so you don't destroy your reputation by selling more
crafts than you can produce on time.
If you're ready to start selling nationally through gift shows,
you'll be taking your small business to the next obvious step.
Independent sales reps can be found in the local phone book. If you
decide to sell your crafts yourself, you can find schedules of upcoming
trade shows online.
About The Author
You can find local gift and trade show display companies on Jonni's website at http://www.find-displays.com
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Distributed by Hasan Shrek, independence blogger. Also run online business , matrix, internet marketing solution , online store script .
Beside he is writing some others blogs for notebook computer , computer training , computer software and personal computer
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