Craft Show Advice Needed - display ideas, pricing, etc

[MeanLaureen]

I finally decided to commit myself to doing my first official craft show on September 24th. It's a Christmas in September show in a park, just for a day.

I was wondering if anyone has any experience doing these types of shows that they could share with me.

I am also looking for some advice on displays and pricing, etc. We have an 11'X11' space. We have a 10'x10' canopy so we have cover. My craft is designer dog collars with hand beaded detail. The actual time it takes me to create each collar can average 2 hours. The beading is done separately and then sewn on the collars so that if the dog outgrows the collar or the collar gets too worn, the beading can actually be removed in whole and sewn onto a new collar. I know the mass produced paste rhinestone collars at petsmart can range around $8 so I was thinking maybe $10 for the small narrow collars on up to $20 for the collars big enough for Retrievers and other big dogs. What do you guys think?

I also need some ideas for the best way to display them. I've made about 125 of them over the past year but lets face it, they won't take up much room in a 11'x11' space..lol Any suggestions?

 

[B&B Mom]

Maybe try posting this in the Crafting, Cooking and Scrapping forum. There are lots of creative DIS'ers over there.

Good Luck

 

[Cindy B]

They sound lovely!

Do you have any stuffed animals that are dog shaped? That might be cute.

Do you also have fabric colors or a drape that complements the beadwork? You might be able to tier them up on shoe boxes of sorts then drape them and then display them. Does that make sense?

 

[MeanLaureen]

I'll have to pop over to the craft board to see if I can dig up any info Thanks for the suggestion.

Cindy, the collars are all different colors so I don't know about trying to find a fabric they would go on - whether I could find a universally good one. I was kind of leaning towards building some type of a ladder like structure that the collars could hang off of grouped first by size then by color. (If that makes any sense) What you you think of that?

Here are a couple of pictures of some of the collars - what do you think about the price structure I mentioned? Too much? Right? Too little?

 

[Albertan mom]

They are very nice! My dog has a Harley Davidson one, I paid over $15 (CAD) for it. I would pay $12-$15 for a small one (which I guess is about $10-$12 US! )

I agree, put some stuffed dogs on the table (with a collar on), and maybe scatter some milk-bones around.

Good Luck!

 

[va32h]

Hi there - I do craft shows also. I hope I can give you some useful tips.

Pricing: search on ebay for a similar product; that will give you an idea of what the market is at the moment (and I know there are hand-beaded collars on there; I've seen them around).

But also take into account what you need to make a profit. Your time is valuable. Give yourself an hourly rate and factor that into your cost. People who make crafts often say "well I enjoy doing it, so I shouldn't charge too much for my time" but don't sell yourself short!

For displays, how many tables do you have? Make sure they are all covered. You can use plain sheets in a pinch, or you might pick up some cheap, solid color fabric at Walmart. I would suggest black or white, to set off the colors.

Having a few stuffed dog "models" is a great idea. If you don't have any - check thrift shops or see if you can borrow some.

Another way to display something like this would be to buckle it around a big pouf of fabric - I'm not describing it well, but I have a visual in mind!

Have things at different levels...some on the table itself, some on a riser (which can be a box with a drape on it). Or the tiered shelving you were describing.

You could also use baskets to group smaller, lower-cost items.

Make sure everything has a price tag, and make up some pretty signage - "Santa Doesn't Forget his Four Legged Friends - our collars make great stocking stuffers " or something like that. Maybe print up an explanation of how your collars are made.

Do you have business cards? You could have a stack of those to pass out. Have a drawing or mailing list customers can sign up for. Maybe a bowl of dog treats - if the festival is allowing pets.

In fact, if you think you will not have enough product to fill up your space, why not use part of it as a "doggie rest area" with a couple of chairs for the owners and a large bowl of water for the dogs.

Be friendly - your product will bring in lots of dog owners, obviously, so ask them about their dogs and talk about yours. Don't sit behind your table with a book (some vendors really do this!)

Good luck!

 

[Disney_1derland]

I like the idea of using stuffed dogs a lot as display pieces. I would say $15 and $25 would be good prices, pet stuff is expensive, people who are into their pets are willing to pay that, that's why we have so many pet boutiques around! Do you offer matching leashes? That might be another thing to sell, that way they get a whole package, I wouldn't bead the entire leash, and I might only do a few just for display purposes, but I think they'd show well and you might have some people who are wanting a matched set. I think a little doggy dress up boutique would be cute to take up some of your space, a mirror, dog brush, little place to sit in front of the table while you try it on the dog, I don't know if this happens where you are but here people ALWAYS bring their animals to outdoor craft fairs and if that happens where you are I think the boutique/dressing area is a really cute idea.

Good Luck, they are VERY cute!