Wednesday 23 November 2011

Craft fair fun and frolics

First of all, many thanks to you all of you for the best wishes for Felix.  She is fortunately now fully recovered and the only lasting symptom seems to be a complete aversion to eating anything other than fruit, yoghurt or  baby Wotsits.  Not the best diet in the world... hmmm... any tips for getting a 17 month old to eat casserole? or carrots?!

In other news, the products of my stitching have had two outings in the last week.  The weekend before last, everything I'd sewn went to a large Christmas fair near Lewes with my friend Clare who is a talented buyer (and, as it turns out, seller!), and then this Saturday, five of us shared a stall at a local hotel.

I didn't make it to Clare's fair, as that was the weekend that Felix was ill, but got feedback on the Saturday that she'd only sold badges. However, the clientele was completely different on the Sunday and the more pleasing grand total was:
  • 17 badge sets
  • 2 Makeup bags
  • 1 purse
  • 1 washbag
  • 1 tote bag
  • 1 cushion
  • and......believe it or not....The Hungry Caterpillar!  (Apparently, he could have sold twice as someone came back and asked for him later!)
I quickly sewed up a few more make-up bags and here was our stall this Saturday!



And my little section:
(I can't claim credit for the handstitched (!) bunting which belongs to felt queen, Perdita)



The sales tally:
  • Lots more badges
  • A tote bag
  • A wash bag
  • 3 make-up bags
  • 2 little purses
  • And some fabric covered handbag mirrors (that we were making on the day!)
  • ooo plus a friend has since asked to save her a doorstop and a cushion..
It was a lot of fun, having some grown-up time, talking to people and having a nosey round the other stalls so between us we've signed up for another three in December...well I've got the stock  (...except for make-up bags!)

The learnings?
  • Some of my stuff is a little too bright for the more traditional customers that seem to attend smaller fairs round here.  People admired the cushions but couldn't see where they'd fit in their homes
  • Pocket money purchases are essential to keep your morale up
  • Order your business cards well in advance, so they are not still in the post when you want to be handing them out (doh!)
  • REALLY REALLY don't be disheartened if things aren't selling. It's easier said than done, but from Claire's experience...the same products at the same fair sold much better on the second day.
The sum of all this efforts?  £170!  Doesn't sound loads but I'm really pleased with it...a couple more fairs and my Tesco's vouchers are going to fund Christmas (well almost!)

x

19 comments:

  1. Oooh! Aaah! What a pretty stall!!! I'm glad that you did well with sales! Thank you for sharing what you learnt, too - things for all of us to think about....
    Carly
    x

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  2. Stall looks fab. It's so hard knowing what will sell and what won't and how to maximise profits.

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  3. Everything looks so pretty! You did such a great job!

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  4. I am so pleased for you. Three more fairs and you will be able to buy something for yourself as well as for everyone else on your list! Well done!!

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  5. The stall looks fantastic and I'm so pleased you sold lots of things - wish I lived closer!!

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  6. Wow, you did really well, not surprising though cos your stall looks amazing! (please don't ever end up next to me at a craft fair lol!)
    Gives you such a boost to sell and get lovely feedback from customers. My last one was not great in terms of sales, so I'm hoping the one this weekend restores my faith (and confidence)!

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  7. Congrats on a great set of sales. I had yet another frustrating bear fair last Sunday. I'd popped one wee guy up, who was a commission, with a 'Sold' tag on him, and could have sold him again another 3 times. I had people literally fighting over a pair of brothers, and yet they are both still with me *sigh*.

    I'm thinking of heading down the bags and pouches route like you (obviously not at bear fairs ;o) ) as I don't really seem to see them on stalls at fairs up here, they seem to head more towards jewellery, papercraft, vintage stuff and flowers. January/February will be a busy month constructing lots of stock!

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  8. I'd call that a successful fair! Well done chick! I found that cushions didn't sell well either, because folks want them to match their room schemes! At least all you need to do now is run up more makeup bags and you're set for the next one. Jxo

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  9. Congratulations, that's definitely a successful run, and more to boot! Hope the business cards arrive in time for the next one! As for the little picky eater, don't worry, they go through fads, let them, eat , don't stress yourself over it, she'll want something else soon enough, both mine went through phases of just not relly eating for a day or two, then would play catchup!

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  10. Looked so lovely together - well done that is pretty good going lady - get the remainder on etsy or maybe venture Brighton way somehow xxx

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  11. Well done! That's brilliant! It all looks wonderful :)

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  12. Make-up bags seem to be selling everywhere - but I guess people use them for other things too - always useful! Well done and now you know what to focus on!

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  13. Congrats, Ceri! That sounds wonderful! And a lot of fun too. :)

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  14. Oh well done, that's fantastic news, glad all your hard work has paid off. Good luck at the remaining fairs. x

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