Craft Fair Pointers, please.

[PaxDesignJewelry]

I am going to my first craft fair the end of April. It is small and local so I can get my feet wet. I bought a 4 foot table, am making t shirts with my logo for myself and family helpers, will have business cards and perhaps a large laminated sign for the front of the table. I know my jewelry is decent and fairly priced.
So now what? How do I display stuff? How do I prevent theft? What about getting people to check out Etsy? How do I take breaks? Please dig into your collective wisdom and share some vital tips with this nervous newbie! Thanks!

[prettypiecesjewelry]

Martion,

I'm doing my first "boutique" on 3/18. They are providing tables and wireless hookup. I like the ability to have my laptop with me so I don't have to lay all my pieces out (over 500) - I can ask if there is anything else customers might like to see. I'll have all my jewelry with me but not all laid out. But, like you, I could sure use some pointers. I'll have biz cards and have a beautiful table cover but that's it.

[Former_Member]

How do I display stuff?
There are lots of ideas for this - start by looking at the premade jewelry display from sources like NileCorp, but also hunt around for more unconventional displays, like old screens, frames, plates, etc, to add some whimsy to your set up. I'd advise staying away from anything that is unsteady or breakable or that can't handle a little water as you often have weather to contend with.

How do I prevent theft?
Stand, greet everyone, be present and attentive without hovering. (Tricky, sometimes.) And smile!

What about getting people to check out Etsy?
Hand out lots of business card with your etsy shop name printed on them.

How do I take breaks?
If you don't have someone who can go with you to help out, you may be able to booth-sit for the booth next door to you for each other to take breaks. Some larger show also provide booth sitters for this purpose.

A few other tips: bring different price points, esp items under $20, they are easiest to sell. Bring change, take credit cards. Have really good lighting...and smile, smile, smile :) Good luck!

[Former_Member]

Displays:
Work up off the table as much as possible. You want everything at different levels to create interest. There are tons of ideas for jewelry displays. Some fun places to look for inspiration are on Flicker (I'm part of a group called "Show me your booth" that has tons of jewelry booth photos) and Pintrest. I also noticed recently that Michaels now has some jewelry display stuff in their store which might be a good idea for just starting out.

Preventing Theft:
Well, you can't truly prevent it, but having extra hands on deck can help you keep an eye on your whole inventory. If it's not a super busy show it shouldn't be too hard. I did shows for a year and if I ever had anything stolen, it wasn't anything big enough to notice. As for cash, I don't like the idea of a cash box. To me that's just TOO easy. Maybe try a vendor apron or money belt for your cash.

I agree with bringing lots of different price points. Most of my booth is what I would call "fillers" which is stuff that's quick and easy to make in bulk and sells for under $10. You can make back your booth fee just on all the little stuff.

There's an etsy group here called "Craft Fairs, It's a Living!" that you should check out. You can get tons of advice from lots of experienced sellers on all sorts of topics surrounding shows.

Good luck!

[Former_Member]

Marion, If you had a cup tea and four hours I could walk you thru' my 20 years of shows.

But I think that you can still look here in fora for old threads of people sharing their important points of doing shows.

In the above tool bar, make sure you are in 'discussion titles' then type in

"festival suggestion", "art fairs", "Booth display", "craft shows".......etc....I think etsy keeps most of our fora threads. You'll see many have come before you for this question. Maybe you'll find several threads that will help you.
Mickey

[PaxDesignJewelry]

Thank you all. I am combing through all the posts about this and have joined "It's a Living". I'm ready!

[Former_Member]

Thanks for posting this thread Marion!
Lots of helpful tips for newbies :D
good luck!

[Former_Member]

Great timing! A friend of mine sells purses and she was inquiring about the two of us sharing a booth. I have never worked at a craft fair, but am very interested. We have candles, centerpieces and jewelry so I love that you guys have suggestions for displays.

If you had something marked at $20, but the customer offered $15, would you let them buy it to get the sale? Would you split the difference?

Should we bring food and water? Chairs? This is new and I hope it happens, but I want to make sure I am prepared for when it does.

[Former_Member]

Also, how much of each item do you bring? The candle holders, would I bring five? twenty?
The centerpieces - bring one for a display and then take a custom order or bring several and also save one for the display?
So much to learn - I love it all! :)