I got back from my first craft show at Esperanza, a school in Chicago. It was a lot of fun. There weren't a lot of people there because there was a bigger festival competing with us. I sold a couple items though. Here are some photos of the event:
My display was pretty simple, but I loved having all my items on display instead of just stored in drawers. It actually made me notice how colorful all my items are together. I didn't make the sign myself, but I'm glad the school made signs for people.
I displayed my journals in a basket. The rest were displayed out of the box. I kind of wish all the journals could be displayed better (so you can see the front without flipping through them). I didn't sell any journals. I think I almost sold two though which is at least showing people were interested. This little boy looked at the autism journal and seemed to really want it (even though his mother told him she wasn't going to buy it).
I got these baskets to put my cards in. The left box has off season items (like for Christmas, Halloween, etc.) for sale and the right box was for regular priced cards. I sold only greeting cards and I think I sold about 10.
These are my mini books. A lot of people looked at them even though none sold.
These are my boxes. They vary in prices in my shop, but I just set the price for $26. I made the autism box (not listed in my etsy yet) specifically for this craft fair.
I made shopping bags to put the items in. They are blank bags I bought at a craft store, but I added a sticker of my logo for each of them. I bought a bunch of different sizes. I thought that would be easier than wrapping the items in tissue paper.
I had to donate 25% to the Esperanza school as part of the charity. It was pretty much what I expected and I learned some things:
*I should have brought a water bottle and sunscreen. I forgot sunscreen and got a little burnt because I was sitting in direct sun for hours.
*I also didn't think of bringing a tent to cover my table. The craft show was really low key so I didn't think people's tables would be that fancy, but a couple people did have their tables covered and it's a good idea. I think I'd also probably make my own sign next time so I could put my logo on it.
*It's helpful to make a list of all the things you need the day before. I also forgot envelopes for the cards, which wasn't a big deal, but it would have been nice if I gad them because that's what I sold the most of.
*I kept track of all the items that sold and for what price. That was helpful for keeping track of money and also to know which items to take off my etsy shop online.
*Even if people didn't buy items, I still got a lot of people taking my business card which is good to know to leave my business cards out (and not just put them in the bag when people buy, which I also do).
Tell me about your craft fair experience(s). How did they go? What tips do you have?
7/14/09
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