Craft fair reality check

Mac:

Where was the show? Have you got a link for the show?

It's actually nice to hear that the work impressed you. I have always felt that good competition is the best competition.

There is definitely a lot of nice work out there.

Mac, you MUST think of the work that inspired you as being an inspiration for your own!

If you think negatively then your style will suffer and any potential customers will switch off even when it is obvious your work is inspiring them!

I have been attempting to survive on my turnings for the past 5 years and I too get the blues when I view the most excellent work from others but I always try to see it from the point of view that ONE DAY I too will be good enough to inspire others!

Never give up or you will join the many thousands of those who did and thought the same! Get out there and show them just what you can do.

Apologies if this is out of line.

Regards, Peter Charles Fagg Freshwater, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom.

Mac, oh yes you _are worthy, cheer up. The qualities of craft that mean so much to you might mean less to the buyers at the fair. Remember that a fair is not a show and tell display of talent at your club. Venue for turnings is like location for real estate; everything!

One of the craft qualities that people look for at a fair is a nicely finished (aka affordable) price tag. People usually want to buy something at a fair, but they usually want an inexpensive memento of the day that need not be junky trash nor fine art. I suspect your present work fits nicely in between.

I wish your wife had taken an exit poll a few booths away to get a true "reality check" and report it here. You, a woodturner, would probably be the last to know. :)

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

I agree

If you look at the stuff people are buying at craft fairs, it is usually not for the quality of the item but that it fits their particular needs/wants + pocketbook.

I turn for fun but I've noticed that even some of my failures are desired by some.

Arch wrote:

Mac, Considering all of the things that you know about what make his turnings art, I would expect that your turnings are very close in quality to his. The only real difference would be experience, which most of we turners would notice, and most of the public wouldn't. I have been selling my turnings for 7 years, and when I look at what I turned then compared to what I do now, there is a world of difference.

Doing shows is a risk. Every show is one person's best show and another persons worst show. There appears to be no apparent reason other than because. I have found that it can take a year or three to build up a clientel. If they like your stuff, they will come back and bring their friends. Well established shows are better, but more expensive. Avoid shows with 'manufactured' goods.

Trading is also fun. If you have a bad show, you trade for other vendors product because you want to come back with something. If you have a good show, you trade because you are happy, and want to splurge. I also enjoy the other woodworkers who come by to check out your work, but not buy. Many are beginners and hobbyists and they are curious. I never can resist talking shop and hope that I can offer some inspiration and encouragement. Others do wood but don't turn. Others just love to look at wood. Have a lot of variety of sizes, shapes, prices and things to sell. If you are local, a show is also a good source of wood; we have this big cherry tree that we are taking down, can you do anything with it?

You may do fine, you may not. If you like to talk to people, give it a shot. It may give you a way to help support your habbit.

robo hippy

snipped-for-privacy@webtv.net (Arch) wrote in news:13782-4263FBB0-85@storefull-

A friend, who turns the most beautiful segmented pieces, with price tags in the multihundreds, told me last weekend that the 'mushrooms' outsell the fancy pieces, both in unit and in dollar volume, and are far more profitable to produce. And he has a PM3520 to pay for.

I don't know that I could do 'mushrooms', even to pay the rent. I think I'd rather wear an orange apron.

Patriarch

I used to photographs weddings and portraits. Own my own part time studio for about 17 years. I found that lots of people liked my photographs even though other places in town did better work. BUT lots of places did really bad work. Every customer has there own comfort zone when it comes to buying something they like. I've met some real good photographers that had terrible personalities and couldn't work with the public. Lots of people would rather buy from a nice guy they can talk to and relate to even though the work is a little less than perfect.

I've been turning for 3 years now. I am doing my first ever craft show in about 3 weeks. I have sold a few bowls here and there but never spent a whole day at it. I have looked at a lot of bowls over the past few years. Lots of people can turn thinner and better than I can. But...I when I saw some hand turned bowls in a fancy store the other day I couldn't believe what I was looking at. The price tag was high and the quality was low (very low). The stuff was crap. But people were buying it. I new then that it was time to start selling instead of giving the stuff away. Hope this helps.

Good Luck, Ted

Mac

I think the "Reality Check" is that a member of the buying public thought your work is the same value. Remember that most of us turn for other turners to appreciate and forget that 'other folk' don't appreciate what we think is 'good'. At our club's booth at the county fair we put a variety of small pieces on display. It is incredible how many times something I think is a piece of dreck is the most admired piece by the visiting public.

If you want to sell something, give it a try. You might be surprised what others are willing to pay for, and love.

David

mac davis wrote:

Couldn't find a web site... it was the "vintage fair" at Fresno State college (save-mart center..gag) in Central Calif..

mac

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Peter.. that was my point, I guess... that his work was at a much higher level than mine, but I still consider myself a beginner... I do appreciate the encouragement, though, thanks!

mac

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Arch.. that's exactly what we were thinking this afternoon... The stuff that I'm learning on is all from free or cheap firewood, so it could be sold inexpensively.. also, most are small items like boxes, mini-goblets and small bowls, so they would fit into your "momento" category...

My wife brought up one point today... that she really doesn't know anyone that buys "art"... and especially not at a fair.. Our neighbor made the point well when she said that most folks look at all the expensive stuff and think it's cool.. then pick up something for $20 or less to take home..

My main focus, besides getting better, of course, is that you'd have to sell a TON of $5 to $20 items to made a buck after paying for the booth, etc..

mac

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wow.. a lot of good points! I made sure that I told him (and his wife) up front that I was there to talk, not buy... and that I didn't want to waste his time..

He didn't talk a lot of shop, but did mention that he had "a few" vacuum chucks and several lathes.. he must have at least one huge one, some of the bowls had to be 20 or more inch diameter..

He also mentioned that although he prided himself on his finishes and got many compliments, that some folks didn't realize that they were "wood" and that hurt his sales.. a point well taken by my wife, who does the staining, top coating, wood burning, etc...

mac

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ME TOO!! If it becomes work, I can make a lot more money sitting on my butt doing web pages...

mac

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Its like photography. I used to do lots of photography and got really good at it. I could look at a photo I took and see all the defects, all the things I wished I could fix. I used to throw away grocery bags of slides several times a year. I also looked at a lot of photos taken by others.

As the artist/craftsman you tend to be more critical of your work. You are also much more familiar with what is good and what is bad. The key to being an artist is being self critical about your work and continuing to try and improve. The key to being a salesman is not telling a buyer what is wrong with it and selling it with a smile. If the buyer is happy you have succeeded.

Every time I'm not 100% happy with the result (which is still more often than not) I tell myself that wood is organic. It is not supposed to be perfect. Scratches and nicks are part of the material. It shows that it was hand made.

Ted wrote:

to reinforce the point made by others - there was a "christmas fair" where I used to work, some of the ladies brought in little decorated ornaments, plates with goodies glued to them, and so on - I decided to participate and brought pens - they sold well. Next year I brought some pens, some nice turnings, and a box of discards - stuff I felt was truely worthless - badly executed, and ugly. I put the ugly things out at a dollar, and every one of them sold. But the nice stuff didn't - not even noticed, by the way. So, you can sell drek, but it has to be cheap.

The more that good work is shown, the more it advances the situation for all craftspeople. I think that is clear after reading all the posts.

My hat goes off to the Swedish Turner and all like him who show artists quality work and the best that can be done. It makes it easier for people to understand and buy our work in the future.

Another good point was that about "baubles". Once people buy one item -- they will buy more (IME) -- so take lots and sell them -- and if they are good enough make sure your name is on them. Maybe you will see them again one day in the home of a new friend or acquaintance. Maybe you will not sell that person more, but a fellow turner might, and vis versa.

Also -- when people see stuff they like in the home of a friend -- it primes them to buy a similar item. (So sell, sell sell --- and enjoy yourself doing it :-) )

we've been doing sort of a neighborhood survey, as most of us went to the show.. (hell, it was free)

Almost everyone bought SOMETHING, as several folks have said here.. nobody seems to have spent over $20, except my wife.. she couldn't decide which style hair bolo thingy to buy for $15, so she bought 2..

We went on Sunday, which was the last day and weather was in the 80's with no breeze.. in the hour or so that we were there, I'd guess there were over a 1,000 people there, but I'm really bad at estimating numbers... just say that there were 8 or 10 booths on each side of each row, at least 20 rows, (not counting food and band area) and every row had enough people walking around that you had to avoid being bumped or separated from your party.. no idea how many attended on Friday or Saturday... I'm watching the local paper in hope of stats..

From what I saw, everyone stopped and admired the jewelry, candles, wind chimes, etc. but few bought any high ticket items.. My neighbor got a toe ring, seemed to be the "hot" item as there were 5 or 6 booths for them.. She said that they all had the same rings and about the same prices and were doing god sales.. she felt that they could be a result of the "start your own business" seminar that was at the same arena last year.. *g*

Surprisingly, the guy selling spas and high end bbq's did very well.. said that he would have done about 1/2 to 2/3 as well at his store that weekend, and his store was still doing average sales volume with his kid running it.. (we knew him from buying a spa, so he was pretty willing to talk numbers)

We're thinking now of "partnering up"with someone with a booth and sharing expenses.. maybe a candle or jewelry stand.. My wife thinks that the turned boxes would compliment the jewelry and might sell well there if priced in the $5 to $15 range..

We have nothing to lose, and we can always take a few crates of 'em with us when we move to Baja, and sell them to the vendors in town.. those little kids can sell ANYTHING to th gringos *g*

mac

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they all have my name and the year on the bottom... a result of the wife moving up from wood burning (inexpensive) to pyro graphy... kind of like going from a craftsman bench top saw to a Delta cabinet saw.. *lol*

mac

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....................................... Freudian slip? ^^^^^

Bear in mind, Mac, that there are markets for everything. I know a turner whose work can most flatteringly be described as "sturdy" who can hardly turn out stuff fast enough to keep the craft fairs supplied. This is good in that he gets to sell a lot of stuff, but it doesn't really challenge him to get any better, and indeed, his work has remained virtually identical in the 3 years that I've known him.

Which is my way of saying, regardless of your perceived level of expertise, if you are confident and enthusiastic about your work, there is likely a segment of the buying public that will be happy to lay down their money to own it. The secrets are, figuring out where they hang out and how much $$ they're willing to part with.

-- Chuck *#:^) chaz3913(AT)yahoo(DOT)com Anti-spam sig: please remove "NO SPAM" from e-mail address to reply. <

September 11, 2001 - Never Forget