Craft Fairs: How To

I have been trying to think of ways to capitalise on the time of year. Surely there must be a way to get my jewellery out there as fairly priced, handmade, thoughtful gifts for Christmas?

So, having never done a craft fair before, I have decided I am going to try and do at least one, but hopefully around three, over the next few weekends. Craft fairs at this time of year would be a great way to demonstrate my wares as perfect Christmas gifts and the promotion would be done for me by the event organiser so I wouldn't be hindered, as you can be online, by no one knowing my brand.

But as I said, I've never done one before. So I started out trying to answer a few simple questions: how do I find craft fairs in my area, how much do they cost, how do you know if it's a decent fair? In the process of finding the answers to these questions however, about a 100 more opened up as I read more and more about craft fairs - there is a LOT of information out there, and there is a lot more to think about craft fairs than I thought.

So I thought I would do a blog post summarising everything I have learnt, finishing up in a little checklist. Hopefully the process will be helpful for anyone else thinking of doing one, as well as consolidating everything for myself.

How do you find craft fairs in your area:

Obviously - Google shouldn't be dismissed - you are always going to pick up things here that might not be in other places. However, the best two websites I have found are these:

http://www.stallfinder.com/ - This is the site I would recommend you would start at, it seems to cover the whole of the UK and you can filter by event type to find the best one for your type of product.

www.surreycraftfairs.co.uk – Obviously, this one will only be relevant to some of you, as you can tell from the name, it’s for fairs based in surrey, but I would assume it is easy enough to find similar sites for your own area.

Choosing a fair:

Apart from reading information on websites and blogs, I set up a few discussions in the forums and teams across Etsy, asking for advice. One of the main things that has come up is “you’re a bit late!” Basically, some craft fairs are better than others. (I do get the sense that this seems to be more true in the US than the UK but time I’m sure time will prove me wrong). Because of this, the best ones get booked first – so thinking about doing craft fairs ahead of time, unlike what I am doing, is key! Many also suggest that you go and visit the fairs before applying for a store there so you can get a true feel for the fair before you commit – again as I have come in rather late, I will need to skip this step. But, if you are thinking about doing craft fairs, and don’t have this kind of time, there are things you can ask, and shouldn’t be afraid /embarrassed of asking, before you purchase stall space. Ask how many stalls there are, how many visitors they get, what the price of entrance to the fairs is, how well marketed it is, what variety of stalls there are (I have been warned I am likely to be up against a lot of other jewellery stands). These questions should hopefully give you a bit of a sense of whether it’s the right fair for you. Cost of your stand is also important, work out how many pieces you would have to sell to break even, and whether it is worth it. I have been told £25 is the maximum I should go for in the UK as a guide.

Marketing:

Marketing of the fair itself is done by the hosts (ideal) however, it is always going to be worth letting your twitter and Facebook followers you are going to be there – especially if you do not have a bricks and mortar stall, as it is a rare chance for them to actually see the pieces before they buy. I’m thinking I might let family and friends know too – they might tell others etc.

More importantly in this section however is not to forget than the fair is a marketing opportunity for you, rather than just a selling opportunity. Bring business cards and flyers! Many people may not buy there and then, but if you give them a flyer, perhaps with an online discount, they are less likely to forget you and more likely to buy later. Pictures will be important so they can remember which stall the flyer came from. I am going to have a stack sitting on the table. But I also intend to load up each of the bags at the ready with a flyer inside – if someone has liked your items enough to buy them, they might recommend you to someone else, or buy more pieces at a later date. But they can’t if they don’t know who you are and what your website address is.

You may want to consider having a form for filling in email addresses to start up a mailing list (or add to an existing one). Entering everyone who supplies their address into a prize drawer for a small gift should increase the number of people willing to supply this.

Equipment:

Without properly thinking about it, you may end up showing up to a show with your products (obviously important!) and nothing else. Make sure you ask the host exactly what they supply. I believe the standard is a table and nothing else, but apparently at some fairs you must also supply your own tables! In the case of having a table and nothing else, here is a bit of a checklist of other items to consider:

-          Table cloth

-          Stall decorations

-          Banner/Stall Name sign

-          Lunch/snacks

-          Change

-          Lockable money tin

-          Folding chair

-          Price Tags/ Price List

-          Marketing materials

-          Paper / plastic bags – potentially gift wrapping materials also

-          Receipt book – someone may ask, you don’t want it to be a barrier to a sale

-          Stationary – pens, tape, paper etc.

-          Tool kit – I’m going to take jewellery pliers etc. this will depend on your product

-          Bag for rubbish

Pricing:

Make sure you have some kind of pricing system where the customer doesn’t have to ask you for the price – this is an easy way to lose a sale as many people do not want to ask. Either put price tags on everything or have price lists saying for example, all bracelets £4. Make sure your pricing at fairs is all round numbers – this will save unnecessary need for excess change.

Payment:

Many of you, like me, will not have a card reader knocking about to take along. But not accepting cards could be a real barrier to a sale. With the birth of iPhones and other smartphones however, they are apparently a wealth of apps you can install to turn your phone into a device which will accept card payments – I am going to have a hunt for one this afternoon.

Display:

You will be competing against a variety of other stalls, potentially a number selling the same items of you. You need to ensure that your stall is enticing enough for people to come over. Some tips I have found:

• Whilst you don’t want your stall to be over-crowded, empty spaces are the enemy. Make sure you    have a full stall
•   Make sure you bring a sign, and that is clear to see
• Elevate your items – A flat display is not appealing and also, if you have a crowd, anyone new passing by will not be able to see anything at all, whether they are interested or not. People use boxes, mini display stands etc.
• Dress well – You sell your brand so don’t turn up in tracksuit bottoms

So I hope this is helpful for anyone else thinking of doing craft fairs – wish me luck for mine! 

Frederica

www.etsy.com/uk/shop/FredericaDixon