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Location: Just north of Whoville in Guelph, Ontario!
Posts: 442
I had my first one last Saturday and netted about $125. Snowman soup was my big seller. I only sold ONE snowman hershey bar and only one lip balm purse Maybe it was the clientele...it was mostly young families, as it was at a swimming pool rec center. This weekend is a two day one for me and last year it was a good one. So here's hoping!
Congrats, smriti --somehow its always so reassuring when we can sell our stuff!!! Vary validating. Your prices seem to be right on. Glad you did so well
Thanks Cathy! Oh yes it feels so good - I couldn't not think about it for the next 24 hours
Sandra, I can empathize with you! There were so many people who, it seemed, were so fascinated by my products and I felt that there going to buy it but they would just say "Oh I'm surely buying a lot of this but let me finish my round" and would never come back.
I made 6 dozen of the snowman wrapped chocolate bars less the three my hubby took and ate, and I wanted to get more bars from costco but ours downsized it's candy section and they have no more jersey milks available. Also they upped the cost and per bar it is .70 so my profit just slipped another .20. I have 9 days of sales and just figure I should stop working and just see what sells now.
So, just a thought to share: any ideas on what to do with round, black Sixlet candies? I was thinking some cute poem about the soot Santa gathered in the chimneys last year, and saved just for you. Thoughts, poem ideas, anything?
Judi
I just did a show on Saturday and I sold out of Grinch pills. People really liked the variety of stocking stuffer items. I did hot cocoa slider packets, reindeer poop, grinch pills, and snowman kisses. My other big sellers were Snowman Candy Bars and acrylic post-it note holders with matching RSVP pens. My next show is in about 4 weeks so I have some time to replenish. I will try to post some pics later.
great low,low prices on tiny tear off calendars! just think of the great gifts-add onto acrylic post note frames. or adhere to a coaster w/ magnet.
enjoy
great low,low prices on tiny tear off calendars! just think of the great gifts-add onto acrylic post note frames. or adhere to a coaster w/ magnet.
enjoy
Thanks! I already ordered some goodies!
__________________ ~mel
Stampin Up! Demonstrator my blog
Hi All,
I've got my first craft fair this weekend.
Here's some pics of items I've made.
Does anyone have any suggestions for prices?
Any help would be great as it's my first time.
Thanks in advance!!!
Have a bowl of sweets on the table and offer one to the kids, that way the parents stop to look and see what you have, anything that makes them look, is worth a go.
Have a bowl of sweets on the table and offer one to the kids, that way the parents stop to look and see what you have, anything that makes them look, is worth a go.
This is an awesome idea! Unless I eat them all as the day goes on!Thanks for sharing!
This is an awesome idea! Unless I eat them all as the day goes on!Thanks for sharing!
Which is exactly what I did last year! It was the first craft show I had done and my first lesson learned. We didn't bring any snacks and were so busy that there was no way we could get up to go to the concession stand to get something to eat. That silly bowl of candy was all we had all day long! lol
Have a bowl of sweets on the table and offer one to the kids, that way the parents stop to look and see what you have, anything that makes them look, is worth a go.
I did balloons on a stick for kids one year (blew them up (with a hand held air pump) while the kids waited). It gave the parents time to look at my things and I most bought something. I think it really helped my sales.
__________________
Ink on Skin, Ink on Paper...
...It's all the same smell!
I brought my left over Halloween candy to my last sale - I was eating WAY too much of it and needed it gone. Did bring some to the table. I also hit the bake sale at some point, and bought cookies for me and my helper niece. But again, didn't want to take them home so offered them to adorable children (one who had an equally adorable dad with him!!). I like to banter with the people when they come by or stop by so having a treat nearby helps. But I want them to buy the altered candy items I sell too, so not too much candy for them!
Hi All,
I've got my first craft fair this weekend.
Here's some pics of items I've made.
Does anyone have any suggestions for prices?
Any help would be great as it's my first time.
Thanks in advance!!! Attachment 234400
I did a show today and here are a few tips I learned:
If something isn't selling and it's in a basket w/the same item but they are decorated differently, change what's in front. For example, altered notebooks. If they aren't selling, and they usually do, change the front one as it might not be appealing to people to look through.
Make suggestions! One girl liked a steno pad for $4, but her mom thought that was too high. I showed her the mini notebooks I had for $1.50 that were similar but smaller and cheaper. Mom thought that was great and they actually bought one and $2 worth of other items. I might have made no sale but made $3.50 based on that one suggestion. I know it seems silly, but anyone who has children knows that things can really add up when they are asking for stuff.
Use lots of signs for prices, descriptions and "tips." Like "great stocking stuffer" or "teacher's gifts!" Many people need reminders. And they won't ask what an item is. They aren't going to buy an item if they don't know what it is.
If your table space is limited, put out your higher priced items or items you want to get rid of! I was out of room so my pencils that are 25 cents each were put away for higher priced items. They can keep for another show or next year!
Talk to other vendors! I got so many ideas for upcoming shows. And they sometimes turn into your best customers! I sold most of my gift tags to the two vendors sitting on either side of me and one of the vendor's mom bought $20 worth of items.
I have done shows every year for quite awhile now, but I never fail to learn something new.
I did a show today and here are a few tips I learned:
Use lots of signs for prices, descriptions and "tips." Like "great stocking stuffer" or "teacher's gifts!" Many people need reminders. And they won't ask what an item is. They aren't going to buy an item if they don't know what it is.
I definitely agree with this tip. I realized this last year. Everythings I sell has its own price sign with the item description and price. I will even describe based on questions people usually ask. For example, people ask over and over again what kind of chocolate the chocolate bar snowmen are..my sign tells them. Many still ask but I know others read the sign because they tell the people with them.
I also put mini labels on things like the post-it note books and mini comp books. The labels tells people what it is. It helps alot - my sales have gone up since taking the time to do this.
I brought my left over Halloween candy to my last sale - I was eating WAY too much of it and needed it gone. Did bring some to the table. I also hit the bake sale at some point, and bought cookies for me and my helper niece. But again, didn't want to take them home so offered them to adorable children (one who had an equally adorable dad with him!!). I like to banter with the people when they come by or stop by so having a treat nearby helps. But I want them to buy the altered candy items I sell too, so not too much candy for them!
I did that last year and at my first show, which is the weekend after halloween, parents were not letting kids take them because they'd had halloween candy and many would be rude enough to say that oh you brought your halloween candy
The next fair which is the weekend before Thanksgiving, the candy was very popular (I guess two weeks was time enough for people to forget about halloween candy!) and even some vendors had it when they were hungry
I did a show today and here are a few tips I learned:
If something isn't selling and it's in a basket w/the same item but they are decorated differently, change what's in front. For example, altered notebooks. If they aren't selling, and they usually do, change the front one as it might not be appealing to people to look through.
Make suggestions! One girl liked a steno pad for $4, but her mom thought that was too high. I showed her the mini notebooks I had for $1.50 that were similar but smaller and cheaper. Mom thought that was great and they actually bought one and $2 worth of other items. I might have made no sale but made $3.50 based on that one suggestion. I know it seems silly, but anyone who has children knows that things can really add up when they are asking for stuff.
Use lots of signs for prices, descriptions and "tips." Like "great stocking stuffer" or "teacher's gifts!" Many people need reminders. And they won't ask what an item is. They aren't going to buy an item if they don't know what it is.
If your table space is limited, put out your higher priced items or items you want to get rid of! I was out of room so my pencils that are 25 cents each were put away for higher priced items. They can keep for another show or next year!
Talk to other vendors! I got so many ideas for upcoming shows. And they sometimes turn into your best customers! I sold most of my gift tags to the two vendors sitting on either side of me and one of the vendor's mom bought $20 worth of items.
I have done shows every year for quite awhile now, but I never fail to learn something new.
These are all wonderful tips! I had some purse shaped gift card holders at my recent show. You open the purse flap and the gift card slides into a pocket inside. Hadn't sold any, so my friend suggested that I slip a piece of paper into the pocket so people would know how to use it. I also wrote on the paper "Gift card goes here". After that, I sold all but two!
Rearranging things is a great idea, too! I had some bookmarks in a mug and they weren't selling very well. I finally spread them out on the table and sold many!
So, if something doesn't work, try something different!
I did that last year and at my first show, which is the weekend after halloween, parents were not letting kids take them because they'd had halloween candy and many would be rude enough to say that oh you brought your halloween candy
The next fair which is the weekend before Thanksgiving, the candy was very popular (I guess two weeks was time enough for people to forget about halloween candy!) and even some vendors had it when they were hungry
More adults were eating the candy but I just wanted it gone. But yeah people will complain about anything. My sister says that if you give some people a $20 bill they will complain that you didn't give them a $10 and two $5's!!!
These are all wonderful tips! I had some purse shaped gift card holders at my recent show. You open the purse flap and the gift card slides into a pocket inside. Hadn't sold any, so my friend suggested that I slip a piece of paper into the pocket so people would know how to use it. I also wrote on the paper "Gift card goes here". After that, I sold all but two!
Rearranging things is a great idea, too! I had some bookmarks in a mug and they weren't selling very well. I finally spread them out on the table and sold many!
So, if something doesn't work, try something different!
I have a gift card on hand too to show them how it goes in. That helps too,
These are all wonderful tips! I had some purse shaped gift card holders at my recent show. You open the purse flap and the gift card slides into a pocket inside. Hadn't sold any, so my friend suggested that I slip a piece of paper into the pocket so people would know how to use it. I also wrote on the paper "Gift card goes here". After that, I sold all but two!
Rearranging things is a great idea, too! I had some bookmarks in a mug and they weren't selling very well. I finally spread them out on the table and sold many!
So, if something doesn't work, try something different!
Because I like to package all my products up to protect them, I keep a sample out and on hand for people to see and touch. The gift card purse sample had a piece of paper in the slider pocket tucked halfway in so people could see how it worked.
The packaging of items really improves the professional look of each item, but also makes me happy because I am not worried people will wreck my items from being rough. It also helps with the packing/unpacking of items for travel to the shows.
More adults were eating the candy but I just wanted it gone. But yeah people will complain about anything. My sister says that if you give some people a $20 bill they will complain that you didn't give them a $10 and two $5's!!!
Because I like to package all my products up to protect them, I keep a sample out and on hand for people to see and touch. The gift card purse sample had a piece of paper in the slider pocket tucked halfway in so people could see how it worked.
I too do that for all my items - keep a sample out for everybody to see and feel it. For all the gift card holders, I keep a dummy gift card inside.
Location: Just north of Whoville in Guelph, Ontario!
Posts: 442
My craft sale last weekend was great for me! I made a profit of just over $400, which is $100 better than last year at the same show. Here's the list of things that sold:
Snowman Chocolate bars - sold 17
Snowman Kisses - sold 11 (all I had)
Candy Sticks - sold 27
Snowman Soup - sold 21 (all I had)
Marble Coaster sets - sold 8
Hand Sanitizers - sold 6
Pencl Packs - sold 10
Tooth Fairy Tins - sold 8 (almost all my girl ones!)
Post It notepads - sold 5
Grocery Lists - sold 4
Calendars - sold 6
Recipe Holders - sold 6
Bag of Gift Tags - sold 9
Magnet Marbles (large) sold 56
Magnet Marbles (small) sold 51
Lip Balm Purses - sold 7 - this time I had one open and the lip balm standing up. It seemed to help by giving a visual
Wine Bottle tags - sold 4
Cards - sold 4 - these are never a big seller for me
My biggest sellers were the marble magnets. People are nuts for those! So weird! I have two more shows this weekend so I made more small ones but couldn't find anymore big ones.
Lots of people walked by saying how cute everything is, but didn't buy. One lady wanted more snowman soup, but I didn't have any. I meant to bring more but forgot one bucket full so only had 21 with me. And the sale was an hour away from home so I couldn't just run home and get them. Oh well!
I am also making more snowman chocolate bars and maybe some more coaster sets. I only have 5 left and I have two sales this weekend and another next week. I guess I better! lol
Congrats to all who had sales last weekend...both good and not so good. As someone said earlier, each sale is different. The weekend before I didn't sell one snowman chocolate bar, but last weekend I sold 17 so go figure! lol
Good luck to those having sales this coming weekend!
Location: Just north of Whoville in Guelph, Ontario!
Posts: 442
Quote:
Originally Posted by dianneo
How much did you sell your marble magnets for? Did you sell them in sets?
I just had them loose in a basket. Big ones in one basket and small ones in another one. The big ones were 5 for $1 and the small were 8 for $1. I picked them up from the dollar store and got at least 48 little ones from a bag so $5 profit is pretty good I think!
I think I read either here or on another thread that people put out candy at their table to attract the kids and their parents. These marble magnets work the same way! The kids were intrigued by them and because they are a good price the parents usually bought some for the kids and for themselves!
Location: Just north of Whoville in Guelph, Ontario!
Posts: 442
Quote:
Originally Posted by NanaKaren
Sandra...do you have pictures of your marble magnets or can you describe them?
thanks
I don't have pictures (of course...fogot camera) but they are the clear glass marbles that you can use for decorating. You put them in vases. They come in all kinds of colours. I then punch a circle from double sided designer paper and use Crystal Effects to glue it on and to glue on the magnet on the back. I'll try to take a picture tonight.
Location: Wollongong, just south of Sydney, Australia
Posts: 261
Laughing at myself
I just had to let you know what a blooper I made. I finally succumbed to the temptation to make magnet pegs and desired to expand to the wonderful glass pebbles that are mentioned so much on this thread. So off I go & ordered some magnets from ebay as suggested on this thread. I thought I would start with a small quantity of 50. My order came in very quickly and I wondered if there was anything in the bubble envelope... My magnets were so tiny that all 50 3mm x 1.5mm which together were no longer than 1.5 inches...but boy are they strong. Not sure what I am going to do with them but I will be placing another order with them ASAP. Gee and I had thought I had double checked the sizing! LOL
I just had to let you know what a blooper I made. I finally succumbed to the temptation to make magnet pegs and desired to expand to the wonderful glass pebbles that are mentioned so much on this thread. So off I go & ordered some magnets from ebay as suggested on this thread. I thought I would start with a small quantity of 50. My order came in very quickly and I wondered if there was anything in the bubble envelope... My magnets were so tiny that all 50 3mm x 1.5mm which together were no longer than 1.5 inches...but boy are they strong. Not sure what I am going to do with them but I will be placing another order with them ASAP. Gee and I had thought I had double checked the sizing! LOL
How are you going to attach them? I have some tiny magnets, too; but I'm having trouble attaching them because I can't use metal tweezers (magnet is too strong), hot glue won't work because they're so small and my fingers are too fat to handle them well!
Location: Wollongong, just south of Sydney, Australia
Posts: 261
Quote:
Originally Posted by am2106
How are you going to attach them? I have some tiny magnets, too; but I'm having trouble attaching them because I can't use metal tweezers (magnet is too strong), hot glue won't work because they're so small and my fingers are too fat to handle them well!
I haven't got that far yet. I had thought of Hot glue, Pritt Power glue or an epoxy type glue.
It would be great to hear what the experienced people have used!
I haven't got that far yet. I had thought of Hot glue, Pritt Power glue or an epoxy type glue.
It would be great to hear what the experienced people have used!
Try Tacky Glue. That is what I use. It is usually fine. But you have to glue them on with a couple inches separating each one until the glue is dry. Othersie, the will snap together while wet!
Went and set up for my 2 day sale last night! Actually had 16 feet to use, not 8 like I thought. Wasnt a bad thing, but the displays that I normally use just look lost! But luckily I had bought a bunch of baskets at the $ store after the last sale. I still had plenty to fill in with, but when you are looking at a space twice the size that you are used to...it was a little overwhelming. Anyway I have a few things to put finishing touches on and they will come along with me tonight. My friend is a member of the church that the sale is at, and as I am putting the last things up, she says "Hopefully you wont sell it all tomorrow night and not have anything for Saturday" This is already I fear I have (maybe not all of it, but a lot of it), so I was not so amused!
Wish me luck!!!!!!!!
2Likes
and only one lip balm purse 
Thanks for sharing!
It was the first craft show I had done and my first lesson learned. We didn't bring any snacks and were so busy that there was no way we could get up to go to the concession stand to get something to eat. That silly bowl of candy was all we had all day long! lol
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