Jump to content
I Forge Iron

Shop Inventory


Recommended Posts

When you go to a craft fair and such what is generally the breakdown between large medium and small items you take?  I'm trying to build my inventory to get to my first craft show this spring but am not sure on what to focus on.   Obviously the small quick items, like the leaf Keychain, decorative hooks, and such are easy to stock large numbers.  I guess I'm looking at items like fire pit tools and pricier items.  I'm looking for a general starting point and modify from there. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It depends on the market in your area and the type of people that attend your show.

I did a demo at a big name show out here once and was allowed to sell and found out that almost all my sales were to other artists and crafters on the set up and tear down days. Very few to people who came to the show to look and buy.  (At least the folks knowledgeable about crafts thought my stuff was well done and reasonably priced!)

It's possible to have a sell out one year and the next year sell almost nothing; evidently you "filled the market" for those items.

Have you attend the show(s) you plan to sell at and see what is offered and what is selling? (Though sometimes something totally unique to you will be a big hit!)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

From my experience with craft shows there are a bunch of factors  that need to be considered.  Quality of show is important.  If you are attempting to sell high end craft and all the other booths are selling wreaths, license plate birdhouses, tie-die t-shirts and other "formula" craft objects you won't usually get an interior designer looking for a staircase railing or even a high end fire screen.  Price point is also worth consideration.  I have found it is good to have lots of quick sale items in the under $25 range, a fair stock in the under $100 range and a couple of "show stoppers" to attract attention (ideally larger pieces that will draw folks into your booth from across the aisle.  Having a well produced portfolio of your more advanced work can help generate a commission, if you go for that path.  Time of year can be a factor as well (stocking stuffers for a holiday show, garden tools for a spring show...).  I used to carry as much stock as I could fit, and never sold out (though that could be related to a bunch of different factors).  Just don't put too much on your display at a time. No more than a handful of the same type of item, or you get buyers dithering too long over selections and the pieces may look too mass produced.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 months later...

My experience, and it has been 20+ years since I did shows for my income so take this for what it is, you need 4-5 times the inventory you expect to sell. As a rule 70% of sales were impulse buys in a $25-60 range, about 15% were $150-500, about 1% were over $1000. My goal was to always bring $10,000-20,000 in inventory at each of those price points. That might sound like a lot, but your booth will look bare if you have a really limited inventory. Keep a stock of little things too, and stuff in between each of these.  My goal  was to bring in $1500-3000 in sales per day at a show. Each day of a show would represent about two weeks work back in the shop. The economy has changed drastically since 1998 when I last did art fairs, so you should adjust your numbers to represent your situation

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...