christmas craft fair

[morris]

Hello all
I have a christmas craft fair near me and I am thinking of going to may
be sell a few bowls, candlesticks and wooden fruit, I also have some
pendants ready

how do you price your pieces as this is meant a hobby, but who needs a dozen 12 ins bowls, made out of cherry, monkey puzzle and spalted beech.
any help would be appreciated.

Petra

 

[joiner_sim]

I don't make enough items to sell unfortunatley, and everything is made to order

If I were you, I'd take a couple of things into consideration.

1. Keep in mind how much you would like to ask for. Remembering timber & labour cost.

2. Check out the competition's prices on websites/ in shops.

3. Finally, ask yourself, would you pay the amount you have in mind? Ask other's too.

Good luck selling, and hopefully making a fortune! :wink:

 

[NickWelford]

Don't underprice things just because it's a hobby - just look at all the capital invested in your tools. You should really price things to cover costs (including tools, electric etc) plus a reasonable mark up for your time. Don't undersell your skills.

Best to have a variety of items - some cheap, some more pricey (especially monkey puzzle bowls) - perhaps you should price the material element to cover replacement of the timber etc, at market rate.

I don't sell things generally - Dearly beloved tends to give them as presents. JPT should have lots of advice - plus others that sell regularly.

How about posting some pics of your items and let us tell you what we think they should cost.......

 

[morris]

Hi
thanks for that, good advice, I have sold some ordered pieces for Christmas gifts, I have only been turning for a year and a half and my
things are good but far from perfect . I do turn a lot of green wood and some of the bowls have warped, which I like
I will have a go and see if there is any interest at all. In the North of England people don`t seem to like wood as much as me.
thanks again
Petra

 

[9fingers]

Petra,

I've just been looking here www.turnersworkshop.co.uk

and there are some guide prices that might help you.

Bob

 

[Doug B]

I went to a craft fair recently, there were 2 turners selling stuff.
Slimline pens were £6, fruit £5-£6 a piece & bowls from £7.
Up until then i`d been toying with the idea of making stuff to sell, but after seeing their prices, i decided to stick to the day job.

 

[lurker]

James me too!

Some of these turners must be paying themselves about 75p an hour

Bowls ain't going to sell for a fair price to "the man in the street" when you can get a turned wood bowl from Woolies for less than a tenner

 

[big soft moose]

I went to a craft fair recently, there were 2 turners selling stuff.
Slimline pens were £6, fruit £5-£6 a piece & bowls from £7.
Up until then i`d been toying with the idea of making stuff to sell, but after seeing their prices, i decided to stick to the day job.

they must be barely making a profit at those prices - especially if they are buying their wood. Underpricing like this is not only foolish but also unethical as it lowers the price expectation for those who do turn for a living.

I'm a hobby turner but I generally charge £10-25 for a 6" bowl depending on what the wood is (and I generally get my wood free), and anything upwards from £25 for a large bowl or platter. The only Items I do under a tenner are little feely bowls, mushrooms, dibbers etc which are designed to attract people to the stall.

I dont make pens , but if i did i wouldnt be selling them for under a ten (especially when you consider the price of pen kits etc).

As to the argument that your work isnt good enough to demand high prices - if this is true you shouldnt be selling at all , just give it to freinds and family - once your work is good enough to sell then charge a reasonable rate.

 

[Woodmagnet]

Hi
thanks for that, good advice, I have sold some ordered pieces for Christmas gifts, I have only been turning for a year and a half and my
things are good but far from perfect . I do turn a lot of green wood and some of the bowls have warped, which I like
I will have a go and see if there is any interest at all. In the North of England people don`t seem to like wood as much as me.
thanks again
Petra

Some of us do Petra.
By the way where is the fair?

 

[morris]

Hello all
I have been taking some Photos , but how do I get them on here for you to see>>

thank you
Petra [/img]

 

[9fingers]

Try here Petra

https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/view ... hp?t=14776

hth

Bob

 

[morris]

 

[joiner_sim]

I think they look good, but then again, i'm not a turner.

 

[morris]

I am quiet pleased with them pieces, are they good enough to sell??

 

[mickthetree]

Hi Morris

I recently purchased an ASH turned bowl (which I'm eating my breakfast out of now

It is 4 1/2" across and 3 1/2" high. I was more than pleased with it at £14. So much so that I bought another the same size in oak for £14 as well.

If you have some photos of you working in your shop, it might give people some indication of the amount of effort in doing what you do.

Why not also take a blank that you would use for a plate. This give people some reference as to the skill and effort involved in what they are buying.

From past craft fairs I have been to (as a buyer) you might find that a lot of people want to ask lots of questions about what they are buying and how it is made.

If you can give reference to the piece of wood that each item came from it might be a nice thing, although I'm not sure how realistic that is.

Go along and have some fun doing it. You might meet fellow turners and exchange ideas too.

Good luck

Paul

 

[PowerTool]

From the pictures,I would say they were at least as good as stuff I've seen at craft fairs before,so go for it!

P.S. - Where/when is it ? Might pop along..

Andrew

 

[morris]

Hello Andrew
the small fair is called the ladys night and is held at the cricket club in Bishop Auckland on Thursday night

Petra

 

[Woodcrafts]

I'd just repeat what others have said - don't underprice! It's not fair on those of us trying to earn a crust! If your work is of merchantable quality (and the photos you've posted certainly suggest that it is) then you should expect a fair return. And the customers should expect to pay a realistic price.
I stopped doing craft fairs / "fayres" some years ago, mainly because the craft element seemed to be disappearing in favour of cheap imported goods.
I still find Betty Norbury's book "Marketing and Promotion for Crafts", although published in 1994, useful and very readable, and contains good advice on the topic of pricing and value.
Despite the above, go for it and have fun.

 

[TheTiddles]

I'd just repeat what others have said - don't underprice! It's not fair on those of us trying to earn a crust! If your work is of merchantable quality (and the photos you've posted certainly suggest that it is) then you should expect a fair return. And the customers should expect to pay a realistic price.

I do find this argument very ammusing, do you think that there's an equivalent ukcarmanufacturer.co.uk where Vauxhall is leaving threads begging Toyota not to manufcature so efficiently that they can undercut them?? It's laughable, really it is.

Aidan

 

[Chris Knight]

Aidan,
I think your analogy is wrong. Vauxhall (aka GM) and Toyota are not exactly in the craft fair league..

Having said that Woodcrafts must obviously have to deal with competition if he is selling his wares and if his chosen market were craft fairs then caveat vendor would apply I suppose, for he would be in competition with hobbyists just pleased to sell their stuff for the thrill of seeing someone pay something for it. However he seems to be staying out of that market as would I if I wanted anything more than pin money.