The Jewellery Tidal Wave

I recently visited the National Ploughing Championships held just North of Lincoln. The location was awash with tractors, horses and country product based stalls. It was a beautiful autumnal day, sunny and refreshing. Tucked away in a pair of connected marquees were the craft stands.

Once I'd walked around the various craft stalls I was amazed at the prevalence of jewellery stands. That is stands that either just sold jewellery or stands that sold jewellery alongside other craft items. I counted no less than nine stands with jewellery for sale. At a guess I'd say that jewellery accounted for over 30% of the stands. Why?

Well I have a few theories.

Theory 1: Convenience Factor. Jewellery is seen as a lot easier to deal with than ceramic, wooden items or even textiles. It's is smaller and lighter than many other craft products. It also has a higher value to weight ratio than practically any other craft product. Thus you have a saving in aching back muscles and transport costs. Practical issues that cannot be ignored.

Theory 2: The Higher (or any) Sales Mirage. Jewellery stands have been seen as more attractive to punters, and more lucrative, than other kinds of craft. It's only a small step from observing someone else's success to wanting to get in on the act yourself. After all, some jewellery is little more than stringing beads onto a bit of string. Hardly requiring the skills of a master goldsmith or the facilities of a precious metals workshop.

Theory 3: Desperation. The crafter who has a stand full of wares that nobody wants is easily tempted to add something else in the hope of making a sale. Jewellery is small, light and doesn't necessarily take up a lot of space. It might even attract someone to your stall who might decide that some of the other offerings might be worth purchasing.

But the downside for a visitor to such a jewellery dominated craft fair is the sheer boredom of seeing the same kind of product over and over again. At the National Ploughing Championships there was even one jewellery stand that must have been three stands long. It was immense. But it was also dull. Especially when you add in all the other stands selling jewellery as well. I felt that I'd arrived in some sort of jewellery market twilight zone. A place that I would never escape from unless I bought some jewellery. It's a bit like visiting a huge shopping mall where every other shop is selling sunglasses. You soon tire of the monotony and want to do nothing but leave.

Perhaps the organisers could take a look at their booking practices. They could make an effort to ensure that such an event isn't dominated by just one kind of craft. Frankly, it's in the interest of crafters as well as the visitors that an event has a good mix of wares on offer and the organisers should keep that in mind.

The Craft Fair Delusion (with a nod to Mr Dawkins)

A number of times Craft Fair Stallholders have proudly told me, at the end of the day, that they'd "done all right". When questioned this usually refers to "I've taken enough to cover my stall costs". When questioned further it transpires that they are referring to the fact that the turnover for the day has equalled or exceeded the cost of the stall hire AND nothing else.

This is a delusional state. Let us look at a brief breakdown of your costs as a crafter/stallholder.

1. The cost of your raw materials.

2. The time you needed to create your crafted items.

3. Insurance, usually public liability, costs.

4. Promotional costs (leaflets, business cards, websites etc).

5. Travel costs, both to and from craft fairs but also travel to suppliers as well.

6. Energy costs, such as electricity and gas, required as part of the craft making process. If you use a kiln, a light, a sewing machine then you're also using energy and that is a cost.

7. Any costs associated with learning your craft. Books, courses, even watching videos on Youtube. It all costs money and time.

8. Stall/sales kit. That includes a cloth to go over your table, stands to display your wares and the price labels.

9. The cost of hiring a stall.

10. Your time travelling to a Craft Fair and the time spent sat at your stand trying to sell your wares.

Now isn't that a bit of an eye opener?

Let's create a hypothetical crafter called Sue Smith. She makes 500 knitted hats each year and sells them at 10 Craft Fairs in her area. A breakdown of her costs for one item could be as follows.

1. Each hat needs £1.00p of wool and thread.

2. It takes 1 hour to create each hat. At National minimum wage that is a labour cost of £5.80p.

3. Annual public liability is £35.00p. Divide that figure by the number of hats made per annum equals £35.00/500= 7p per hat.

4. Annual promotional costs are £200 (printing, website etc). Divide that figure by the number of hats made per annum equals £200/500= 40p per hat.

5. Travel costs. 10 Craft Fairs attended. Total distance covered for Craft Fairs equals 500 miles. Notional rate per mile (including fuel cost, insurance, maintenance etc) set at 25p a mile equals 500 X £0.25p = £125.00 that equates to £125/500=£0.25p per hat!

6. Sales time and travel time. 10 Craft Fairs at 8 hours combined sales and travel time each = 80 hours. 80 Hours at £5.80 per hour = £464.00p per year. Per hat(500) = £0.93p each!

7. Sales Kit costs of £40 per annum. Equates to 8p per hat.

We will assume that Sue already knows all about hat making and that her energy costs comprise of a couple of bowls of cheap porridge per day. Hence no cost.

8. Stall costs. Each stall costs £20 per Craft Fair. That makes a total of £200.00p per annum and a per hat cost of 40p.

This gives us a total of £8.93p of cost per hat. If Sue Smith follows the usual pattern for crafters she'll be charging below her per item cost for each hat. Thus making a loss on every sale she makes. How long can anyone keep that up for?

The bottom line is that too many crafters appear to under price their wares. They don't take into account all the costs involved and appear to be throwing good money after bad. I'd encourage all crafters to sit down before they book another event and work out their costs as accurately as possible.

Finally, tax. A dirty word in anyone's vocabulary but we're all adults here and we have to face the issue of tax. What you call a hobby Revenue & Customs might well call a business. Are you registered with them as a trader? Do you complete your tax return every year? Even if you haven't made a profit, sadly the situation most crafters will find themselves in, you may well be required to fill out the requisite tax forms for self assessment. It's not a joke, people. I wonder how long it will be before our friends at Revenue & Customs start visiting craft fairs, pick up cards and then start back checking their records? A chilling thought.

Kirton-in-Lindsey Christmas Market Anyone?

I have been passed this email extract concerning a Christmas Market on the 4th of December, 2010.

We are holding a Christmas Market on 4th December 2010 and are looking for local purveyors of high quality goods, with the aim of making ours the best local Christmas Market in the area. As you may have heard, our Town Hall, the focal point of our market area, has recently received a £1m restoration and is due to be re-opened by HRH Prince Edward next month. We are planning, therefore, to hold a traditional Christmas event based around our fantastic newly restored Town Hall, which will be lit with brand new heritage floodlighting. There will also be entertainment including a brass band, choirs, Father Christmas, small children’s rides and various street performers.

Our stall hire is priced at just £25 and includes a traditional market stall canopy and lighting, which I believe is much more competitive than some Christmas markets!

I attach a flyer with more information and a booking form. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me via email or on (*&(&&(&**(*( (Number withheld by Craft Fair Eye).

We do hope you consider joining us, and we look forward to hearing from you.

Now the first thing that strikes me about this event, which is soliciting crafters and stallholders to attend, is the date. The 4th of December is slap bang in the middle of the Lincoln Christmas Market. One of the biggest Christmas Market events in the whole of the UK. It is also only about 20 miles away, or 30 minutes by car. If someone is really interested in visiting a Christmas Market are they going to stick to a small local event or go along to a huge event that attracts crowds from around the world?

The email goes on about the refurbishment of the local Town Hall. All well and good but it suggests to me that this whole event is to promote the Town Hall and not the stallholders. Do we have another example of stallholders being used to attract people to a location at their (the stallholders) expense? Perhaps it would be fairer for the crafters/stallholders to be paid for their time? Especially as they are a form of entertainment and being used to attract visitors to the event in Kirton-in-Lindsey.

I do love the bit about "Our stall hire is priced at just £25 and includes a traditional market stall canopy and lighting, which I believe is much more competitive than some Christmas markets!" It wouldn't be too far a stretch of the imagination to assume that this is a reference to the Lincoln Christmas Market. The difference between the two events? The Lincoln Christmas Market attracts a reported 150,000 visitors over a couple of days. Somehow I cannot see Kirton-in-Lindsey managing to reach that kind of footfall. Also, if you are a crafter/stallholder you have to ask yourself what is the point of attending an event so close to Lincoln during the Christmas Market. The Lincoln Christmas Market is heavily advertised and would be a major competitor. Drawing customers from all over the region and beyond. To sell you need people. If the people are elsewhere then selling becomes impossible.

If this event was being run at another time then it might be something you'd consider. But the date is a killer. It's the crafter/stallholder equivalent of opening a small clothes shop next to a new Primark store. 

Caistor Craft Fair and Art Show

The grand entrance to the event

Location : Caistor. But where is Caistor? Well, I'd never been there before this weekend. It's located some miles south of the town of Brigg. Located along a long windy road that can be a little scary to the unwary. Local population of about 2,600 (care of Wikipedia) and to quote one person of my acquaintance "it's the pimple on the arse of nowhere".

Promotion: There were signs on the way into Caistor and a damned good thing to. Without them I'd never have found the place. Apart from that I saw or heard nothing else that indicated an event in Caistor.

First Impressions: Not good. The event was being held in what I believe is the Town Hall. The small car park adjacent to the Town Hall was small and had only one empty space when I arrived. There was an overflow car park "nearby". "Nearby" means beyond walking distance and up a steep hill. Not somewhere that an elderly or infirm person (the majority of stallholders and visitors came into these two categories) could easily access without suffering a heart attack.

General Comments: The event was really two events. An art show/competition and a craft fair. The art show was so well hidden that I didn't even notice it on the way in. The craft fair was in the usual arrangement of stalls round the walls of a hall with some stalls in the middle. The stalls seemed, to me, to be very cramped. Too many stalls in the hall? Probably.

The merchandise on sale was the usual stuff. In fact I am now getting very bored with these events. It always seems to be the same "stuff" for sale. Greetings cards, jewellery, knitted goods, bags, some turned wood objects, pottery, some original artworks. It all sounds the same. Looks the same and is the same. It is dull. Little or nothing that might attract a man to make a purchase.

Watch out for that crowd!

In fact that is what I really want to talk about. A quick check of this event threw up an interesting fact. Nearly all the stalls were run by women. At all the craft fair type events I've attended nearly all the stallholders have been women. That accounts for the plethora of feminine products that are offered for sale. And that is the problem. Why? Because it is the men who have their hands on the cash not the women. So even if what you produce is fantastic and cheap the money holders (men) won't release the cash. I have even seen women about to make a purchase dragged off by their male companions. 

Another issue is age. Many of stallholders appear to be "getting on in years". One comment I overheard was "god's waiting room". So true. A great many of the stallholders are retired and elderly. Perhaps craft fairs attract the older person. But it also has a detrimental affect. Young people, whether you like it or not, don't like older people at all. They also, from what I can see, don't like what is offered for sale by older people.

This craft fair, like so many others I have looked at, offered nothing new and exciting. It was located in the middle of nowhere, in a location far away from the bustling shopping crowds of Scunthorpe or Brigg. It was dominated by elderly ladies and was stocked with items that, frankly, left me cold or bored. I think that unless the craft fair movement gets an urgent injection of young blood, and I cannot see that happening any time soon, then it will die off over the next ten years. The question is would anyone care or even notice? 

The Epworth Show

The Epworth Show is a pretty major event for Epworth. It is a traditional agricultural show where you can see livestock, vintage vehicles, old tractors, show jumping and even ferret racing. There's even a trade tent where people try and sell to the hoards of punters that traipse throw during this one day festival of country living.

So my wife took a stand in the trade tent (an immense marquee) along with many other budding hopefuls. Inside the marquee the mix was pretty varied. A fudge stand, a local private school, cards, jewellery, Jamie At Home franchise, a potter, jam and pickles, books, cup cakes and even a stand for Hull College (manned by two very bored looking gentlemen). Nobody could say that there was a lack of variety.

The organisation, apart from a few minor hiccups, was excellent. The location was good and the footfall was such that many craft/art fair organisers might well die to reach half the numbers we saw. It's a pity that this throng of people were keeping their hands firmly in their pockets.

This lack of spending cannot be blamed on the organisers. They'd done a pretty good job. They cannot be held responsible for the public's unwillingness to spend their money. To illustrate this situation I'd like to tell you a story....

There once was an over the shoulder bag which sat on a perch along with three very similar bags. They were all made form a very pretty material that had images of young girls riding cute, plump ponies. Now this bag was up for sale at an agricultural show where many horsey type girls were in attendance. Many of these girls saw this bag and oohed and ahhed over it. Saying how pretty and cute the bag was. Some girls came back to see the bag many times during the day. Picking it up, stroking it and then putting it down again. During the day over two hundred people picked up the bag, admired the bag and then put it back again. At the end of the day, the bag was still on its perch along with its fellow bags. Unwanted and unpurchased.

The moral of this story is simple. People aren't willing to pay a paltry £14 for a handmade bag made from expensive designer fabric. This isn't a work of fiction. I, personally, monitored the rate at which this bag was being "fingered" by the public. At one point the rate of "fingering" was more than once a minute. Each brief session of "fingering" ended when the punter looked at the price tag. The reaction was almost universal. The punter would grimace and then put the bag back on its perch, then walk away. We could have dropped the price of the bag but then there would have been no profit in the sale. We aren't a bloody charity. The whole idea is to make money not waste it.

The behaviour of the punters was a direct message. A valuable message. That message was that they did not value our products as highly as we did. They did not agree that this poor bag was actually worth £14 of their hard earned cash. No matter the work that had gone into the item, the cost of the designer fabric and all the other costs a business incurs and must be paid for. It was a chastening experience. There was no problem with the numbers and we could see that people had money. They just chose not to spend it with us, or many of the trade stalls we could see.

Waters' Edge Country Park

Location: The location is miles from anywhere. It is even more hidden away than The Ropewalk (which is nearby). It is, after all, a nature reserve/country park. Nature reserves are, by there very nature, not located in high footfall areas. Nor are they located in shopping areas, malls or High Streets. The road access to the location is hardly busy nor located anywhere near a major transport hub. Casual visitors are a rarity.

Waters' Edge Visitors Centre

Promotion: Where? I drove into the site (Saturday 28/0/10) today and saw little evidence of any promotion. At least there was a sign outside the venue itself but I saw nothing on the drive in. No doubt there were some posters at North Lincs Council locations but as I, and the majority of the population, rarely visit such places there's little hope of that option garnering a great deal of attention.

First impressions: The entrance to The Water's Edge Visitor Centre was flanked by a Help The Heroes stand and a craft/art stand on the other side. In front was a reception and shop. A shop selling very similar products to those sold by the stallholders. Both a direct and indirect competitor.

You also have to take into account that there was a charity stall at the entrance, running amongst other things a tombola. There's also a café in the visitors centre. Another competitor, competing for the limited disposable income of the punters. That's the big problem with any craft/art fair event held at a location which has another function. You are competing for a limited resource. Money. If there are many other competitors, in addition to other stalls, then you're in trouble. In fact, I'd go as far to say that you'd be better off not being there at all.

Captive Market: So why do places like visitor centres, museums etc run craft/art fairs? Well the way I figure it, they hope that the event will bring in income for themselves (stallholders paying for stands, the event will attract greater numbers to their location and stallholders need food and drink). The stallholders are not just paying guests they also are a source of income in their own right. The stallholders are creating a benefit for the host location. They are paying to provide the hosts with an attraction that brings in punters for the host location. So why are the stallholders paying? Seems like the stallholders should be paid by the host location.

General Comments: The event itself....One stallholder was hidden behind a display unit. To get to her stand you had to struggle through a small gap between the display unit and someone else's stall. For some reason people weren't interested in visiting her stall. She was in the most ridiculous position imaginable and she'd paid for the privilege. Now that really strikes me as insane. Is this person so desperate to display her wares that she'd accept a location that precludes the punters from seeing her stall? Mad or desperate? You decide.

Many of the stalls were wedged into the odd nook and cranny between the permanent exhibits. That looked, to me, very unprofessional. I was also left with the impression that it was a matter of pot-luck whether you got a good or bad location to sell your wares. There was a room full of craft stands at the far end of the building, next to the café.

Conclusion: Water's Edge is quite a nice nature reserve, if lacking suitable maps. The visitors centre is a bit of a futuristic carbuncle but considering that the Humber Bridge is the backdrop it could have been worse. As a location for an art/craft fair? It makes a good doorstop. I, personally, wouldn't consider it as a good sales location. 

ADDITIONAL: Comment overheard at craft/art fair at Waters' Edge "this is a bit expensive". Overheard comment from one young lady to another whilst they were contemplating an item with a price tag of 50 pence!

Craft Fair - Marshall's Yard, Gainsborough 25th of July

Marshall's Yard is a redevelopment of an old industrial area in Gainsborough. It looks clean, well cared for and has a pretty good range of shops, a gym, outdoor fountain and council offices of some kind. There's plenty of parking as well, always important in my opinion. My wife had booked to attend a craft/art fair on the same Sunday as a Mini Rally. The idea being, or so I assumed, that the car enthusiasts would be drawn in and we (the other stallholders and retailers) might make an honest penny from the expected crowds. Didn't quite work that way.

The stands were very good. Professional, clean and erected before we arrived. The staff assigned to the stallholders seemed to be professional, polite and flexible. Couldn't ask for more in that regard. The location of stalls did seem to be a bit far away from where the Mini enthusiasts were going to be. They were going to located next to the most popular shops.

A picture of a couple of the stands - apparently used for the regular Farmers Market event

So set up went ahead pretty well. There's an overflow car park located behind Marshall's Yard which we were able to use at no cost. Did mean a bit of a walk uphill to retrieve vehicles but it wasn't too onerous.

The obvious issue was the location of the stalls. In the middle of the car parking area almost at the other end of the car park from the Minis, the car enthusiasts and the majority of the people. 

Panoramic Image - the stalls can be seen to right of the image

The above image was taken from the pavement that runs around the outside of the car parking area. Can you spot the stalls? No? Not surprising. The stalls were lost amongst all the cars. A sign of some sort, or perhaps a few signs, might have helped to attract people to the craft/art stalls but I didn't see any.

Footfall through our little "alley" wasn't too great. When I bought an ice-cream from the ice-cream van, I found the woman sat there reading a magazine because she had so little to do.

The "Alley" of craft/art stalls - Note the huge crowds of people

Even the people running the roast pork stand seemed to be doing little business. A pity as their pork smelt really nice!

This was a classic situation for crafters/art workers. They are placed in a location over which they have no control. The people were mainly located at the other end of the car park where the Minis were to be found and such popular stores as Wilkinsons and Halfords were located. 


Takings were very poor. But then if people aren't going past your stand in suitable numbers then selling your wares becomes a much harder proposition.


Thoughts

• We could have done with some signs around Marshall's Yard telling prospective clients what we were and where we were. We were effectively hidden from many of the visiting public.
• We should have been located with the Minis, or the Minis should have been located with us. Either option would have meant a greater number of visitors to the craft/art stalls. That might sound a bit selfish but we aren't attending these events for our health. The whole idea is to sell. Poor sales means that anyone with half a brain won't come back.
• Public toilet reasonably nearby and reportedly in a good state. Low toilet paper level was corrected without anyone (as far as I know) complaining. Much appreciated by us.
• Oh, previously not mentioned, selling to the stallholders. This seems to be happening more and more at these events. Someone, usually a franchise holder of some kind, pops round to each stall to promote their specific offering. This time it was a business that tries to get people to sign up for cheaper utilities (gas, electric and phone). It was even suggested as an additional business to that of crafter/art worker. Would like to see this kind of thing banned.

The biggest problem of the day was the number of people walking passed the stalls. There just weren't enough of them. There were plenty of people about but not in our location.

What really put the day into context for me was the arrival of a couple who seemed to be interested in taking a stall themselves. They told me that they'd previously run a number of businesses including a stall at Gainsborough Market. They asked if this was a viable location etc. I gave them my honest assessment. No. As the TV show says "Location, Location, Location". The best place I've been to for sales of an arts and craft nature was the Cornhill, in Lincoln. Nowhere else in the region has managed to result in good sales over the last year or two. Why? Because the footfall is tremendous, there are banks nearby and people visit the  Cornhill because they are looking to shop. Not just to stroll around a pass the time of day.

I cannot see us returning to Marshall's Yard at any point in the future.

Craft Fair - St Marks Lincoln 24th July 2010

My first post for this blog. Why am I doing it? Well the answer is pretty straight forward. I feel, having shown my wares at a number of craft fairs and having helped my wife with her wares as well, that crafters/artists are getting a bit of a bum deal. I also think that craft fairs, markets or even the craft tent at your local show are pretty much a waste of time. Unless, that is, you're just looking to have a day out and are not bothered about making money from your craft/art work.

PLEASE NOTE: Whenever someone's face or a car number plate appears I blur them out. It's not a fault with the camera.

This post is about a craft fair that was held on Saturday, the 24th of July. It was located near St Marks Square, a shopping area that is located away from the High Street in Lincoln. The craft fair was meant to be part of the Italian Market, which was taking place at the same time but at a central location which was about 500 metres away (on foot). 

Italian Market Stall, The Cornhill, Lincoln

As you can see from the image above, I popped along to see the Italian Market. I thought it was excellent. Well placed to take advantage of passing footfall, colourful and stocked with some very attractive goods (Cheese, salami, olive oil, pastries and a huge range of what looked like nougat). It was located at The Cornhill. We weren't. That's an important point.

Lincoln High Street, looking Southward towards the Italian Market

This image was taken looking towards The Cornhill section of the High Street. The crowds are pretty obvious. The area around the Italian Market was very busy. A pity we weren't located with them. There was a suitable space....

The Cornhill, Lincoln - Empty but for one van

which was unoccupied save for a single van (see image above). This empty space was only a few metres from the Italian Market and all those people.

Instead we were about 500 metres away.....

This is what people saw when approaching our Craft Fair from the East

obscured by two cars and an Ice-Cream Van (which was moved later but the cars remained) and we were placed facing away from the main flow of people.

This is what people saw approaching from the West

The oh so attractive backsides of our stalls - not exactly inviting

Now I don't know about you but presenting the public with the backsides of a number of stalls, with no signs, seems highly unlikely to draw in the crowds. And strangely enough I cannot say that we were inundated with multitudes of people.

So to put it into bullet points

• 
  
  We were meant to be part of a Italian Market which was held the best part of half a kilometre way. We'd even been asked to produce Italian themed goods for this event. Why? There was no link between the two events.
• 
  
  Our stands were facing away from the main flow of people and the most popular (in my opinion) shop in the area. Guaranteeing that people would not see our offerings.
• 
  
  The placement of two cars (a local car dealership promotion) and an Ice-Cream Van meant that people approaching from the East could not see the stalls very easily. 
• 
  
  People approaching from the West just saw the backside of our stands.
• 
  
  No signs were out promoting our event. Nothing to say that we were meant to be an Italian themed craft/arts market. People at the Italian Market in the centre of Lincoln would have had no idea that we existed.
• 
  
  To cap it off - During set-up it was obvious that some staff at one of the stores were not happy with the placement of our stalls. Soon some security personnel turned up and I heard and saw them trying to see if the stands could be moved. Unfortunately, by this time,  the stallholders had mostly put their wares out and moving everything was apparently deemed impossible.  In some ways you cannot blame the local retailers for not being happy to have a slew of stalls outside their shops. It obscures their shop fronts and distracts potential customers from their shops.

This event just reinforced my belief that a craft/art fair run in conjunction with another event is a poisoned chalice. Especially if you're placed well away from the main event, as was the case here. If someone asked me if they should take a stall at another St Marks Lincoln Craft/Arts Fair I'd have to say no. Unless the stalls were faced towards the main flow of people and a guarantee that unwanted distractions (like a car promotion) wouldn't be there.