Lynn Goodman Porcelain Pottery on tue 8 may 07
On May 8, 2007, at 9:37 PM, Dan Saultman wrote:
> Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
> do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
I've done both at the same time. When there was a conflict (the fair
and the store close together), I've asked the wholesale account if it
was OK to do the show; I've never been told not to. What I generally
do is take different things to the fair than is carried by the store.
If that is not feasible, I've matched their prices on similar ware. I
also put out business cards for the store in my booth and tell people
that if they want my stuff year-round, they can buy it at the store.
That generally satisfies any store owner.
Lynn
Lynn Goodman
Fine Porcelain Pottery
Cell 347-526-9805
www.lynngoodmanporcelain.com
Dan Saultman on tue 8 may 07
Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
I'm sure there are a few of you that might have some experience with
this.
I'd appreciate your input.
Thanks,
Dan Saultman
Chris Campbell on wed 9 may 07
Dan asked :
> Have any of you worked with wholesale
> accounts and still were able to do art fairs,
> or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
You can still do art fairs as long as you price
your work at the proper retail level ... this is
at least twice your wholesale price for the
same item.
If you are selling items not available to your
wholesale customers, then you can price at
whatever you want.
It is common sense not to do an art fair in a
town where you already have a gallery.
Why jam it in their faces?
If a good fair happens to coincide with gallery
location it is smart to sell only items not currently
available in that gallery.
You can promote the gallery by having cards
directing fair goers to the gallery for after show
sales. They will probably find out you were there
so it is best to be upfront and work with them.
You can even offer to do in store promotions for
free ... be there the day before or after to greet
customers or demo your process.
It is all in how you handle it ... you make it a
win -win situation and you should have no problems.
Good Luck
Chris
Donna J.S. Causland on wed 9 may 07
> Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
> do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
> Dan Saultman
Hi Dan:
I do both. It works for me.
My outdoor shows are Farmer's markets in the ski resort towns
and run for 12 weeks in the summer. I make most of my income there
but need income year round. I got a couple of the accounts for wholesale
from visitors to the markets.
I set a wholesale price for my work. Retail is double that.
I take 15% off the retail for the market price and am upfront about that.
(I don't have the overhead of a store and market customers expect that)
Also, it solves my problem when people ask me "Is that your best price?"
I do give 20% off to interior designers who are buying for their customers.
I've worked with them for years and that is the standard for them.
The great thing about the markets is the customer feedback.
I use that time to talk with people and learn who my customers really
are and why they buy my work. In Vail, they come from all over
and I have sold bowls taken to Ireland (hand carried on the plane,
they must have liked it!) Austria, Mexico, and Hawaii, in addition
to all over the US.
You can write me offlist if you want to know anything else.
Donna
djscausland@comcast.net.
Kathi LeSueur on wed 9 may 07
> On May 8, 2007, at 9:37 PM, Dan Saultman wrote:
>
>> Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
>> do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
>
I do both wholesale and retail. At times my wholesale has been 80% of
sales. Other times it's been almost the opposite. Both have their up
sides and both get in the way of the other. Above all else, wholesale
accounts want consisitancy and timeliness. What they hate is to place an
order and then not receive it for months because the artists has been
"busy doing fairs." I always have made wholesale orders a priority and
have gone to many a fair with pots sitting on the packing table to be
shipped rather than sold at the fair.
At a fair, you can sell anything you make. If the glaze doesn't turn out
quite right, but isn't defective, you can sell the piece. You can't
wholesale it.
Wholesale orders get in the way of preparing for fairs. They are often
due right at your peak fair times. Fairs get in the way of shows because
you have to be away rather than getting the orders done.
It's a complicated dance, but one I recommend. Don't rely only on fairs
(you can get rejected from all of them), or wholesale (your best account
may close or be sold to someone who doesn't want your work). Try to
keep a balance.
Kathi
>>
>
>
>
>
Richard Aerni on wed 9 may 07
Dan,
You can always chart your own path in this. Lots of people do wholesale and
retail, myself included. You can limit the amount of wholesale orders you
take, as you can limit the amount of retail shows that you do.
For me, I work on a simple business model...I never want the percentage of
my yearly gross from wholesale to exceed 40%, or I feel my profit margin
will be too slim. This comes from years of experience doing business, and
knowing my "upper limit" in terms of how many $$ worth of pots I can produce
in any given year. And, it is just my way of doing things, what I am
comfortable with. You may have a completely different take.
Wholesale has the advantage of being able to be mapped out in advance, so
that you can count on those dollars coming to you at specified intervals.
It makes cash flow management a lot easier.
Best,
Richard Aerni
Rochester, NY
On Tue, 8 May 2007 21:37:02 -0400, Dan Saultman wrote:
>Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
>do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
>I'm sure there are a few of you that might have some experience with
>this.
>I'd appreciate your input.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Dan Saultman
>
Lois Ruben Aronow on wed 9 may 07
My mind is still reeling from the concept "and still do art fairs". Why
would you want to?
I suppose you could but wholesale gets me off the road, gets my work for the
years, and it's not like the compulsive gambling of "art fairs".
I'll still do the higher end shows - ACC Baltimore, Philly when they'll have
me - but speaking only for myself and my personal circumstances, the craft
fair circuit is a dead end street and I'm glad to be out of it.
...Lo
Who never did an outdoor show where it didn't rain.
**********
Lois Aronow Ceramics
Brooklyn, NY
www.loisaronow.com
www.craftsofthedamned.blogspot.com
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of
> Dan Saultman
> Sent: Tuesday, May 08, 2007 9:37 PM
> To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
> Subject: The Dance-Wholesale & Art Fairs
>
> Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were
> able to do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
> I'm sure there are a few of you that might have some
> experience with this.
> I'd appreciate your input.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dan Saultman
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> ________________
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your
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>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
John Rodgers on wed 9 may 07
Dan,
I do both. I've not found it to be a conflict. My retail prices are the
same wherever I go. My wholesale accounts have a wholesale price. I did
wholesale alsmost exclusively for years, but I do fairs, farmer markets,
etc. to fill in and - more than anything else - to get out among the
public and find out what is going on, what people want, what the current
trends are. For me the fairs, farmers markets, etc. are a place for me
to gather marketing information to be put to use when I get back home.
Very important. More so that sales in some cases.
Regards.
John Rodgers
Chelsea, AL
Dan Saultman wrote:
> Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
> do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
> I'm sure there are a few of you that might have some experience with
> this.
> I'd appreciate your input.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Dan Saultman
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
>
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
>
sandy miller on fri 11 may 07
Gosh I hate doing art fairs....... guess I got spoiled in the 90's.
I love my wholesale accounts but now notice the orders are getting
smaller.
The wholesale orders all come in about the same time. (Jan. & Aug.)
The accounts I have
are great! The other problem I run into with wholesale........ I am
not a factory.
Right now I am weaving like a mad woman and not cranking out precious
little
$40 pots. But the accounts I have are very understanding and allow
me my insanity
from time to time.
I just spent the last week revamping my website. Thought I would try
selling off
the site. Now how do I get people there? Chris Campbell has pointed
me to
WholesaleCrafts.com and I just may finally give it a try.
Also contemplating doing my first studio sale/garden tour. I am in a
residential area
but am allowed two garage sales a year......... the permit is free in
our town. I have
always tried to keep people out of the studio but am slowly changing
my mind on that.
Dan Good Luck! Everybody finds a way that works for them ...........
oh and be creative-!!
Sandy Miller
www.sandymillerpottery.com
Eleanora Eden on tue 22 may 07
Hi Dan,
My strategy has been to do consignment up here in VT and NH where
there are good stores I can keep my eye on, doing work that is reasonable
to do in larger amounts. At the fairs I do a larger selection of designs, work
that I can do only in smaller amounts to serve my retail customers. I never ask
my stores if they mind, I don't want to know. I never undersell my stores.
Rarely somebody calls me asking for a better price than the stores and it is
no deal (grrr.....).
It works well for me. There was about 5 years between when I quit doing
the wholesale before I had something I could go back into stores with, but
those were good fair years for me in the '90s and I managed just on retail.
So it is consignment and retail, not much wholesale, and it works very well.
I am still enthusiastic about the fairs. Doing Ann Arbor again this year.
Eleanora
>Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
>do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
>I'm sure there are a few of you that might have some experience with
>this.
>I'd appreciate your input.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Dan Saultman
--
Bellows Falls Vermont
www.eleanoraeden.com
Dan Saultman on tue 22 may 07
Hi Eleanora,
Thanks for your note.
Wish you well,
Dan
On May 22, 2007, at 5:53 PM, Eleanora Eden wrote:
> Hi Dan,
>
> My strategy has been to do consignment up here in VT and NH where
> there are good stores I can keep my eye on, doing work that is
> reasonable
> to do in larger amounts. At the fairs I do a larger selection of
> designs, work
> that I can do only in smaller amounts to serve my retail customers. I
> never ask
> my stores if they mind, I don't want to know. I never undersell my
> stores.
> Rarely somebody calls me asking for a better price than the stores and
> it is
> no deal (grrr.....).
>
> It works well for me. There was about 5 years between when I quit
> doing
> the wholesale before I had something I could go back into stores with,
> but
> those were good fair years for me in the '90s and I managed just on
> retail.
>
> So it is consignment and retail, not much wholesale, and it works very
> well.
> I am still enthusiastic about the fairs. Doing Ann Arbor again this
> year.
>
> Eleanora
>
>> Have any of you worked with wholesale accounts and still were able to
>> do art fairs, or is it a one-or-the-other type of thing.
>> I'm sure there are a few of you that might have some experience with
>> this.
>> I'd appreciate your input.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Dan Saultman
>
> --
> Bellows Falls Vermont
> www.eleanoraeden.com
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
> _______
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
>
Susan Fox Hirschmann on wed 23 may 07
In a message dated 5/22/2007 11:09:22 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
design@SAULTMAN.COM writes:
retail.
>
> So it is consignment and retail, not much wholesale, and it works very
> well.
> I am still enthusiastic about the fairs
> >
> Eleanora
I think, in this economic market, you need to be as creative with your
marketing as your are with your work,
and not overlook any possiblity to sell that appears viable.
That is why I do wholesale and retail and custom work (at 60plus % additional
charges) and very little consignment. There is just no money flow with
consignment and tho I only have one account that I consign to, I give him work that
I do not take to art fairs. Also I trust him! And that is a must if you are
to get payments on time, etc.
I once did consignment in Ann Arbor and went in to visit the gallery while I
was doing the art fair: Low and behold, 4 pieces were missing! but I had not
been paid for them. GET THIS: The gallery owner told me they were in the
men's room, hanging on the wall, and she did not believe that I would actually go
in there to see if the pieces were there. She said that to the wrong person.
After my husband checked that no one was in there, I went in and none of my
work was there. I waited til she cut me a check for those 4 pieces and told
her when the art fair was over, I was coming by to take my work back. She was
dishonest, had bad
accounting practises....I should not have to CALL her to see what has
sold.....and it was all wrong. That is why I am so careful with consignments.
The wholesale has been internet related.. I dropped all the ACC and Rosen
shows as the booth fees were getting outta hand!.......and that is cool to get my
own shopping cart, I think.---and keep my expenses down. Those expenses can
eat you up!
And in between I doabout 8 fairs a yr,..---yes, it energizes me to do new
work......two shows in my studio. and the others local enough to permit me to
drive home and sleep in my own bed at night.......and love doing new and
custom work. In between that, teaching is stable income and helps me pay the
bills. I am now taking private students and doing girl scout groups which
increases my teaching money, but I do it on my schedule, so I still have creative time.
So I think, whatever works for you, GO with IT!
Just my 2cents, or whatever tis worth!
Susan
Annandale, VA
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