Craft Business Ideas: Pop Up Retailing

Think outside the box...pop up retailing is a great way to sell your crafts. Access to the public and great promotion exposure without dealing with wholesale account discounts or internet fees. Coordinate with other fellow crafters who sell goods with similar target customers and price points. Choose crafters from complimentary categories. For our event we combined the efforts of an eco-friendly handmade handbag company, a designer of custom contemporary clothing, and a handmade jewelry designer who uses fossils to create her one of a kind jewelry. Price points started at $75 and went all the way up to $350. Each designer set up their own area in the lounge area with branding collateral and a personalized display. We partnered with a local charity, Our House, and advertised a 10% proceed donation to the organization. The event also served as a clothing donation drive for the homeless shelter. I called several local venues that would support the size, theme and desired location of the event. When calling, you should put emphasis on the fact that a craft event would bring in new customers for the bar and the fact that you will be working with a charity. With this information, the bar manager of Prost in Little Rock "donated" the room rental for the evening. It's a good idea to have each of the designers put in a few bucks to purchase some light snacks from the bar/restaurant. Our event was named "Handcrafted" and was held during happy hour, which encourages more fun!. Handcrafted turned out to be a great networking event due to the turn out of professionals fresh from work. Each designer was able to showcase their collection, sell on the spot and obtain leads for future sales. It turned out to be an inexpensive event that benefited all three designers, the bar, the guests, and the charity organization. 
Kay.dee.h Handbags, A.Gunk Designs, and Kate Baer Fossils can all be found on Facebook!