Craft Business Movie Trailer

I came across this movie trailer for a documentary about people making a living on the craft show circuit - basically travelling around and selling their crafts. This is one option for people who want to make a living with their crafting, and can be a very exciting way to live (especially if you don't have any children or your children are older).

You can find out more about the filmmaker at her YouTube profile page.

WARNING: There is a bit of salty language in this trailer. You want to make sure that your little ones, or people who are offended by a small amount of cursing, are not within earshot. I don't condone the language, but the content was good so I thought it would be a shame not to share.



Happy Crafting!

Chuck

Technorati Tags: craft business, crafts, sell my crafts, small business, work at home, publicity

Local woman turning briefs into business

A Fitchburg, MA woman is using her crafting skills not only for a growing crafting business, but to help a local Fitchburg man who was injured in a car crash. And her choice of crafts - turning men's brief underwear into halter tops for women. You can find more on the story at the Fitchburg Sentinel & Enterprise - Local woman turning briefs into business.

This is a very unique idea, and helping out with a charity will do wonders for your new craft business (as seen by this story in the local newspaper). And remember - any free publicity you get (of course, as long as it is positive) saves you money on advertising. A coordinated marketing plan will help you drive customers to your new business, instead of having to constantly work the craft fair circuit.

Happy Crafting!

Chuck

Technorati Tags: craft business, crafts, sell my crafts, small business, work at home, crafting charity, publicity

Customer Service Lesson

I recently ran across this article in the Miami Herald about one crafter's experience with another vendor at a small church-sponsored craft show. Basically, she purchased an item from another vendor at the show, who then cashed her check and did not deliver the item.

There are some great customer service tips you should take to heart in your own crafts business. The name of the story is: One bad vendor can ruin a bazaar.

Check it out!

Chuck

Technorati Tags: craft business, crafts, sell my crafts, scrapbooking, quilting, small business, work at home

An Online Craft Fair

I'm just writing a quick post before I head out to golf...

I just stumbled onto an online craft fair that will allow you to sell you crafts in an online environment designed to invoke the wide-ranging array of products available at a crafts fair. Called artsEfest.com, this new site offers very reasonable pricing for displaying your crafts for sale. Created by Brian Appell from Holyoke, MA, artsEfest.com could be a wonderful way to create an initial online prescence for your fledgeling crafts business.

Check it out!
Chuck

Technorati Tags: craft business, craft fair, small business, crafts, sell crafts online, sell on eBay, eBay

Michaels Stores Reports Second Quarter Earnings: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

Michaels Stores, the world's largest retailer of arts and crafts supplies, announced that their net income for their second quarter (ended July 29th) was $20.3 million, up from $16.5 million in the first quarter of the year. In addition, total sales for the second quarter were $768.3 million, a 3.1% increase over last year's second quarter sales.

What was interesting was that the company's strongest category performances were in General Crafts, primarily driven by Jewelry and Beads, Apparel Crafts, Impulse and Kids Crafts businesses.

What does this mean? To me, it means that interest in crafting is at an all-time high! And, this is the perfect time to create your own successful craft business.

To see the full press release, just click on this link: Michaels Stores, Inc. Reports Second Quarter Earnings: Financial News - Yahoo! Finance

Happy Crafting!

Chuck Smith

Technorati Tags: craft business, crafts, jewelry and beads, paper crafts, scrapbooking

Etsy - A Great Place to Sell (and Buy) Your Crafts

One of the hardest things about starting a running a successful crafts business is selling your product. Most likely you wanted to get into a crafts business because you are good at making your crafts, and you are very creative. But, the business end of a crafts business can leave you dazed and confused.

And, when you start talking about selling your crafts online, the confusion reaches a whole new level. There's learning how to put up a web site, finding out how to set up a shopping cart to take payments, and then driving traffic to your web site. And then, you have to create text that makes people want to buy.

One option for setting up a web site is eBay. But with eBay, you are competing with everything from cameras to heavy equipment to real estate. eBay is HUGE and getting bigger (and more corporate) every day.

Now, there's a new site that caters specifically to the needs of the crafting industry. Called Etsy.com, this new site allows crafters of all sizes to quickly, and inexpensively, set up an online store to sell your crafts.

I'll be analyzing sites like Etsy.com and eBay for my new crafting business book due out in a few weeks. With all of the options out there, my goal is to cut through the confusion and let you know the pros and cons of each type of online selling solution.

Watch this space for more news.

Happy Crafting!
Chuck

Thanks to Everyone Who Asked About the New Puppy

I wanted to thank everyone who asked about our new puppy, Ginger. Ginger is a Golden Doodle - a cross between a Golden Retriever and a Standard Poodle. She will grow to about 40 - 50 pounds, and she has hair (so she doesn't shed). And, as you can see, she's just about the cutest thing in the world!

So thanks for asking about Ginger. She's doing great, but I'm a bit tired. Having a new puppy in the house is almost as tiring as having a new baby. I forgot all about the middle of the night potty breaks, and the early morning feedings. But, the kids have already fallen in love.

Here's a picture of Ginger:



I've got some great crafting business news coming up soon. I've been working on a complete Crafting Business Guide, so stay tuned for details. It shouldn't be more than a few weeks!

Happy Crafting!
Chuck