I know that many of us sell the crafts we make primarily online or in our home town craft fairs, which is a fantastic things to continue doing, but how can you expand your sales and even keep them going when times are slow? One way is to try having your items up for sale in brick and mortar stores in your town.
The trick here is your sales pitch. While many stores may be willing to to take on some items for a trial, most stores will take some convincing – a sales pitch if you will. It’s a risk for them to invest in your items, especially if they are unfamiliar with your work. Unfortunately, handmade items have to be sold at a higher price point in most retail stores and if the shop you have targeted is trying to keep prices low, your items might just not fit into their price range. I worked in a small woman’s boutique for 3 years and this was our biggest issue with sellers who wanted us to carry their handmade items.
So how do you prepare yourself for the big sell? I’m no shop owner, but I did find this blog post written by three small boutique owners with actual brick and mortar shops in Austin, Texas. I thought it was pretty helpful and really well organized in what you should prepare yourself for. It talks about being prepared for the 4 P’s before you even think about pitching your items to a shop – Person, Place, Product, Prices.
I’ll definitely consider these tips before going to pitch to some of the stores in my neighborhood Check out the article for yourself on The Burlap Bag and see if you can pick up some helpful hints too!
Have you had successes in selling your items in a shop? Share your stories in the comments below!
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