Craft Show Items Priced To Sell!
March 5, 2010
Craft Show Items Priced To Sell!
by: Natalie Goyette
Pricing your craft show items correctly, and so that you make a
decent profit is paramount if you are going to be successful in
this industry. So how do you make the most money from your
craft show items, and still have them fly off the shelves
because they are a great price. Read on to find out!
In order to at least decide on your initial price structure you
may want to follow a mathematical formula for arriving at the
most favorable retail price:
production costs + overhead costs + selling costs + profit =
best price
Production costs include cost of materials and labor; overhead
costs are rent, utilities, insurance, professional fees; selling
costs may be show fees, traveling costs and marketing expenses;
and profit is why you went into this as a business in the first
place!
If you’re not comfortable with numbers, get help from a savvy
friend or your bookkeeper or accountant if you have one. Or
maybe ask another crafter how they arrive at their best price.
Since you need to keep track of your expenses anyway, you will
have the figures needed to fit into this equation, so after you
do it once, you’ll get the hang of it. Figuring the production
costs for one item may be difficult, so if you need to figure it
for 10 or 12 items, you can then divide at the end to arrive at
the price per item.
This formula is a good place to begin if you’re just starting
out. Whether you’re selling handmade sewing or quilted items,
pottery or paintings, you have all the elements of the equation
to factor in. If this is just too complicated for you, then
price your items as close as possible to comparable ones until
you become more comfortable with determining your prices
professionally.
After you determine a starting price, compare it to similar
items on the market and test it at your next show. If you find
you have to reduce your price, that also means you need to
reduce some of your costs if you want to keep the same profit!
You may be able to cut down your overhead by sharing a studio,
or you may cut your production costs by using family members
instead of paid employees, or apprentices as previously
mentioned. Again, there are always several variables involved in
setting your retail price.
Pricing should be a strategic marketing move and not hit or
miss, since it’s so crucial for success. Your primary goals
factor into how your price your products. Although profit seems
like the obvious goal in selling your crafts, initially you may
want to price them lower just to get some reaction. Or you may
be moving out a discontinued item and are pricing it at a sale
price. You might choose a higher price because you want to
impart the image of higher perceived value and limited supply,
while attracting a higher-end customer. Prices may vary based on
supply and demand, at different times of year, when costs rise
or for the release of new products. Keep an accurate record of
all your price changes so you can monitor results.
If you still find your items are not selling at the “right”
price for you perhaps because you’re competing with vendors who
are selling less expensive products, you may want to consider a
different quality show. If customers are willing to pay a few
dollars for cheap jewelry rather than several dollars more for
your higher quality costume as well as gemstone jewelry, you
probably don’t have the right customers for your product. People
who know quality will pay for it. If you believe in the quality
of your product, don’t sell yourself short by pricing it too
low. You’ll just have to keep experimenting to find shows that
attract the kind of customer you’re looking for.
About The Author
Natalie Goyette is the best selling author of Craft Show Success. Her e-book shows you how you can finally make money at craft shows.
