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'Tis the season to buy beautiful handmade crafts -- or to make money
creating them. People who sell crafts prepare all year for holiday shows. Their
greatest challenge is to generate enough inventory to satisfy demand.
How do you get started in crafting? Can you be financially successful?
How do you decide the worth of handmade goods?
Craftmakers say, "Start with what you love to do. Then be ready to take a risk."
Be willing to take the time and energy to do the legwork and then to
create the goods. Assess how the product is received. Be ready to change your
goods, as needed. When you are onto something people like, be prepared to
create enough inventory to meet demand.
Mary Burkhardt of Fort Lupton, who has been selling crafts for 16 years,
says, "I sew all the time." She keeps a ready supply of baby quilts, bibs, burp
pads, adult aprons, tree skirts, spice trivets, Christmas tree skirts and cloth
children's books -- just to name a few of her items.
Respond to Consumer demands. What sells this season might be out of
style later. If the market becomes glutted with the same product, a formerly hot
item will sell only moderately well during the next season.
What is a handmade craft worth? Linda Sandberg owns and manages
Creators Craft Shoppe in Fort Collins. She says, "You never get your time
back," in terms of dollars. "Time is the unlimited resource in a home venture,"
says another crafter. Others, however, have created a formula for pricing crafts.
For example: Multiply the average time it takes to make a product -- for example, two
hours at $8 an hour equals $16. To this theoretical product, add the cost of
materials -- perhaps another $8 -- bringing the base cost to $24. Multiply the
base cost by two or three, depending on the price of similar crafts. The product
that cost $24 to produce could be priced at $48. But what do similar products
cost? It's up to the crafter to make the final adjustment in price.
Crafters caution that the rule of supply and demand applies. When a
particular craft is overly abundant on the market, customers are unwilling to pay
top dollar. A unique craft, however, can bring more than the formula price.
Burkhardt's advice is that "you need a lot of items on a table for $5 or
less. If you have many items priced higher than $10 to $20, you aren't going to
sell them." She does, however, sell machine-quilted Christmas tree skirts in the
$40 range. Describing those who frequent craft shows as "mainstream
America," Burkhardt sticks with non-juried shows -- holiday bazaars and craft
shows held in conjunction with various summer festivals along the Front Range
of Colorado.
She makes it a point to present at least 50 different items, usually
reserving two 8-foot tables at each sale. "This variety gives customers something
to look at. It keeps them interested," Burkhardt said.
"I don't buy any materials for crafts unless they are on sale or can be
purchased wholesale," she added. To find new items, she "watches around." "I
look for new things and friends send me items to make." In addition, she
sometimes purchases small, inexpensive items from commercial vendors --
stuffed toys, for example, and sells them at her tables.
Crafters say they are subject to the whim of public taste. If the public
wants it, they can sell it. They also say, however, that crafts are the unnecessary
extras in our lives. Their value lies purely in the enjoyment they provide to the
creator and owner.
Those who are in the craft business caution newcomers to be aware of
one important word: TAXES. Keep good records and know the legalities behind
earning a profit. Consult with your accountant before you embark on a home-based business involving the sale of crafts.
If you want more information about home-based businesses, such as
crafting, contact Carol Sue Flores, Colorado State University Extension agent in Larimer County, Colorado at (970) 498-6000 or e-mail at
florescs@co.larimer.co.us or contact your local
Colorado State University Extension office.
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