Monday, December 11, 2017

How to evaluate a successful sale

The unexpected, last minute sale took place last weekend, over Friday and Saturday.  It was in a smaller rural town, and there were three more craft sales in town that weekend, which in our area is a "good thing". Multiple sales, close together, tend to attract rural people, as it means less driving.  Our sale was in a private home, that had been pretty well been emptied of furniture, leaving enough room for 6 booths.  Additionally, a large table had been set up to facilitate demonstrations, an advertised offering, that was hoped to attract customers.  Everyone had contributed to baked goods and apple cider, as well.

Well, Friday was a bust.  There were 5 customers.  But, this meant that 6 artisans were together for the whole day, with food and mild drink, all with their goods, both completed and in progress.  We all came to the table with different experiences within our crafting life, and different interests.What a marvelous opportunity for networking, idea exchange,  and general support.  Every lady there had nothing but positive comments about that part of the experience, and all agreed to try to do it again. 

Thankfully, Saturday was a busier day, with some good sales--unfortunately not for me, but I did come home with a small profit.
What I did sell was mixed media bookmarks.   This was a new product for me, and they had been made for a future scheduled event.  Looks like I have to make more.

So, overall, I came away with a feeling that this had been a good sale.  But that evaluation has little to do with profit, and much more to do with the entire social milieu.

Then today I received not only a cheque from a different venue, but an order for more items.  Looks like I'll be busy for the next while.  Good thing I'm ready for Christmas.