The Handmade Marketplace: How to Sell Your Crafts Locally, Globally, and On-Line

206 Pages·2010·2.15 MB·English

by  Kari Chapin

The HANDMADE MARKET PLACE
KARI CHAPIN
Illustrated by Emily Martin (a.k.a. The Black
apple) and Jen Skelley
The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.
Edited by Deborah Balmuth and Dale Evva Gelfand
Art direction and book design by Alethea Morrison
Text production by Jennifer Jepson Smith Cover and part opener illustrations by
© Emily Martin
Spot illustrations by © Jen Skelley
Border and frame illustrations by Alethea Morrison Indexed by Mary
McClintock
© 2010 by Kari Chapin
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written
permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief
passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor may
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The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our
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Storey Publishing
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Printed in the United States by Versa Press
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Chapin, Kari.
The handmade marketplace / Kari Chapin.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-60342-477-6 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Handicraft industries. 2.
Selling—Handicraft. I. Title.
HD9999.H362C53 2010
745.5068’8—dc22
2009049212
dedication
To my amazing husband, Eric,
without whom this book never, ever would have happened.
Thank you, Eric, for everything.
acknowledgments
Thank you to everyone at Storey Publishing: Deborah Balmuth, who helped me
refine my idea and gave me this chance; Amy Greeman, who makes me laugh
and treats me to sushi when I need it; Alethea Morrison, who has to be the most
talented art director in all the land and she always makes time to answer my
many questions; and Dale Evva Gelfand, for being amazing at what she does.
Thank you Emily Martin and Jen Skelley for your enchanting illustrations.
To my family: Ron and Robyn Chapin and Janis McWayne, the best parents a
girl could ever hope for; Euretta Chapin, my wonderfully talented and creative
sister; and Sharon Jandrow, who is the exact opposite of what I thought a
mother-in-law would be like. Thank you for always believing in me and for your
unending encouragement. I’m a lucky girl to have all of you.
To my urban family, the girls who made me who I am: Karolyn Tregembo,
Sheila Weisenborn Borderick, and Kyme Vincent.
Thank you from the bottom of my crafty heart to the very best friends a girl
could ever have: Karie Sutherland, Amanda Struse, Lisa Holman, and Minna
Wallace.
I would also like to extend a special thank you to my creative life coach, Cynthia
Gunsinger (www.gunsinger.com). Her expert guidance and incredible ability to
help me sort out my thoughts have been invaluable to me, not only while writing
this book, but in defining my goals in general. Cynthia, you are a superhero to
me.
This book exists in part because of NPR, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Project
Runway, Neko Case, and Squam Art Workshops.
My heart swells when I think of my online craft community, including you, my
readers. The inspiration I get from the members of my Creative Collective,
online marketplaces, craft fairs, blogs, and podcasts makes me fantastically
happy and fills my whole world with possibility and light. I am forever grateful
for the connections and friendships that have formed out of our shared love for
all things handmade.
Lastly, I am so thankful for my husband, Eric Nixon, and our little family:
Baxter, Charlie Parker, and Zoe.
CONTENTS
Introduction,
My Creative Collective,
Part 1
Getting to Know Yourself and Your Business
CHAPTER 1: SETTING THE SCENE FOR SUCCESS
Setting Goals * Build a Nurturing Space * Getting Unstuck * Translating an Idea
into Reality
CHAPTER 2: BRANDING YOUR BUSINESS
Who Are Your Customers? * What’s Your Message and Look?* What’s in a
Name? * Develop a Logo
CHAPTER 3: ESTABLISHING BASIC BUSINESS PRACTICES
What Kind of Business Are You? * The Next Steps *
Collecting Money * Pricing Your Work * Hiring Help
Part 2
Spreading the Word — and Images
CHAPTER 4: MARKETING BASICS
Marketing Defined * Essential Marketing Materials * Photographs Are Key
CHAPTER 5: YOUR CRAFT COMMUNITY
Making Connections * Online Communities * Community Swaps
CHAPTER 6: BLOGGING
Blogs and Websites Defined * Basic Setup * Writing a Successful Blog *
Give and Take * What Makes a Blog Successful * Create an Online Newsletter
CHAPTER 7: ADVERTISING AND PUBLICITY
Advertising Online * Be Your Own Best Ad Agency *
Attracting Media Attention * Approaching Print Media * Putting Together a
Press Kit * Writing Press Releases
CHAPTER 8: MORE ONLINE MARKETING NETWORKS
Podcasting * Social Media
Part 3
Getting Down to Selling
CHAPTER 9: THE CRAFT FAIR SCENE
First Things to Know * The Fair Application Process * Getting the Word *
Preparing for the Fair * Designing Your Booth Space * Fair Day Etiquette *
Starting Your Own Craft Fair
CHAPTER 10: SELLING IN ONLINE STORES
Evaluating Marketplaces * Setting Up Your Online Shop *
Customer Service * Answering Customer Questions and Comments
CHAPTER 11: SELLING IN BRICK-AND-MORTAR STORES
Getting Your Foot in the Door * Persuasive Leave-Behind Materials *
Meeting with the Store Owner/Manager * Selling on Consignment
CHAPTER 12: GET CREATIVE: OTHER SELLING OPTIONS AND
OPPORTUNITIES
Join a Co-Op * Teach a Course * Hold Trunk Shows *
Host House Parties * Offer Kits and Patterns
Parting Advice,
Resources,
Craft Show Supplies Checklist,
Index,
INTRODUCTION
Why do you craft? Are you compelled to create
something with your hands? Are you looking for ways to
save money or reuse what would normally be wasted?
Maybe you grew up in a home that valued creating things
together, and you just never stopped making stuff. Maybe
it’s like therapy for you, or you enjoy designing, or
maybe you just dig the process more than the end result.
When I began writing this book, I asked my mother what her earliest memories
of me crafting were. She told me how when I was around four years old,
someone gave her nail polish she was discarding, and Mom and I used it like
paint on salt-dough ornaments for our holiday tree. (I still have a small salt-
dough heart ornament inscribed with my name; it is one of my greatest
treasures.) As I grew up, I remember lots of crafting around the house: making
playhouses out of washing machine boxes with my father, watching my
stepmother sew quilts for me and my sister, and creating numerous collages and
paper chains with my mom. When I was in the fourth grade, I learned to crochet.
Since then I’ve been, well, hooked on crafting.
Crafting relaxes me and helps me de-stress. When I’m working on a project, I
feel peaceful and calm; my hands seem to have a mind of their own, and my
brain relaxes. Some people do their best thinking in the shower or while driving;
for me, my best thinking happens when I’m up to my elbows in vintage buttons
or cutting out inspiring images from magazines or winding yarn.
I also find crafting a release. It makes me feel useful and whole. An activity
as simple as sewing a button back onto my husband’s winter coat brings me
much more personal satisfaction than a lot of the things I have to do during a
normal day. How about you?
A few years ago I discovered the concept of fulling (a.k.a. “felting”) wool
sweaters and crafting things out of the transformed wool — especially mittens.
Actually, I became kind of obsessed with making mittens. It wasn’t really the
end result — selling them or even having warm hands — that drove me to keep