How to sell at Art and Craft Festivals

How to sell at Art and Craft Festivals

At almost every art and craft festival, an artist interested in trying to sell their art or craft, and will ask me the following questions:

  • Do I make money at theses?  
  • Where did I get my tent?
  • How did I find out about this festival?
  • How much does it cost?

I see the look of dismay in their eyes when I tell them my answers regarding the cost of the tent and booth fees.  It can be overwhelming when you first start doing festivals.  I know, I've been there.  The questions they ask are good, but that's there is so much more they should be thinking about.  

When considering selling your art or craft at a festivals, you don't want to take the approach of throwing spaghetti at a wall and see what sticks.  You'll most likely do shows that are not right for you, which will leave you discouraged.  What you need to do is

  • set yourself up as a business.
  • think about insurance.
  • do research.  
  • find shows where you ideal customer attends.  
  • purchase a tent, one that fits your needs and budget.  
  • be prepared for a show and work with customers.
  • evaluate your sales at shows.

I can't answer all their questions in detail when I'm doing a show.  I'm there to sell my art.  I need to be working with potential customers.  So, I've put together a class on Udemy anyone who's interested in doing festivals that covers a lot of the questions I'm asked.  It's an hour long and it includes worksheets to help keep you organized.  There is also a resource list of where to buy tents, display items, and links to sites where to apply to shows and where to do research.  

You can get this class with a discount on Udemy here 

Here's a quick overview of the class:

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