As you are all aware by now I run my crafting business from the premises of my own Handmade Gift Shop. I run this shop along side my craft business, therefore I run it as a Crafter. You may wonder what this means. As a crafter I know that there are many aspects to choosing a retail outlet for your items. I will detail below some of the things that I do for my Crafters and how I run my shop to make it most beneficial for them.
Windows
Fairy Crafters Window Display
Windows are your biggest selling point as a retail outlet. Therefore full advantage should be taken of this bonus advertising area. The shop windows are changed every week which ties in with the change of the Crafter of the Week for the shop which I will expand on later. Customers notice that the windows have been changed. It will also entice a sale if the window has been changed as an item they have looked at is not there they come in to ask if we still have it. In the same way the windows showcase what stock you have inside, you want to give a passer by a snapshot of what would be on offer inside.
Dressing windows is a form of craft in its own right. If you are looking for more inspiration for laying out window displays please read this article. https://claireyatfairycrafters.com/window-dressing-how-to The process would also work well for laying out a craft stall as well.
Reports
As a crafter when you drop off your stock you want to know how your items are selling. A sales report is the perfect way to keep crafters up to date with what has sold in the shop. They can give the crafter all the vital information like dates of sales, preferred payment method and variations sold. As a crafter you want to make sure that your stock is available for purchase at all times when you are stocked in a shop. If you drop an item off at the beginning of the month and it sells almost straight away. Crafter reports are sent out twice a month to all stockists in the shop. This means that roughly every two weeks stock levels are communicated back to the makers. Giving them plenty of notice to get stocked back up.
Crafter of the week
Each Crafter in the shop has a turn at being Crafter of the Week in the shop. This crafter is heavily featured in the windows for the week. In addition their items are advertised across social media for the week as well. This will hopefully give that crafter a bit of a boost in sales and awareness for their items for the week. With any luck as well the social media accounts for the shop will reach customers that the crafter may not have had contact with themselves.
Social media
There is a whole world of people that could purchase from your shop without actually visiting in
Percy’s Pick from the shop
person. Therefore every effort is made to try and show people what items are available in the shop through social media. Photos of stock are posted on social media daily. Each day has a theme, which is listed below:
Saturday – Monday: Crafter of the Week items
Tenner Tuesday
Windows Wednesday
Thursday: Percy’s Pick (a little wooden stick man that does funny poses with stock from around the shop)
Fiver Friday
For more advice on marketing on Social media please read my article on creating a social media schedule by clicking here.
Custom orders
People are always looking for unique and personal gifts. Nearly all crafters that I have come into contact will offer customised options on the items they make. As a shop I always try and promote the option to have a special gift specifically made.
Stock
The shop has been stocked to make it as interesting as possible to wander around and browse. Therefore I do not allocate specific shelves to certain Crafters. All the stock is mixed up and displayed amongst each other. This is because someone might see shelf stacked with cushions and think, I don’t need any cushions. Whereas if the cushions are scattered among other items the customer will browse them without realising. This will also mean that a crafter is never going to be paying rent for the bottom shelf in a dark back corner. Their stock will be spread across the whole shop at different levels so there are more chances of a customer seeing their items.
Coding
I try to provide my crafters with as much information as possible about their stock in the shop. Therefore I ask for all items bought into the shop. When it comes to sales report time crafters will be able to see exactly what items have sold. Also, be able to identify if certain colours or designs are more popular. These codes are also listed on inventory sheets, price tags have a tendency to get lost with the movement of customers browsing and window dressing. By having all the stock listed on inventory sheets the prices can be double checked if the price tag goes astray.
Craft on site
There is nothing that really adds an authentic feel to the shop and publisicing the handmade aspect of the gifts on offer as having items being made on site. As I have previously talker about I am a Crafter and I have my own orders and stock to make to keep my own business operating. In order to fulfill my own orders I make items on site at the shop. Customers absolutely love to watch items being made and ask questions about the other products that are on the shelves. At the same time this offers an opportunity for customers to browse without feeling like they are being watched.
These are the main factors that I bring to my shop for Crafters to try and provide the best selling outlet for their handmade goods. When you stock in a shop you want to know that your items will be showcased, advertised and sales correctly reported in a timely manner. If you are looking for a retail outlet for your handmade items I would keep these things in mind. Also have a really good look at the shop and what the shop does before making a decision. In many ways a retail outlet is very similar to when you have a stall. Not all fairs work for every handmade business and not all shops will work for all crafters. The key is finding which outlets work for you and your items.
Please let me know if there is anything else as a crafter you would be looking for from a retail outlet that maybe I haven’t thought of. I also look to help crafters as much as possible so I am open to new ideas of how to help them more.
