Pottery for Sale (Part 3)

Another selling venue is a craft show or festival.  Finding shows is easy – in fact you may know of an annual show in your area.  A brief on-line search can help you find other shows and get additional information such as dates/fees/requirements.

There are two types of shows: juried and open.  Open shows charge a fee and you are accepted as long as there is available space.  Juried shows have an application fee and they charge a booth fee once you are accepted.  A panel reviews applications with current photographs of your work and booth; then they select artists who fit their show’s criteria.

Before you consider a craft show, you need a large inventory of pots to sell because it takes a lot of pots to fill a booth.  In addition, you will need to consider how you will display your pottery.  Some shows provide tables/chairs but most require that you have your own tables and display equipment.  For outdoor shows, a tent may be necessary.

Most shows require that the artist is present in the booth during the show (people like to purchase pottery from the potter); and, some shows will not allow artists to share a booth.  A guild or organization may be permitted to have one booth and this may alleviate the burden of making a large number of pots or staffing a show for several hours/days.

Another consideration is how to take payments.   You will need to be able to make change for any cash payments and decide whether you will accept personal checks.  Credit cards are much easier to accept with Square but it requires a smart phone or an IPad with wi-fi.

You need a tax identification number in order to collect and pay sales tax.  In fact, some shows require a tax identification number.  This sounds complicated but it isn’t too bad.  Check your state’s department of revenue web page.  It will give you the guidelines for application.

Craft shows are a lot of work but they give you a great chance to interact with customers.  In my experience, the feedback has been encouraging.  And, I have even had some great suggestions for things to make.