getting fustrated at selling items

[aokweld101]

I didn't know where to post this so I put it here, I've been carving for a little over a year now and I enjoy using the machine but selling the things that I made won't sell I've invested $10,000.00 into carvewright equipment and have only received $495.00 back for all the time that I used on the machine and the time that it takes to put the project together, I have seven tote buckets slap full of projects and everyone says how nice they are and how talented they think I am and walk on I need a jar to put a penny in it for each time I heard that maybe I could make enough to buy some wood. I was wondering is it that nobody has any money or do I need to wait till the economy picks up or just give it up I've went to the market now for a year and they won't sell I don't know if my prices are to high but I don't want to give it away either...

[badbert]

I gave up on being profitable after my first few shows. I had the lots of traffic and was constantly busy. Made enough to cover the show and lunch! Even lowered my prices, same results. Shows are frequented by crafters, looking for ideas, not buying. Most of the sales I have had, have been from friends and family, to give as presents. Or presents I have made. Some people have doubled the agreed price as gratitude, some people want half-price... Like you said, everyone agrees, "Your work is beautiful!" ;)

[ladjr]

Nice to hear fr0om you Bert

[chief2007]

If you haven't already done so you might look at selling your items on ETSY or eBay.

I have done both and have a website - took a couple of months or so and then things took off.

[henry1]

I gave up on being profitable after my first few shows. I had the lots of traffic and was constantly busy. Made enough to cover the show and lunch! Even lowered my prices, same results. Shows are frequented by crafters, looking for ideas, not buying. Most of the sales I have had, have been from friends and family, to give as presents. Or presents I have made. Some people have doubled the agreed price as gratitude, some people want half-price... Like you said, everyone agrees, "Your work is beautiful!" ;)
I am with Bert with this it happened to me I get better from friends

[Proctorw]

My wife and I started selling at Craft Shows this year. So far, my stuff has been slow. When I first got my CW in April, I took in a couple of crosses I made to work just to show folks. 2 weeks later I had sold over $500 worth of crosses. It was right before Easter and I was selling large crosses (11" or so) for $40 and small (7-8") for 25. I was using Cherry or Maple. I figured the wood costs for the small crosses was about $7 (I cut 3 at a time) and about $10-$11 for the large ones. Fast forward to the Fall craft season. My wife sells Quilts, Pillowcases Table runners, etc. I sell my crosses and some Pepper Chip and Dip trays made with a router. The first 2 shows, my wife did fine, me, NADA. The 3rd show I sold 3 crosses. Shows 2 and 3 were at churches and I expected to sell more crosses. Oh well. Next show is this Saturday at a church and I will post on how I did. One thing I am planning on doing is finishing a couple of "Sample Signs" and taking custom orders at the show. I will bring my laptop, show the client what the sign will look like and will require 1/2 the money up front. I will also let you know if this was successful. Sorry for the long post....but just hang in there..

[DickB]

I don't think it is just the economy. I think you can make money, it depends upon what you sell and where you sell it.

What are you selling? There are several forum members who are making money with signs. They are probably offering a product that buyers feel is unique. My best-selling items are the lake maps, I believe because they are unique. They sell for $70-$250 depending upon size and complexity. If you have a product that no one else is offering, you may find a market. If you're selling at a craft show, you're competing with a lot of other vendors for the $10 or $20 in the buyer's pocket, even if you're not offering the exact same items.

Consider some venues other than craft shows. I get most of my sales through a local consignment shop. Sure, the shop takes a cut, but the shop also brings in traffic that would otherwise never know me or my products. Marketing is important. I have also sold some clocks for $300 and $400 on Etsy - I actually took down my Etsy offerings because I got more work than I wanted. If you really want to be in this business, give some of these other venues a try.

[aokweld101]

Well looks like I'm in a world of hurt then if I have to depend friends and family members to sell my items, I have 4 family members and no friends. I don't drink beer I don't do drugs and don't work and found out that that if you don't have something to offer no one wants anything to do with you if that's what it takes to have friends I don't need them as friends.

[bergerud]

Well you have some friends here on the forum. To bad we can't sell anything for you! I have a local sign printer here who just prints paper and plastic signs. Real estate signs and sale signs for stores and the like. He gets requests for carved signs which he either cannot make our has to farm out. It might be worth while to seek out these sign printers, show them some samples and get some kind of partnership going.

[fwharris]

Do not be discouraged with your low number of sales. I did sort of the same thing as you, made up a bunch of things I thought people would really go after. I found out early on this really did not work for me. Sure I got a lot of "Oh that is really nice" but unless it is something they are really wanting they just will not buy. I am betting you do the same thing when you are out shopping/looking. Unless it is something you want you will not buy it.

Try some of the ideas others have shared here, consignments at a local shops etc., a specific theme for your area.

[Smoken D]

2 years ago I tried the local very big Heritage Day's show. The one large item I sold was for $55, had $45 in it, 50 hours of work and I paid the $4 tax on it. Space to rent was $90 and sold a total of $120 before tax. Just wanted to try it once. The other vendors told me I had too nice of items and what show I should have gone to and that my prices there should be tripled and up. I was at a show where thousand of Wal-Mart Shoppers were. It does depend on quality and where you go to sell.

[liquidguitars]

This has been a slow month overall for a lot of us... one thing to try is a Facebook carving page and run a small ad with them for a month or two.

[Rob Mulgrew]

My wife and I started a custom sign carving shop about a year ago and it has turned into a full time profession for me and my wife was already a stay at home mom. I do the woodworking side and she does the painting. The trick for us was to design products that we can produce a lot of and very well. We have a process now for producing signs that works well for us, it took awhile to figure it out but was well worth the time and investment.
You should start a Facebook page for your work. We sold almost $1,600 just through our FB page last month. We also have a website and have just done our 7th show in the past 2 months. While every show was profitable for us, the shows closest to our home did the best. I am not going to do a whole lot of shows anymore and concentrate on internet marketing. It takes too much time to get ready for shows.
You can check out my website if you’d like:
www.Robscustomcarving.com (http://www.robscustomcarving.com/) and there is a link to my face book page there also.

[Dale]

I've had pretty good luck using a consignment store (although I must admit it hurts a little when they take their third, but they need to make something off of it also). After looking at Robkj1611's Face Page, that might be the way to go.

[aokweld101]

I looked at your site Rob, impressive indeed, I like the fact that you have a line that you won't cross keeping it family ordinated site!!

[chebytrk]

agreed... Rob has a very nice website. The Army plaque is waaaaayyyyyyyy cool.

[Rob Mulgrew]

Thanks for the kind comments! Keeping it a Christian business has been a huge blessing. We lose some work because of our stand but have gotten a lot more work because of it. Most recently we were contacted by the little sisters of the poor. They are a catholic institution that have nursing homes in 31 countries. They ended up ordering 8 custom signs to start with and even after giving a discount, it is very nice paying job and the kind of work that I love to do, plus this could be a huge opportunity to do work for their other homes.
As for the website, it is only $10 a month through homestead and you are able to build it yourself the way you want it.

[unitedcases]

We do the facebook thing. Works super well. For me. Still being active duty my time is limited and I am very very very scheduled with my carvings. I get a ton of window shoppers. Most people talk and talk and once I tell them the price they never talk to me again. We actually bought a domain name and was starting to build the website and my wife posted something on facebook. That was all she wrote. When I retire I will do a website and I am very determined to make this work. I work all day and come home and usually work til 11 or 12. I carve 1 or 2 items a night m-f and saturday me and my 10 yr old sand it all. Then sunday we spray everything. We have a great system. I wont do it for free. And I wont adjust my prices for the economy. Its not fair to me or my family to work hard and put all I have into a carving just for some cheapy to raise his nose at it and say he can make the same piece for less. I tell them to go for it. Please. But they never do. I think patience and finding the right niche is what you need. I rarely make anything unless it has been asked for. I mean, its easier to go to lowes and buy the tools you need than just go to buy tools. What do you buy? I know, everything! My dad says make whats selling and dont do it for free. Thats my motto with this business. At least here you have people all around you that are going thru the exact same things you are. You will get it. No business ever took off in the first few minutes. Just my 2 cents. I have been studying this thread for a while wondering what to write when finally I just decided to write. My Facebook page is unitedcarvings. Please check it out, I would love to know what all of you think.

[aokweld101]

I hope that it's understood that I'm not trying to get rich off my carvrwright I consider it to be a hobby, I would like to make enough money to get the things I needed to keep the machine up, buy the wood and make a little money on the side in order to keep carveing. I by no means think that I'm asking for to much for my items. at the beginning I was probably was asking to much as I was proud of my accomplishments and had the mind set that these were specialty items you can't buy these items at wallmart!!!

[TerryT]

Very impressive Rob. Beautiful work, indeed.

[Digitalwoodshop]

I too needed to "Learn" what would sell and what would not sell... When I got my machine I had a bunch of Quilter Friends and they were all excited about my ability to make a Quilt Rack... that was 2007.... I have sold 2 quilt racks to the friends at pretty much the cost of wood.... I went "NUTS" and made a bunch of Tourist Related Quilt Racks hoping to capture some of the Tourist Dollars.... In the pictures of the Quilt Rack sides.... the ones with 3 holes on top.... I "STILL HAVE" about 90% of them stacked in my storage room from 2007... I use banister 1.25 x 1.25 clear stock for the rails.... I still have some rails left but when I try to sell them I can only get about the cost of the rails back in money... So I don't even offer them.... I donated at least a dozen to good causes like quilt raffles and librarys doing quilt raffles and included my business cards and a display with each that resulted in zero orders...

I DID have luck when at a show 2 guys walked up to the quilt rack and put their hands on their hips and said... WOW... That would make a GREAT WINE RACK.... Turn the rails points UP..... And Craft Show HELP from the local Gay Community has helped me as the Wine/CD/Book racks have sold.... In everything from the 9 bottle table top version to the 4 foot wide Weekend Shack Pack...

Bear Clocks and Bear Signs and even Bears in different sizes have sold like crazy.... Mommas Bear and 3 little ones following.. To "POOH" Bear on a toilet seat with double stick tape sell well....

But nothing like WOOD SIGNS sell the best.... But 6 out of the last 7 Wood Signs I quoted at a community where I have done well over the years have gone with the Cheaper GUY... And I am OK with that... I sell the basic 2 sided sign for $180.00 with $25.00 for delivery and install and $45.00 for a new post... Plus I charge State SALES TAX since I do it as a buisness and give them a Invoice.... I do Bears and Deer for $10.00 each.

I feel that is a fair price... and if someone wants to do it cheaper... That is OK to me... Same with the Fire Tags... I charge a fair price.... I send customers to my Competor My-Lor often when Price is a issue... He makes a Great Tag at a GREAT Price... My tags are more high end with Grommet and Epoxy Dome... his are basic and WORK.....

So find a item that will sell.... I have not done a Craft Show since 2010.... No money here at the moment....

GOOD LUCK....

AL

In the pictures the first stack of quilt sides was my first adventure with the CW and overall was a FAIL.... I still have most of them...

The Wine Rack versions sold well.... Being that it could be a Wine Rack, a Book Rack, and a CD Rack... I also sold a board with cleats that sat ON a wine rack rails that made it into a SHELF... That was popular.... The Pattern or cut path of the Wine and Quilt racks are in the pattern thread. The Scalled down tabel top version was a big hit....

But as many here know... I use my CW to cut Plastic Tag material for my Fire Accountability Tags... Turning a $20.00 11.25 x 23.25 sheet into $500.00 in TAGS.... Making the Wood Handles for the Accountability Boards has been a BIG HIT TOO....

[aokweld101]

Al, I always liked what you were doing with the carvewright I didn't know about the quilt racks I though you were doing well with them, I thought since you had so many made that they were selling well....lol

[Digitalwoodshop]

Getting GRANNY to give up her hard earned bucks turned out to be a very humbling endevor....

I was RUSHED for THIS local Huge SHOW... The "Big Time"... I think I sold 1 Quilt Rack.... This was before I even had them painted... I thought that after painting and finishing they would sell... I haulled then around for 3 years.... By then the other stuff had caught on... especially the signs, wine racks and bear clocks...

I have always been a "Glass Half FULL" kind of guy... SO I felt this was "Progress" making stuff with the machine was like printing money....

It reflected in my posts.. I did almost go Bankrupt as a business around a year later..... But I recovered by adding my Credit Cards to my Business Loan and still don't have a Credit Card by choice... Debit Cards work just fine... A big part of that was getting the equipment for making Fire Tags that finally took OFF... A Fireman asking me "Why is a "Pocono Digital Woodshop" making Fire Tags.... So I searched and AccountabilityTag.com was avaliable and took it and started adding pictures... 90% of my income comes from that site and I ask every customer how they found me... Most just did a search and I popped up with pictures by searching Accountability Tag. I see I am lagging on Bing and the other new search engines..... But the economy has effected the Fire Departments... Ours closed Bingo as the Granny's stopped spending..... This has effected my business.... Actually a "GOOD THING" as I have spent the last 10 weeks cutting off some fields with a 5 HP Push Mower for Excercise and for the Animals... My last VA checkup saw the best numbers in 15 years..... SO it is a GOOD Thing.... :)

AL

[unitedcases]

Something else I was thinking of was the amount you bring to a fair. We bring enough items to fill the table but dont actually let anyone walk away with anything. We build the shipping price into our price and take their info and send them an invoice afterwards. We have found that most people dont want to have to carry something around and they dont want to come back to get it. More food for thought. It works well for us.

[myshop1044]

I just thought I would add my 4 cents to the subject. This week I have 6 orders for my past craft shows, some as far back a 6 months ago.
I'm dealing with a lady tonight on some coasters she saw at the Labor day show. Hang in there, bring enough inventory, you can't sell them if you don't have them there. Also bring pictures of some of the other work you have done and tell them you will take orders.
Many times I will offer to hold the items for them so they don't have carry them around and it works for me.
1 lady went to my web site(customcarvingsbyperry.com) and wants to order rosary boxes that I haven't made in months, guess what I'm in the rosary box business again.
On the price of the items you need a range for $10 to ,as my case $100, but also tell them what fine quality product they are getting, what it's made of, how it is finish. Let them know what quality they are getting.
Most of all ,I have read all the different ways to price your items, I use the age old proven formula "ask your wife what is will to pay the item".
Hope this helps, just hang in there and remember "If you carve it they will come".

Perry B.

[aokweld101]

Well advice well taken but I think I need a trade in on the wife part. I asked that question and what she would buy it for she put in her price to me and it covered the price of the wood... but that's it not the sand paper the stain the hardware or polyuathane paint or the time it took to make it..I don't think it was a good idea to ask her .....lol

[bergerud]

I hope she does not read this thread! You'll be in the dog house. Just ask her if she can buy material and sew some clothes to compete with the going prices. She would not even be able to pay for the cloth. Same thing.

[henry1]

sorry to interrupt you have a private message bergerud

[NLAlston]

Very impressive, Rob. Very impressive, indeed. Really great work.

[Proctorw]

Update on Craft Shows. My wife and I have been at 5 craft shows the last 5 weeks (this weekend I got a reprieve and only had to breakdown as it was local). Our business is Wood N Spool Treasures. My wife makes quilts, wall hangings, Novelty Pillow cases etc. I sell the wood products. Signs, Crosses, and some router Pepper bowls. We have had one show were we were over $1000. All the rest have been between $250-$500. I sell my large Cherry or Mahogany crosses for $40 and my small ones for $25, just to give you an idea of my pricing. After looking at our products, I guess my prices are too high, as I have only sold 1 Pepper bowl, 4 crosses and 1 gun sign. I have gotten a couple of more orders for my gun sign (Because I cant throw a rock at xxx feet per second). I don't know if it is the economy or what, but we have 1 show left and I will be dropping my cross prices by $5. I have gotten more interest in the signs, but so far not much follow through. Also, my wife has only sold 2 quilts and her big sellers have been the Novelty Pillow cases which she sells for $14. So, it looks like folks are buying, but not spending much money on individual items in the Dallas Texas area...