Hi All,
I am considering doing one of the “Art Sprees” at the Thompson
Center, sponsored by the Illinois Artisan Shop in Chicago. Has
anyone done any of these shows? I was wondering how successful they
are. I need to get back into doing shows and this seems like a good
place to begin. I will be sending them new inventory soon so it may
help to increase my sales at the shop.
I will have the usual traveling expenses associated with most any
show, food and lodging and transportation to and from. It’s always
disappointing to come away from a show breaking even!
Noel, since you are in the area (I think!) maybe you know about this
program of “sprees” and the Artisan Shop in general. I used to have
jewelry there but life intervened and I quit sending work there for
awhile. I’ve never actually been there so would find any experience
you all have informative. Thanks in advance.
Victoria
I am considering doing one of the "Art Sprees" at the Thompson
Center, sponsored by the Illinois Artisan Shop in Chicago. [snip]
Noel, since you are in the area (I think!) maybe you know about
this
I did a few of these, years ago-- my info may be out of date. The
problem I had with them was that I went and set up just like an art
fair, did the work of selling, and they took their usual percentage.
In my view, this cannot possibly be profitable. As I see it, half
the price of my work is for making it, half is for selling it. If I
sell it, I get the other half, if someone else does, they get it. If
I do both, and still pay out that half… This could only make sense
if it generated lots of future sales when I wasn’t still there, and
it didn’t. I felt like Milo Minderbinder (in Catch 22, he bought
eggs for 3 cents and sold them for 2, but “made up in volume what he
lost on each sale”).
If you have to travel, how can you possibly win? But maybe they have
changed how they do them in the last, oh, 10 years. The setting (the
Thompson Center) is beautiful; there are lots of people around,
though they work there, mostly, and are mostly interested in
bargains. But lodging and parking in that area are quite expensive–
that hasn’t changed!!
Noel