To Case or Not to Case

Susan_Lee-Pullen 2004-02-11 02:25:46 UTC #1

Ok, once I again I'm looking for words of wisdom on craft fair booths. I make and sell sterling silver jewelry, sometimes with semi-precious stones (no gold or precious gems). My retails prices are from $38 up to a few $200 pieces--mostly $38 to $69. I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences on whether to put jewelry in display cases or leave it out in the open at craft fairs. I know security is an issue, but I also want people to feel like the pieces are easilly accesible--both in terms of fondling and in terms of price. I am also wondering how a booth slide might be judged differently if the jewelry is out vs. in a case.

Thank you all again for sharing! There really is strength in numbers.

Susan Lee-Pullen
Pathworks Jewelry

Terri_May 2004-02-12 05:41:53 UTC #2

One option to cases that I've seen people use are clasped pins on a cloth-covered board. They use a pin that is more like a safety pin -- they might be badge pins -- they look like a fibula. The pieces stay attached to the back board, but are able to be touched and slightly handled by the viewer. The clasped pin is threaded through natural openings in the jewelry, or else a contrasting wire (so that it is obviously not part of the jewelry piece) is threaded through, and then that is pinned.

It seems like this approach discourages casual theft.

According to research, allowing people to touch your product will increase sales. : )

--Terri

Noel_Yovovich 2004-02-12 05:53:22 UTC #3

Hi, Susan, There are some shows that won't accept you if you don't use cases. Also, I think the public would expect only very low-end stuff in a booth without cases. Long ago, I didn't have them, and I did get shoplifted a few times. Now, I have cases made from pre-cut tempered glass and chrome screw-on clips, which is a weighty but attractive, inexpensive and versatile solution. If you look up "store display" in your local yellow pages or online, most places will have the glass (12"x 12" and 12"x 18", usually) and clips. Here is a page from the first place that came up when I searched under "store display": http://www.mfried.com I guess you'll have to cut and paste that. Anyway, I always have a few pieces out where they can be inspected, and will pull anything out of the case and hand it over-- with an attitude of not seeming to even think about it-- any time a person seems to be noticing it. Good luck!

--No�l

Noel_Yovovich 2004-02-12 22:32:19 UTC #4

One option to cases that I've seen people use are clasped pins on
a cloth-covered board.

This reminds me of a solution I saw at SOFA a few years ago. It is a
bit elaborate for a newbie, perhaps, but I thought it was ingenious.

The gallery display had a pedestal on which were displayed rows of
very high-end rings. There they were, right out in the open, each
standing up like a little soldier. If you picked one up, you found
that each one was attached to a thin steel cable that went through a
hole in the pedestal. At the other end, there was a weight. Not so
heavy that you couldn't examine the ring, even try it on, but heavy
enough to 1) pull the ring back to perfect position when you were
done, and 2) (as the gallery salesperson explained to me) fall on a
noisy metal "gong" under the pedestal if someone managed to cut the
ring loose. Otherwise, the weight would remain up in the air. I
thought this was really great! I hope to use it some time.

--No�l

Noel_Yovovich 2004-02-12 22:34:34 UTC #5

My post in which I offered a page for glass for cases contained a web address that got shortened to http://www.mfried.com. This is fine, but, in case it isn't clear to those who looked at it, try clicking on the picture labeled "glass cube units" for a list of precut glass sizes. I didn't check whether they have the clips, but since they appear in the picture, I assume they do. I am not recommending this business-- they are just the first one that popped up when I searched for "store display" online.(I buy mine locally. The place I used to use is gone; now I go to Dann Dee in Skokie (IL). By the way, they show gold-colored clips; mine are

silver-colored, which seems less intrusive to me. Good luck!

--No�l