Now What?

That's what I thought, so you think you're a "Cottage Industry", now what are you going to do to make it work?

I outlined a potted history of my journey earlier but in many ways that was just the start of it all.
We sold our shop Artifacts, as we were made an offer that we really couldn't refuse. The shop had been very good to us since our return to the U.K. but both Alan and I felt that we were being given a new direction. The money raised from the business basically financed the next twelve months or so of refining my designs, creating new ones and testing the market to see if my work would sell!

Artifacts - our third baby!

A friend and fellow "Crafter from home" told us of a Tourist Information Centre in the lovely Northumberland town of Morpeth. This T.I.C. is also a Northumberland Pipe Museum and Gallery for local Artists and Makers, and is called Morpeth Chantry. Thankfully my work was accepted, and for a monthly fee and commission on each sale I started to display my glass. This move proved to be one of the best things that I ever did! My work sold, thank goodness, which made me feel a little more confident, and as well as that, provided the platform and contacts to approach other local galleries and shops to take my work on a sale or return basis. This is perfect for the outlet as there is no initial outlay or financial risk, and for me it was more exposure, so a winner all round.

I think at this point I should mention a slightly sensitive subject - Managing Your Day.
I know it doen't sound particularly tricky but it is, without doubt, one of the toughest aspects of working from home to get to grips with. Oh the distractions, kids, housework, homework, cooking, kids, bath time, theirs and mine, husband etc. etc.

 AND

Why is it that friends and relatives who just "pop round" don't understand that technically I'm at work? They expect me to drop everything and put the kettle on so we can have a lovely natter. You may think I'm being miserable (and they usually do) but I'm trying to be creative here! The truth is, other people don't see what I do as a proper job and I'm sure they think it's a hobby. How do they imagine I pay the bills! So be warned - if you're going to work from home you need boundaries. If anyone figures out how to do this tactfully, please let me know :D

 

What Now! The World Of Gift Fairs - Selling To The Trade.

 Tackling the gift world, one vase at a time!

 

 😟 It was more like apprehension than worry when I first stuck my toe into the muddy waters of attracting retail outlets to stock my vases. Sale or return was all well and good, many retailers will happily take on stock if there's no financial outlay, but I wanted to know if the product was attractive enough for people to order their stock and pay for it up front. The only way to do this is to book space at a gift show.

At the time (2006?) there was a Business Forum in Northumberland who were keen to help small businesses take off. They kindly offered us a very small space (at vastly reduced rates) at the British Craft Trade Fair. This is an annual show which takes place in Harrogate, and is the best place for retailers and gallery owners to see exclusively hand-made British products.

My BCTF stand was similar to this one.

Well the space was small, only a metre wide and two metres tall, but I was grateful for the opportunity.  I arranged as many vases as I could, as artistically as I could and waited nervously for the doors to open.

It was a slow start.

Trade Buyers are a mixed bag. Shops, Galleries Museums, Tourist Information Centres, National Trust, Garden Centres, to name but a few. They only have so much money to spend and they need to feel that the product will sell in their particular market. So they like to look at everything, often twice, making notes as they go, before they feel they can commit to an order.
But eventually the orders started coming! OK, I wasn't going to make a fortune, but it was a good start. As well as the promise of actually being paid, I was getting a lot of feedback and suggestions about colour combinations and current trends. It was a really worthwhile experience.

So I'd gained a little confidence, had some new ideas, and thought I was ready to take on another Gift Fair, something bigger. The obvious choice seemed to be the Home & Gift Fair, again in beautiful Harrogate. This is a much larger affair, and has all kinds of different products from around the world, not just hand-made things from a little "Cottage Industry" like mine.
There was a good chance my display would be entirely overshadowed by so many sparkly imported things so I was going to have to make an enormous effort, Hmm.

 

More to follow...