[Woodcarver] !RE: shows vs. galleries

[Classic Carving Patterns]

Sorry I "jumped' with the last posting.  My Michael so often reminds me that I
can sound very hard and absolute when I am writing.  I think it comes from too
many written directions of "PUT your knife RIGHT THERE and PULL the cut" .... I
just want to restate my Standard Disclaimer of these are just my experiences.
That and 50 cents won't buy you coffee at Micky D's :)  The more varied the
response to this topic by other members, the more experiences shared the more
everyone of us can learn ... Thank you, Susan Irish

---

A follow up question was posted on my message board so I am adding it here, if
that is OK?

The question posted was that the pyro artist had two shows they could attend.
The first Show was an outdoor show with a $1500 entry fee.  The second show was
a Mall show with a 12% commission fee on sales no matter the number of sales.
Which one would an experienced show artist choose.  Both shows are scheduled for
late November.

At 12% commission (which is just above illegally dirt cheap in my opinion) would
mean that for every $100 sale you are paying $12 to the mall. So $10,000 worth
of sales would equal $1200 worth of commissions. At a $1500 entry fee for the
other show I am calculating $12,500 worth of sales ... that's an outrageously
huge amount of key fobs to cover your fee.  If you work with a 50/50 commission
split the $1500 entry fee means at least $3000 worth of sales to cover your
initial investment.  That is, in my opinion, very high for an unknown artist
just starting into the show circuit.

So you are looking at a situation of the Show costing you a defined amount of
$1500 or the Mall costing you at the least $12 ....

Now, I will state that it has been nearly 15 years since my last show ... I
loved them but my ankles just gave out from years of walking the tables. But 15
years ago I do believe that a $3000 to $4000 take on a large show was a good
return. Now that is also when gasoline was well under a $1 a gallon and home
prices for nice big tract houses topped out at $125,000. That also was a time
when I was very well known in my selling area with an established clientele, I
was not a New Artist" just starting into the market with no name recognition.

So on this point I would go with the $12.00 Mall space and make sure that my key
fobs were priced at $15  That way anything I sold at least bought Mike or I a
cup of coffee and a donut.

My next thought is the fee scales, in my opinion, show the confidence of the
show managers. The commission fee implies to me that the Mall has confidence
that you are going to make sales ... enough to justify such a low commission.
When you think it through you and I both know they need way more money from you
to cover their space, electricity and advertising ... so they are fairly sure
you are going into a selling market. They are very invested in your making lots
and lots of sales.

Edit: A quick note here from the first thread. This investment in sales by the
Mall is also a great point for going into Galleries. Galleries are totally
dependent on selling your art for their income. They make no money unless you do
too!)  Galleries a totally invested in selling your work, otherwise they don't
eat that week!  Shows with set fees "eat" no matter what your booth does in
sales.

The set fee Show, again just to me, implies that they don't care whether or not
you make sales or whether they can bring you buying customers ... they got
theirs up front so have no investment in how well you do! If you have a bust
they still have their money .... 

Another plus for the Mall ...

Do your homework ... Check if either the Show or Mall are a regularly scheduled
event? See if you can get a copy of the advertising fliers for the last several
years for these shows. An easy way is to go to the library and riffle through
the local news papers for that town or city. You are looking to see if they are
advertising a little or a lot, when the advertising comes out, are the ads well
enough in advance so that your customers can plan to attend or just on the day's
the show is actually being held. 

Also look for artist's names that you could contact for shared info.

OK ... no you don't want to call the Other Pyro artist or another carver as they
will clam up because you are competition. So try a Potter or Wheel Wright/
Blacksmith or Quilter ....

Shows that are advertised in advance give customers a chance to hoard their
money and plan to attend. Regularly scheduled shows mean you will be pulling
against an already conditioned to buy clientele ... repeat - return customers.
Short ads (the day or weekend of the show) mean impulse buyers so your sales
potential drops dramatically. If I know there's a show in two weeks I start
stashing away my mad money for it. If I discover a show is being held this
weekend I only have what is left in my pocket at that moment in time.

Mall shows are indoor and in late November that is a huge plus because very cold
customers keep their hands in their pockets to keep them warm. Warm comfortable
sheltered customers have their hands out of their pockets and on your wares or
in their wallets ....  Rained on customers just go home.

Edit: I don't know about where you live but people where I live, the
Baltimore-Washington corridor, go directly to 7-11 for toilet paper if there is
any hint of snow in the forecast .... In the spring I would go for the outdoor
show because everyone is so ready to get out of the house after winter and
enjoy the spring air.  Galleries sometimes have Sidewalk Café shows in the
spring which are just fantastic.

You do need to include the cost of your attending either show. What will it cost
you to rent a room, gasoline, food, do you need to hire a pet sitter for one
show but not the other. Can you camp out and mooch off of your third cousin or
is it going to cost more than you can possibly see in profits to 'get a room'?

(Oh, Susan, you had that nice New Year's resolution of no more Epic-mails ...
think I need to go to a new window for more ... )

Standard Disclaimer - These are my experiences, opinion and ideas.  Others may
have a totally different view based on their experiences, which I hope they will
add to this conversation.  Please take what you want and throw the rest away.

Susan Irish

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