Holding your own craft fairs

Sandy Paluzzi
The Bead Peddler

If you do craft shows, I'm sure that you have thought about organizing your own show with a select list of vendors.  You would, of course, select vendors with non-competing goods who had their own following.  You would rent  space somewhere, split the rent with the other vendors and everyone would get the word out to their networks.  You may even spring for an ad in the local paper.  This would be great as you wouldn't have to pay the 'exorbitant' craft show fees and you could limit the number of other jewelry vendors.  And so the fantasy goes.

As in all aspects of life, the fantasy is better than the reality. 

First of all, it can take years to build traffic to a successful craft fair.  Both you and the other vendors would have to commit to seeing the fair through the relatively lean start up years.  Most craft fairs either offer entertainment or support a charity with a loyal following.  How many craft fairs are held at schools?  Most independent summer fairs offer entertainment, food and beverages.  If you're doing a summer craft fair, you may want to support a local charity.  The money you donate to the charity may bring you increased advertising and traffic.  If you're having the show at Christmas, it will be easier to draw traffic.  However,  Christmas shows have their own pitfalls.  You'll want a location close to a major shopping center.

The other major concern is liability.    All rental halls have liability insurance to cover themselves in case of an injury.  However, If someone falls at your fair, they can sue you (the person who signed the rental contract) as well as the fair site.   Let me add a precautionary note here - if you hold the fair in your home, your homeowners insurance will NOT cover injuries incurred doing the show.  To be safe, you would be wise to get liability insurance for the event regardless of where it's held.  Any business insurance agent can sell you coverage.  In addition, if you're going to be organizing a few fairs, you may want to convert your business to a LLC.  As we previously discussed, if the LLC signs the contract, the LLC is liable not you personally. 

To sum up, there are issued involved in holding your own craft fair.  However, they are still a viable way to sell your crafts.  I know a potter who has had a once a year craft fair in her home for the last 15 years.  It's the only show she does all year long and she sells out.  In fact, all of the vendors there do well now.  Of course, that wasn't always the case.   She and the other vendors have paid their dues over the years and are now reaping the rewards of their persistence.  You can also benefit from holding your own craft fairs.  Just realize that it is a long term commitment that may take awhile to pay off.  And be sure to protect yourself legally along the way.

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