How do you estimate number of potential sales from a new fair?

[falseawareness]

How many items would you sell at a fair you considered good? Can you estimate what your sales would be like based of attendance numbers? Or do people use other methods?

 

[Min]

On 5/25/2024 at 8:27 AM, falseawareness said:

How many items would you sell at a fair you considered good?

I go by sales figures rather than number of items. What I consider a good sale likely won't be what others are okay with and vice versa. It takes a while to dial in prices to what buyers will spend without undercutting yourself.

I never do a market without checking it out first, I go and walk around the venue, see how busy it is, if shoppers are actually buying and carrying bags, how crowded in the vendors are, booth spaces etc. Attendance does matter but the type of venue matters equally. Example would be a music festival where there is also a market area, there may have high attendance but people going to a music festival aren't going there to buy pottery.

Welcome to the forum.

[Roberta12]

@falseawareness what @Min said is spot on.  Best advice I ever received was to visit a market ahead of being a vendor.  You get an overall feel for how the market is organized, what the shopper demographic is, how far you will have to transport your very heavy pots and shelves, all of that, what products other vendors are selling.   I have been a vendor at a Beer festival and a wine festival.  People are there for the entertainment and food and music.  Not to buy pots.

Roberta

[GEP]

On 5/25/2024 at 11:27 AM, falseawareness said:

How many items would you sell at a fair you considered good?

It varies, depending on the size and scope of the show. For a good 1-day show, maybe 50 items. For a good 4-day show, maybe 250.

This answer does not apply to anyone but me. For everybody else, the answer will depend on your experience level.

 

On 5/25/2024 at 11:27 AM, falseawareness said:

Can you estimate what your sales would be like based of attendance numbers? Or do people use other methods?

 No. Attendance does not always correlate with sales. Attendees and serious buyers are not the same. Or sometimes a show will have great attendance, but your work does not fit in, for various reasons.

The “other method” that works is to go back to shows that you have done before. You can estimate your sales based on past sales at the same event. If it’s a quality show, your sales should improve as you continue to do it. For some shows, after several years it might run its course, where you have saturated that market and your sales start to decline. There really isn’t another reliable way to do it. 

I wholly endorse what @Roberta12 said … for shows that you have not done before, it really helps to visit it in person before you apply. You can gain so much insight just by being there and observing everything. 

Edited May 28 by GEP

[Roberta12]

actually it was @GEP who gave that advice!  I have stuck to it, (mostly)  A couple of times I didn't visit a show beforehand, I had regrets!  You might luck out, but it helps to get a feel for the venue just to see if it is a good fit for you.  

r.

[Stephen]

A fair that is to celebrate some event with food and entertainment or arts and/craft show?

Edited August 14 by Stephen

[neilestrick]

There are a ton of factors that go into making a show successful or not, and size may or may not be a predictor. Two of my best shows are also the smallest ones I've done, and some of the biggest shows were the worst. Crowd size doesn't mean a thing. Often a crowd that's too big can discourage sales because it's difficult for people to move around at the show and actually get into the booths they want to see, and it generally just makes the shopping experience kind of miserable. A show that is great one year can be a turd the next year and vice-versa. In general, it's about there being a lot of quality work at the show, and the show needs to be focused on the art, not on music or food or anything else. It needs to be a pleasant shopping experience with a good vibe, places to rest, and an easy-to-navigate layout. Attending the show as a shopper is the best way to see if it's worth your time or not. I would not necessarily ask any artists at the show if it's a good show or not, because I for one always answer that it is. I don't ever tell someone in my booth that the show is going badly or say anything negative about my experience there. Plus a show may be bad for someone because it's their fault, not the fault of the show.  I also don't put too much stock in online show reviews from other artists, because every show is different for every artist. The only thing I pay attention to is opinions on technical issues like ease of setup and teardown, etc.

[Kelly in AK]

@neilestrick I couldn’t agree more. Discerning a pattern among the infinite number of variables was always beyond my ability. No matter what, November and December are the best months. The layout, appearance, and presentation, at least, are in my control and count for a lot in my experience. An easy space to enter, a comfortable place to hang out and look at things is golden. Good lighting can’t be overstated. Shelves cast shadows on the pots below them. Cheap tap lights have paid for themselves in sales (Opinion, not fact, maybe people would buy even if they couldn’t see the pots so well). Rechargeable batteries. A “clay” only show is the top notch plce.

Then you add people into the calculation and it gets more complicated.. No one visiting your booth is like a force field that keeps people from entering. One or two people stepping in turn it into a magnet, and you get swarmed. (Love those moments)

The only way I can imagine making an estimate is to visit the fair, look at the booths that are full of customers and see if what they’re buying bears any relation to what you’re selling.

As Neil said, vendors are ill equipped to give you honest feedback, not reliable. Observing crowds and traffic is more helpful.

If you’re paralyzed, just do it. The very experience is worth more than any tips or imagined estimates.

[Min]

5 hours ago, Kelly in AK said:

No one visiting your booth is like a force field that keeps people from entering. One or two people stepping in turn it into a magnet, and you get swarmed

+1

If you have a quiet spell get in your there and move things around or just pick up a pot, make your space a magnet. I find what’s gold is when a few women who are friends come into my booth, they encourage each other to shop. Also, there are sweet spots  for selling, if something isn’t moving try changing where in the display it is.