How to sell your work?

[Bodrighy]

I have sold some pieces through charity sales and at work but I wonder if others have any tips on how and where to sell their work. I have no delusions about going professional but the extra cash for tools etc has come in useful and I would welcome the opinions and ideas of the experts. What sells, what to charge, where to sell etc.

(I am not thinking of the gallery type work that soem of the pros on here do, maybe in a decade or so but not just yet)

Pete

 

[TEP]

Hi Pete, you and the rest of us would like to know how to get some sales going.

I have been selling for 5 years now, and find it quite hard to break into the real craft galleries. (Not done it yet) About half my stuff goes on a "sale or return" basis. Which is a real pain, small pieces can get stolen, the pieces are not looked after while on display cause they are still your property until sold. Then of course if they get marked/damaged they won't sell, so you end up taking them back and throwing them. I've had clock faces removed from the turned holder, small boxes with the lid taken and the base left. Non so queer as folk eh!

The other half is now being made on commission, which is the best way but it takes time to build up a clientele. I'm starting to get some orders in for xmas now. I don't think I could ever make a living at it, but as you say it pays for wood supplies and tooling, and some of your time.

Prices, as much as you can get. Which won't be much in this country. The general public look at craft work as a way of getting unusual and cheap items. They never think about the cost of your tooling, the time you have put in to get to the standard of turning you do, and you standing at the lathe making the stuff.

Realistically you should charge for the wood, the time to look around for it, the time you take to turn the item, all finishes, wear on tools and machines, sundries, cost of power and heating, percentage the seller puts on if selling through a craft shop, and a bit of profit for yourself. Work all that out and you'll find that for the average amateur turner the price would be unrealistic if you want to sell. Especially as there are loads of other turners like us selling, (read giving away) their work. When asked about it their answer being that all they want to do is recover the cost of the wood, their time and all else is not taken into account.

My attitude now is that if I don't get the price I want (and I'm not greedy) I will not sell the piece. On the odd craft fair I will not barter with customers, although if I get a good sale I often drop in a small box for a gift. I don't need the money to live so I can sell on my terms, other than the 'sale or return' bits of course.

Where to sell, I've had stuff in local libraries, they often have a show case. Chemist shops for the small items, had some really good sales in those. Local craft fairs, check em' out first see how many other turners are there. Local gift shops. Galleries if you can get in! In my experience all of these will only take the stuff on a 'sale or return' basis, but that's life. You need to be known so your stuff WILL sell, before anyone is willing to pay you for you work up front.

Good luck!

 

[Bodrighy]

Thanks Tam, I appreciate your detailed answer.

Talking to some pros at shows they seem to make money doing 40 stair rods or 200 bowls. Repetitive work that would require a copy lathe and a lot of boredom for me who doesn't want the 'hobby' to become 'a chore.' I was asked if I could do some restoration work at one sale but declined as I felt my standard of work wasn't good enough. What sort of thing do you sell in chemists by the way, pill boxes?

As far as gallery work is concerned I suspect that short of emigrating to America it's going to be a long time before any of us will ever make much money there. Mark Hancock mentioned this in another thread some time ago.


I would welcome anyone elses experiences and input on the subject.

Pete

 

[Anonymous]

as a pro (cabinet making, not turning) the thought of making something and then trying to sell it would fill me with fear. The only way to do it is commission only, some bright sparks say if your making one you may as well make two and sell the exta one as well, great if you do sell it waste of money and space if you don't.
To get commissions you need to present well, not necessarily as a salesman, but reinforce how good your work is, show examples, let them visit previous clients etc, in order to do this you need to back it up with quality goods.
For me I've had a few lucky breaks, and now have a good client base, it takes time but if your works good enough, commission only is the way to go.

 

[TEP]

Hi Pete.

Don't knock copy turning, you can make quite a bit doing that and you would be quite pleasantly surprised on what you can do. There's nothing worse than us 'hobby' turners knocking our ability to make something.

Chemist sales, any small thing you would put on a craft stall. Small bud vases, toadstools, boxes, bowls, and the odd table lamp or two. Although I don't make any of those these days because of the electrics. Most local chemist shops have a little section where they sell china ornaments and knick-knacks. Surprising how much you can shift. \/

As senior has said, commission work is the way to go, BUT folks need to know your there first, so try anything to get known even if you don't make much out of it.

 

[Mark Hancock]

Pete

Selling your work is a hard slog. Most outlets operate sale or return (sor) because of the high costs of running a shop. You have to be wary of outlets which take your work to look good on display but have no hope or intention of selling. Keep a close eye on new outlets you get to ensure they look after your work and also pay up when it's sold. With sor the work remains yours until sold but the shop is responsible for it so they should insurance against lose or damage. Know what commission is taken. Commission should only be added to the shop's mark up not the retail price with sor. VAT charged by shops complicates the calculation further. VAT should only be added to the commission the shop charges. You have the option of telling the shop what you will accept for each piece and allow the shop to set the retail price or you can set the retail price. With the former method you run the risk of shops near to each other selling similar pieces for different prices depending on their mark ups.

The one thing I would stress is do not under sell your work. Charge a realistic price and not just to recover the cost of the wood etc. If you under price you devalue your own skills but worst still you devalue the skills of all other turners in the country.

 

[Anonymous]

Pete

Craft fares. There is one on 27th of this month and one 3rd september near where I live and I will be taking some things along with fingers crossed. Last year, Bean did very nicely at the craft fares.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Pete,

I'm doing some stewarding on the gloucestershire woodturning club stand at westonbirt this weekend. I've been told it will help me learn what people are interested in and what they don't like. Members will have pieces for sale on the stand. If you can make it up you should get to see what is selling. The club took a lot of money at last year's show; I believe one piece was sold for a heck of a lot (sorry, can't give you the figures).

Dave

 

[Bodrighy]

Thanks for all the info that is coming in. I have been to one or two craft fairs and the quality of the work there at first seemed way beyond the things that I produce. I have seen some pieces for sale that I would have binned.

Mark, your point about underselling is one that I really struggle with as I look at something I have done and find it hard to put a value on it. It almost feels wrong to charge a lot for something I enjoyed doing. I found a site with a detailed account of how to price your work and that's useful.

As someone said, maing things is the easy part, selling it is the hard bit.

Pete

 

[Paul.J]

Yes Pete.
I would have the same trouble if i was to try and sell a piece or three.
Just how do you put a price on pieces of turned work.
At the moment if i were asked i'd just say "give us a fiver" for any particular piece that i've turned,and i'd be glad.
I know i'm getting the wood virtualy for nothing so it's just my time and overheads :roll: which been an hobby don't really count do they :?:
Paul.J.

 

[ctb]

I used to work on the following as a guide, but it really depends on the quality of finish, style and form of an individuals work, as well as the price of the timber.
However given that the timber used is a native uk wood, sourced fairly cheaply , you have a good finish, lets face it, if other turners are anything like me then they haven't turned a piece of work to their 100% satisfaction, but you get my jist, it must be of a good quality, I used to look to earn £100 per day spent in the workshop, be that 8-10 inch bowls x 2, or a bigger bowl £85 and a small bowl £20.

if you under value your work, it gives an impression of inferior quality, if something looks right then price high, I use the wife as a sounding board, ie, how much would you pay for that ? then add some as she likes to get a bargain.

It works for me, but it all depends on location, competition, and demand, what will sell at a high price in a city such as Oxford or Cambridge for example wont sell at all on the Edgeware road.

Its a suck it and see world I am afraid, I know professional turners down south that cannot sell their work for anything like it's worth, but don't as has been said before undervalue your work, it reflects on the individual turner and the craft, or as it should be called ART in general.

Good Luck one and all

Chris

 

[PowerTool]

Think it was in this months Woodturning magazine,where someone had very little success selling his work when calling himself a "woodturner",but sales (both in terms of volume and price) increased enormously when rebranding himself as "an artist who works with timber" :shock:

So perhaps it's all in the name... :lol:

Andrew

 

[Bodrighy]

You could be right Andrew, in the states, woodturning seems to be accepted as an art form far more than in this country. Same sort of distinction as between a carpenter and a cabinetmaker in the eyes of Joe Public. Both are skilled craftsmen but viewed differently.

Pete