Great tips! I’ve been doing fairs for a few years and you’ve covered all the main points in such an engaging way. I like your mascot idea. I might try that!
I have a small soap biz in Idaho, USA. I sell each week at the local farmer's market in town. My biz is called Colonial Soap Works and my mascot is "me"!! I dress in reproduction 18th century outfit that would have been worn by a typical working woman. I am very recognized by the people and they have come to call me the Colonial Soap Lady. That is the name of my website, which I recently opened. One thing that is a must here is a tent or canopy. Being outside all day in the sun is brutal. And with the tent, you have got to have weights. It can get very windy here. I have seen many a tent go flying through the air. Thank you for a very informative video.
That is fantastic advice! I was aiming this at inside stalls, but you are correct, for an outdoor event a canopy or gazebo is an absolute must and yes to the weights too! We had a gazebo fail on us in sudden high winds once - it was weighed down and the weights held but one of the poles snapped and the whole thing crumpled in on itself - could have been so much worse if it hadn't been weighed down! I absolutely love the sound of you being your own mascot. I love dressing up and the highlight of our own event year for me is a medieval event that we do in August where I get to dress up in medieval costume. It is so much fun and really adds an extra element of fun and interest to the stall :-)
Thank you, you guys are the best! Very informative and helpful. I've been hesitant about markets and craft fairs, but you helped ease alot of anxiety and answered questions for me😊
You are very welcome Dena! Craft fairs and events really are a lot of fun and can be great for selling and making new contacts, but they can be nerve wracking at first! I still get nervous if I am going to an event on my own (sometimes Wayne and I do two events on the same day, so do one each) but within a few minutes of being there, I wonder what I was worried about :-)
So am I Iris! It has certainly been a very long year! On the plus side, it certainly gave us time to focus on and develop this channel a little bit! I will be glad to get back out into the real world in a couple of months though!
Thank you! Wow! You have some amazing helpful ideas that I will be implementing onto my tables. I am so excited to see what I can do to create a table that does so much better that ever!
Thank you for sharing your tips. I agree talking and engaging with the customer is a top tip. Just wondering, do you do a regular weekly/monthly market...or do you have a walk in shop? I’m just selling through fb pages at the moment, but looking forward to attending some fairs when restrictions are lifted...and wondering whether it’s best to just do the odd fair when starting out or try and get a regular slot at a recurring farmers market. It wold be good to know about insurance requirements...how much, best place to get it etc. Thank you and love your set up. I might nick the crates idea if I can 😉 xxx
We don't have a shop Hilary, though we would love one eventually and we don't have any regular weekly markets either. The companies who we attend events through tend to put on anything from 2 - 6 shows each per year and we tend to book into all of their events so regular visitors do know to expect us to be there, but it as not as often as every week or month. We did look at doing regular weekly markets but it then meant that we wouldn't have been able to attend the big shows where we could make the most money, so we decided to focus on larger shows as it made more sense for us to do it this way. It does mean that in the quite months of January - April we don't have many shows to attend but as soon as it gets to late April the bigger shows start up again and we will be out most weekends.
Wonderful products .I'm struggling to get my head around the assessment off my products , all I seem to find are companies that will give assessment if you use thier ingredients and recipes..would you mind giving me some advice. Thank you
I'm starting my first artisan fair on April 17th and it goes through November. I'm really excited for this to give my business the launch it needs (online only isn't cutting it). I'm wanting to get branded shirts for myself and helpers - thank you for the tips!
Hi Susan, I would love to, but they were actually gifts from Wayne's Mother! I will ask him to ask her if she remembers where she got them from and if she does, I will let you know! :-)
Hi Hilary, we only use sum up for taking the payments (though I know you can keep track of sold products on it) so I am afraid I can't help answer this one! We record what products have sold on a physical sheet that I have created for us and then when I get home I transfer sales details on to our spreadhseet to work out proft & Loss. I know this probably sounds way more complicated, but honestly, it suits my brain better this way!
I'm terrified of taking my business to fairs and markets because I get so full of self doubt. When I'm friendly to people and offer help or information I seem to scare them away and when I sit back to try to allow them more "space" to browze in peace then they just walk on by... It's SO frustrating and confusing for this friendly (but slightly introverted) creator lol. I can't seem to find the happy medium & it fills me with self doubts ;((( I really really appreciate your tips though, I love your style & your soaps & I really look forward to your next video on fairs. Maybe you could give a bit of advice to me & others like me that struggle with a bit of the social anxiety around doing this side of the business in your next video? I would be forever in your debt :) xxo holly
Hello Holly, you sound a lot like I was when we first started doing fairs (to be honest, I am still a bit like it now!) Wayne can talk to people and interact with ease, but I find if I have been away from fairs for too long that the nerves do kick in again! When we first started doing fairs I would generally just smile and say hello and I did have to force myself to speak up and say a little more! I guess the best advice I can offer is to just keep at it and push yourself to talk to everyone! It definitely does get easier with time! When fairs are back in full swing we will be taking the camera with us to film a bit at the actual fairs we attend, so hopefully that will help a bit too :-)
The mascot definitely helps! It creates a focal point and draws attention - keep an eye on it though (or out of reach of Children) as our little Maurice has had to be reclaimed from a child wandering off on more than one occasion!
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany so I tried it this past weekend, wasn’t selling anything so decided to remove my little bear and bam sales came 😂 probably a bit superstitious but I’m not bringing him anymore regardless lol
Hi Vicky, most people just purchase what they like from our available stock but if there is something we don't have then we do take orders. We once had someone wanting 8 of our large gift sets and we only had 2 left so they ordered and paid for all 8 and we posted the others out to them the next day.
We still won't use it Edward for a couple of reasons. The first is that we have many customers who choose to buy from us based on the fact that we don't use any palm oil at all, it is one of the selling points of our business and products. Many of those customers would not purchase from us even if the palm oil was RSPO (we know this, as we have had this conversation many times!) Secondly, we are not 100% confident on how sustainable RSPO palm oil is. I don't want to start a debate or pass judgement on anyone who does choose to use it (it is certainly a very versatile ingredient and makes formulating some products much easier) but reading up on the RSPO industry does not instill a huge amount of confidence in us unfortunately. Because of this, it is just an ingredient that we personally choose to avoid completely.
Unfortunately as I am not familiar with the laws and rules surrounding business and soap making in Bangladesh I can't give any specific help with starting a business there I am afraid. I would recommend spending time researching the rules specific to your country and speaking to others who run similar businesses in Bangladesh as they will probably be able to be more help than me!
I'm going to start doing fairs next year and this was the best video I've seen about how to prepare! Thanks so much for putting this together :)
Thank you for your video...very helpful...👍😊
Just wanted to say thanks for the videos, it’s very generous of you to share so much.
You are very welcome Annie, I hope that you find them useful :-)
Great tips!
I’ve been doing fairs for a few years and you’ve covered all the main points in such an engaging way.
I like your mascot idea. I might try that!
I have a small soap biz in Idaho, USA. I sell each week at the local farmer's market in town. My biz is called Colonial Soap Works and my mascot is "me"!! I dress in reproduction 18th century outfit that would have been worn by a typical working woman. I am very recognized by the people and they have come to call me the Colonial Soap Lady. That is the name of my website, which I recently opened.
One thing that is a must here is a tent or canopy. Being outside all day in the sun is brutal. And with the tent, you have got to have weights. It can get very windy here. I have seen many a tent go flying through the air. Thank you for a very informative video.
That is fantastic advice! I was aiming this at inside stalls, but you are correct, for an outdoor event a canopy or gazebo is an absolute must and yes to the weights too! We had a gazebo fail on us in sudden high winds once - it was weighed down and the weights held but one of the poles snapped and the whole thing crumpled in on itself - could have been so much worse if it hadn't been weighed down!
I absolutely love the sound of you being your own mascot. I love dressing up and the highlight of our own event year for me is a medieval event that we do in August where I get to dress up in medieval costume. It is so much fun and really adds an extra element of fun and interest to the stall :-)
Thank you, you guys are the best! Very informative and helpful. I've been hesitant about markets and craft fairs, but you helped ease alot of anxiety and answered questions for me😊
You are very welcome Dena! Craft fairs and events really are a lot of fun and can be great for selling and making new contacts, but they can be nerve wracking at first! I still get nervous if I am going to an event on my own (sometimes Wayne and I do two events on the same day, so do one each) but within a few minutes of being there, I wonder what I was worried about :-)
I am condiering doing events, so I found all this really helpful advice. Thanks for sharing, looking forward to part 2 xx
Thank you Amanda, not long until part two!
Beautiful display. Stunning. I love it.😊 Iris
Thank you Iris :-)
Anne. Am hoping that this awful lockdown ends soonest and you and me, all of us, can get out there and buy and sell! 😊 Iris
So am I Iris! It has certainly been a very long year! On the plus side, it certainly gave us time to focus on and develop this channel a little bit! I will be glad to get back out into the real world in a couple of months though!
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany Every cloud, Anne.......😊
Thank you! Wow! You have some amazing helpful ideas that I will be implementing onto my tables. I am so excited to see what I can do to create a table that does so much better that ever!
Thank you Darice and good luck with your own table design! I hope you do really well :-)
Thanks Anne and Wayne. Great tips. 👌👌👌💖🧼
You are very welcome Jill, thank you for watching :-)
Really helpful video Anne -
thanks a million!!!
Thank you Cathy! Glad you have found it helpful :-)
Am I first? 🤣 good to see you again!
You are indeed! Congratulations! Thank you for coming to see us again :-)
Thank you for sharing your tips. I agree talking and engaging with the customer is a top tip. Just wondering, do you do a regular weekly/monthly market...or do you have a walk in shop? I’m just selling through fb pages at the moment, but looking forward to attending some fairs when restrictions are lifted...and wondering whether it’s best to just do the odd fair when starting out or try and get a regular slot at a recurring farmers market. It wold be good to know about insurance requirements...how much, best place to get it etc. Thank you and love your set up. I might nick the crates idea if I can 😉 xxx
We don't have a shop Hilary, though we would love one eventually and we don't have any regular weekly markets either. The companies who we attend events through tend to put on anything from 2 - 6 shows each per year and we tend to book into all of their events so regular visitors do know to expect us to be there, but it as not as often as every week or month. We did look at doing regular weekly markets but it then meant that we wouldn't have been able to attend the big shows where we could make the most money, so we decided to focus on larger shows as it made more sense for us to do it this way. It does mean that in the quite months of January - April we don't have many shows to attend but as soon as it gets to late April the bigger shows start up again and we will be out most weekends.
Very useful information, as always!
Thank you, glad it has been useful for you.
Wonderful products .I'm struggling to get my head around the assessment off my products , all I seem to find are companies that will give assessment if you use thier ingredients and recipes..would you mind giving me some advice. Thank you
I'm starting my first artisan fair on April 17th and it goes through November. I'm really excited for this to give my business the launch it needs (online only isn't cutting it). I'm wanting to get branded shirts for myself and helpers - thank you for the tips!
How exciting! I wish you the best of luck for your first fair, do come back and let me know how it goes! :-)
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany absolutely! Thanks again for all the tips!
How did the fair go? The first one is so incredibly nerve wracking!
@@naomiroberts2640 it was amazing! We've done a few now and the community seems to really appreciate what we've got. The smell is what reels them in 😊
Very attractive set up. Would you mind sharing where you bought your money belt?
Hi Susan, I would love to, but they were actually gifts from Wayne's Mother! I will ask him to ask her if she remembers where she got them from and if she does, I will let you know! :-)
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany Aaww You're very good. Thank You
Very useful and helpful. I was wondering how you input your product offers (eg 3 fo 2) using sum up?
Hi Hilary, we only use sum up for taking the payments (though I know you can keep track of sold products on it) so I am afraid I can't help answer this one! We record what products have sold on a physical sheet that I have created for us and then when I get home I transfer sales details on to our spreadhseet to work out proft & Loss. I know this probably sounds way more complicated, but honestly, it suits my brain better this way!
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany yeah it seems there isn't a way to do this yet. thanks anyway
I thought I was in the movie, "Deliverance" at the start of your video.
I'm terrified of taking my business to fairs and markets because I get so full of self doubt. When I'm friendly to people and offer help or information I seem to scare them away and when I sit back to try to allow them more "space" to browze in peace then they just walk on by... It's SO frustrating and confusing for this friendly (but slightly introverted) creator lol. I can't seem to find the happy medium & it fills me with self doubts ;(((
I really really appreciate your tips though, I love your style & your soaps & I really look forward to your next video on fairs. Maybe you could give a bit of advice to me & others like me that struggle with a bit of the social anxiety around doing this side of the business in your next video? I would be forever in your debt :) xxo holly
Hello Holly, you sound a lot like I was when we first started doing fairs (to be honest, I am still a bit like it now!) Wayne can talk to people and interact with ease, but I find if I have been away from fairs for too long that the nerves do kick in again! When we first started doing fairs I would generally just smile and say hello and I did have to force myself to speak up and say a little more! I guess the best advice I can offer is to just keep at it and push yourself to talk to everyone! It definitely does get easier with time! When fairs are back in full swing we will be taking the camera with us to film a bit at the actual fairs we attend, so hopefully that will help a bit too :-)
what type of molds do you use?
Thank you and very informative
Thank you Stella, glad you found it informative :-)
This was such an incredibly informative video! Thanks so much! Love the idea of a little mascot lol I’m stealing your idea but with my little bear :)
The mascot definitely helps! It creates a focal point and draws attention - keep an eye on it though (or out of reach of Children) as our little Maurice has had to be reclaimed from a child wandering off on more than one occasion!
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany so I tried it this past weekend, wasn’t selling anything so decided to remove my little bear and bam sales came 😂 probably a bit superstitious but I’m not bringing him anymore regardless lol
Where can I purchase the crates?
Great video, do you take orders at the event?
Hi Vicky, most people just purchase what they like from our available stock but if there is something we don't have then we do take orders. We once had someone wanting 8 of our large gift sets and we only had 2 left so they ordered and paid for all 8 and we posted the others out to them the next day.
Thank you
good job
Thank you :-)
❤️
What if the palm oil is sustainably harvested?
We still won't use it Edward for a couple of reasons. The first is that we have many customers who choose to buy from us based on the fact that we don't use any palm oil at all, it is one of the selling points of our business and products. Many of those customers would not purchase from us even if the palm oil was RSPO (we know this, as we have had this conversation many times!)
Secondly, we are not 100% confident on how sustainable RSPO palm oil is. I don't want to start a debate or pass judgement on anyone who does choose to use it (it is certainly a very versatile ingredient and makes formulating some products much easier) but reading up on the RSPO industry does not instill a huge amount of confidence in us unfortunately. Because of this, it is just an ingredient that we personally choose to avoid completely.
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany
I was just wondering. Thank you for the detailed reply. Much appreciated.
I want to start this business in Bangladesh
Can you help me with this?I can make this soap
Unfortunately as I am not familiar with the laws and rules surrounding business and soap making in Bangladesh I can't give any specific help with starting a business there I am afraid. I would recommend spending time researching the rules specific to your country and speaking to others who run similar businesses in Bangladesh as they will probably be able to be more help than me!
@@TheSussexHandmadeSoapCompany thank you If I need your help in making this soap, can I get it?
She forgot to show the table and how it was decorated.
We show how the table is set up in the first 3 minutes of the video :-)