Farmers Markets vs. Craft Shows

If you sell your soap, can you tell me which do you prefer to sell at and why...farmers markets or craft shows? So far, I have only done farmers markets but am considering signing up for a craft show this november. Is the experience as a seller the same between the two? I know at the farmers market I do, most people want to talk to me about my soap...how i make it, why i started to make it, how it looks like cake, how they are enjoying the soap they bought last time etc. etc. Do most craft show customers want as much interaction or are they more inclined to want to be left alone to shop?

Thanks guys!

I do both and my bread & butter comes from the farmers market. I do as many local fairs as I can, but people know where to find me every saturday at the FM.

I think the questions come about the same rate - maybe a little less at craft fairs -especially near the holidays. Those are usually serious shoppers

I only do the farmers' market with my soaps and stuff, but I used to do festivals and fairs before with hats, and I'd say that it's apples and oranges: farmers' markets are great for building up a clientele, reputation, local 'belonging', and fairs are good for moving a lot of product (or not). If you have the option to do many fairs then maybe you could build a clientele that way too.

I'd say do both if you have the inclination, but rely on your farmers' market and your regulars more.

And have fun

We have done both in our short time of selling and they are different in the aspect of the time people will spend in your booth.

At the market there are about 75 vendors at any given time and most are fruit and veggie types. When people stop at our both they do like to ask questions but then again I like to talk so they tend to spend some extra time in our booth.

The shows we've done have more vendors and more variety to stroll through so people tend to pop in and out just because there is so much to see.

The market helps to retain repeat customers and gets our name recognized but the shows will generally do as much business in one weekend as the market will do in a month.

I do both and out of pure laziness I enjoy the shows more than the markets. With markets I have to take my tent and with shows I don't! As far as customers being chattier at one or the other, it all depends on how busy I am at the time. If there's nobody at my booth then they tend to stay and chat, but if there's a gathering then most are pretty good at moving on. I find most shows more lucrative than markets on a per day basis.

I do both. I love my Farmer's Market as it's small and you get the opportunity to meet and talk to people and get to know them and build a local following. I have many repeat customers. However, I do several large functions and make more money but I truly enjoy the market best. They both have their pros and cons. I would recommend at least trying both.

I don't have time to do a weekly farmers' market but would love to, agree with the comments about good experiences.

I have learned one thing after having done half a dozen wine festivals that I don't sell much, nor do many other non-winery vendors. People seem to be there to drink and not buy.

Arts and crafts festivals and fiber festivals have been my biggest successes.

I do a market weekly and love it, it is great for building repeat customers, I have done craft shows and prefer the market..

I'm a city girl. I do craft shows.

many years ago I did farmers markets around seattle and loved them, but my bread and butter was contract private label soaps for the ski lodges and resorts around snowqualmie pass.

heartsong said:

many years ago I did farmers markets around seattle and loved them, but my bread and butter was contract private label soaps for the ski lodges and resorts around snowqualmie pass.

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That's a long way from Alabama ?

Pepsi Girl said:

That's a long way from Alabama ?

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I used to live near North Bend, Washington...left 10 years ago and found my slice of heaven here in the south...never regretted the change of address...i'm a country girl at heart!

IMO at farmer's markets people tend to keep moving, at least here they do. Constant stream of people walking by my booth, you've only got like 2-3 seconds to grab 'em. At the craft shows, especially near the holidays, people are there to purposely buy gift items, so you're more likely to make sales.

Selling Soap At Craft Fairs

Farmers markets vary as selling venues. So do craft events.

Just realize that there are regional craft events that you might get in and move an unbelievable amount of material in a weekend.

This type of selling is far more efficient, time-wise, than standing around at a market watching a few people stroll by.

It all depends on what you want to do.

Some people exhibit at events for fun and fellowship, while others are there mostly for the money! I'm of the "mostly for the money" persuasion!

It surely takes some time and experience to find the events that work best for you.

Never forget the potential for follow-up sales either.

Combine a few soap sales with a brochure, catalog and website and the value of a customer can be quite high. Make it easy to reorder and you will often get repeat sales, even if you never return to an event.

An on-line order, phone-in order or mailed-in order from a customer beats a sale at an event all to pieces! It's a lot easier anyhow!

Your customer list has great value too. Mail out your sales literature to some customers and you will often get an amazing percentage to order again.

Find out about the best shows from other local crafters or from print or on-line guides. Note that in many cases, events that work well for one sort of craft will work well for others. That means if a potter tells you he or she does great at an event, then soap might work there too.

I sell at our local farmer's market every Saturday and for the most part I love it. I do get all the same questions over and over "how long have you been making?", etc... I have made some friends and a lot of repeat customers who always know where to find me. This November will be the first time I'm in an actual holiday craft show. I've gone as a shopper only before. I never seem to have time or the vendors don't have the time to really get chatty. I'm not sure what to expect. The biggest thing I'm worried about is how much soap I should make/bring.