They have a facebook page and looking through the posts there was a few names I recognised from here on Folksy. I haven’t done this one but I have been to Claire but not the Priory.
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Caroline @Caroleecrafts …I completely agree with you…they spent up to three weeks making and preparing for the fair and although they had sales, that is never going to be a living wage. Sad but true.
I have been making and selling for about 45 years and the cost of some of those craft fairs takes away a high % of people’s profits.
I DID enjoy the programme and the standard of work was very high…(I hope Folksy can get a mention!)
However I think it is misleading a lot of people who might think that it is easy to make a full time wage…most of us know that this is unlikely.
25 years ago at good craft fairs, the fees were £45+ for the day so you have to take a LOT of money just to cover your expenses. Hopefully these lovely people will get some sales from people who have picked up business cards etc…and hopefully it will snowball for them x
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Tell me about it Brenda, the number I have done and sold Zilch! Only do the 1 local one now as cheap as chips £10 but sell loads and worth the 3 hours as a social event as well. Mulled wine, Christmas Music, the vicar arrives and our parish priest always turns up with the nuns in tow. Regulars that always buy form me, one lady is partial to bees. She buys up all my bee products.
Some of the 3 day event ones near us are £1000 for the 3 days, you set up the day before but with travel each day you have got to go some. The usual rule of thumb is sell 10 times the rent figure.
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Although it’s good to see people’s great crafting I found it false advertsing tbh.
It’s all about Craft Fairs and nothing is said about costs of Craft Fairs ie travel cost of pitch and of course where are you going to stay. You would think they’d look into online selling as well and all the costs and legal requirements of selling to the public.
This give a far to unrealistic view and if people are encourged with the programme without being given the full facts they are setting themselve up for big dissapointments and really are not being fair to Crafters in the long run.
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I completely agree with Eileen. Having spent MANY years doing craft fairs , I know that it is rare for people to actually make a good living doing them. They are giving false hope to many people and making them think that they can earn a living wage at crafting.
There is no mention of the weeks and weeks of work required to get enough stock for a fair, the stall rents, the petrol etc.
Last week was a prime example…the lady making cards and photo albums…no mention of the fact that fairs are saturated with card makers and no mention of the expense of card, paper , ink, paper bags and a whole load more of different supplies needed
It would be so much better to point these talented people to online selling (Folksy of course) where the fees are so much easier to manage.
I do like watching the programme and yes there are a lot of very talented people out there but making them think that they can make good money is giving them false hope.
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There has been a discussion on a group I am in on FB Brenda and we all said the same gives the wrong impression I agree with everything you have said makes it appear easy to just make and set up but as we all know is blooming hard work for sometimes little return.
I gave up fairs a couple of years ago only do our local one now as in the local directory and have my regulars that come and make it worth while doing. Only for a few hours at the end of Nov but meet up with a lot of villagers, have some mulled wine, Christmas carols and fun. No face painting or kids crafts just lovely things to buy.
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I agree with what Brenda has stated and I said the same on FB. I don’t think there has been enough said in the show about the difficulties crafters encounter, e.g. CE testing children’s items, costs of craft fairs, should you have a card reader, etc.