It’s really interesting reading what everyone believes their niche to be. Interesting topic.
I have stayed fairly focussed with all my artwork. I normal say something along the lines of ‘original handmade Lino prints inspired by the North East Coast’ or something along those lines.
I don’t deviate from what I do- if it swims in the North Sea or flies above it at some point I’ll get around to printing it!
I also do Gyotaku prints (fish rubbings) and there’s hardly anyone in the UK who does this.
So I think that’s my niche…it comes naturally to me as well which makes things a lot easier. Style wise I believe it goes hand-in-hand as well.
Sandra yours took some thinking about.
I would see your products in a life style shop, interior design shops the cushions along side curtains sofas if you have any Independent shops I would take some in to them and see if they would be interested in stocking them. If you are hand knitting this will limit how many you can make. Maybe by focusing your attention on cushion covers you could keep a shop stocked. The other option is to contact a few local offices see if in the run up to Christmas you could do a table sale one lunch time as they would make great Xmas presents.
Thanks, I did have my items in a an art gallery in a tourist town but although they generated interest they didn’t sell and I didn’t get any interest off the back of it either. I was asked if I wanted to continue but I couldn’t afford the fees.
I havnt had my work in the gallery. Ive only been in 1 B&M shop and only made a sale(2 cushions and a print) on 2 days out of the 6. I had some nice comments on my soldered work though.
To be honest I’m not sure how I’d feel sending my work off to a Gallery where I’m unable to visit to ascertain the customers/clients and footfall. I’d rather go local(ish) because then I can visit and make a judgement before I hand over my cash in fees and postage costs.
Hmmm I don’t think I have a niche… I’m making lots of different jewellery, so hard to classify my items in one specific eg customer - making for kids, teenagers, adults…women in all ages I can say
I’m looking to possibly redefine my niche at the moment! I know what I like to create (wraps, shawls, etc) but that doesn’t necessarily turn into sales. So I’ve found myself making more and more of what sells and less and less of what makes me happy. I guess I could say my customers have dictated what my niche should be which I guess is normal and right.
I don’t really sell online much - even though my stuff often gets picked for folksy gift guides (thanks Folksy!) - I’m rubbish at social media and promotion. My selling experience is based on B&M shops and exhibitions. People often compliment my more expensive products (which is lovely!) but don’t necessarily part with their money. As the seasons go by, I’m focussing more and more on jewellery and home decor.
Perhaps I should go back to basics and restart the process focussing exclusively on the stuff that i want to do but pushing the self promotion and expanding myself geographically? But can this really work or should I stick with what the market has already dictated?
I think you can do a bit of both. I currently make and sell enough of the market dictated items to cover all the costs and with enough money left over to allow me to make the more expensive items with unusual stones that I want to make. I promote myself using the stuff I really want to be making as the other stuff sells itself and occasionally I sell the expensive stuff or get commissioned to make something similar. Hopefully in time and with promotion I will have built up enough of a reputation with the people who like hand crafted jewellery set with unusual stones that the current ratio will be reversed (if that makes sense). Don’t give up on making what you want to be making. The problem with making a niche product is how to pay the bills whilst you are breaking into that niche and building up a following.
Sasha
Elsa
why not keep both sides going, it doesn’t make sense to give up making whats selling just to concentrate on what you like to make more. Expensive items are harder to sell at craft fairs but might do better from other outlets. The smaller cheaper items are more likely to sell at craft fairs but it is worth displaying an expensive item or two as it show cases your work and you don’t know who is there.
I guess ive been feeling under pressure to focus my work/direction.
In the last few years, I’ ve been invited several times to exhibit/sell my wraps at different venues but with limited success. I do still take a variety of items to Christmas markets. The saleable ones and the exhibition pieces just in case!
Ive always been a bit of a jack-of-all-trades and don’t want to appear wishy washy or unfocused by having such a large variety of items rather than specialise to become master of my niche.
Thanks for the replies. Certainly helped knowing there are others out there who feel it’s ok to do a bit of everything.
I do pyrography exclusively. I also have a handy blog link here incase anyone is interested in following the story behind my shop? https://jetshijinks.wordpress.com/
My niche is very narrow - rag dolls with outfits and little cotton mice and stories about them. 2 products basically. My products are aimed at children aged 3-7. Quite a narrow market really but I seem to have a loyal band of customers who keep coming back time and time again. I agree that having a niche and creating a brand is important.
My niche, which is still developing, is mosaic art on functional items.
I truly believe the William Morris quote, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.” speaks to me.
My best sellers are house/door numbers and oddly perhaps, my garden rocks.
As retirement looms I hope to develop this niche - people seem to love them and each commission is unique and one of a kind. I like that.
My strapline, with a nod to William is: " Functional, beautiful and affordable art that has a purpose in your life"
I have been receiving Christmas commissions already - so I think it is starting to work. Here are a few examples that seem to be popular. I also offer a substantial discount on more than one number. This makes an ideal gift to celebrate a new home or just so you know where you are. If anyone would like to discuss a project, feel free to contact me and my niche!
There seems to be some confusion here as to what a niche is, the niche is the target market you are designing a product for, for example as Maisy @MaisyMuffin said her dolls are aimed directly at 3-7year olds that is the niche in the market that she creates her dolls to fill. It is not the product that you make it is the market it is aimed directly at.
The most important thing in any form of marketing is to identify your target market to look at the demographic of your potential buyers and to use this information to specifically design products to meet your chosen customers requirement. It is vitally important that if you want a business to succeed you look in detail at the customer base and to create products that match these needs and this may mean creating a small range of products directly aimed at a narrow sector of the market place. The more niche the market place the more work needs to be put into the design of your product but it can be a very successful strategy.
An interesting point is that many people here make their products for the joy of making and are trying in some cases to turn a hobby into a business. This can be a huge step, gone are the days of creating a product for the joy of it and the satisfaction it brings now it is a case where loosing your mojo having artist block and other such comments have to be put aside in the need to produce high quality products to fulfill an order against a deadline. The difference between a hobby and a business is vast discovering how you can take a hobby into a business can be a heart breaking experience rather than making for your own pleasure you have to start looking at sectors of the market you can compete successfully in you have to look at the demographic of the people you are aiming at in short you have to enter a world of hard faced professional buyers. The importance of working in a niche market is to identify a realistic niche for your product. I hate to see so many people hoping against hope to make businesses out of example jewellery, where the market place is absolutely flooded with cheap Chinese products. The chance of success in this area is virtually nil but choose the right niche in the jewellery market and produce specific products to meet that need for example handmade sterling silver embossed pendants and you could find that you can create an area in which you can stand out because without the ability to stand out even in a mass market will lead to failure.
It is fine to make for the joy of making and deriving pleasure from your craft or hobby, there is a market for handmade, crafted goods. It is possible to sell some items but You are unlikely to sell hundreds without steering your products to match what your customers wish to buy. If you wish to turn your hobby into a business as we did I can only offer you … the best of British luck.
Hazel
