American Craft Council

This was my first year doing the American Craft Council Show in Baltimore. The wholesale show for most vendors and myself was a waste of time however, the retail show proved to be a much better venue. Jewelry artists that seemed to do well were those that worked with gold, newer artists and those that had a price point under $300. Many of the artists that I spoke with that had done the show for 10-20 years felt that it was their worst show ever. However, in putting their comments into perspective they shared with me that when they first started doing the show it was common for artists to have a sign on their booth saying thank you Baltimore because they were entirely sold out on wholesale and/or retail. Oh, those were the good old days!

As a new artist I found the 6 day schedule grueling both physically and mentally. The biggest surprise for me was not the $2000 booth fee but all of the other associated costs. Additional fees include, electricity, piping, display cases (if needed), drapes (if needed), carpeting (if needed), parking, food, and advertising. If you elected to have an ad in the brochure the cost was a whopping $1400.

Although I had my best show ever I still felt that I would have done better if I had made more bangles. I did not bring them in until Saturday and they turned out to be my top seller. I hate doing bangles because they usually require 2-3 hours of sanding and retouching however since I had success selling them at the higher price point I will consider doing more in the future. The cost of goods sold on this item is nominal, but it takes a minimum of 16 hours to prepare and finish five bangles. Given that most of that time is used to sand and retouch the work to say that this drives me crazy is an understatement.

Most artists myself included felt that if selected they would do the show again next year. Given the cost and physical/emotional demands of the show that seems to be a great endorsement.