Well, it’s July. Time for us to think about Christmas. That’s right, Christmas in July. Those Christmas craft fairs can start in October or November and the Fall Fairs can start in August! This is the time to do a review of your inventory. What products do you have on hand? Which products sold well …
How to Sharpen Your Competitive Edge
When you sharpen your tools for woodturning you shape the tool to cut wood in a specific way. You may have two bowl gouges with slightly different grinds for two different purposes. How you respond to your customers may require you to sharpen your responses to maintain your competitive edge. I’ve had people come into …
5 Healthy Snacks for Shows and Events
When doing a Christmas Craft fair, event, or other type of show, the last thing you are likely thinking about is healthy snacks and food. You worry about products, price points, and booth set up. But, why would you think about food? While many shows and events offer a basic concession stand, the food …
Book Review “The Productivity Project” by Chris Bailey
Well there certainly are these tasks in my life that ruin my productivity. How about yours? You know the ones that are there to be done and you don’t want to do them. These are the projects that make taking out the trash and doing the dishes seem like Disneyland. Okay I’m joking on that …
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Cash Box – 5 Tips on Handling Cash
How to play it safe with cash. Handling a cash box at a trade show, farmers’ market, or craft fair is a fairly straight forward idea. You have cash so that you can make change with people buying your products. Follow these 5 tips and keeping your cash and making change will be easy. 1. …
How to Build Your Inventory
When moving from hobby to business one of the hurdles is having enough inventory. Each of us has projects that we find pleasure in turning. However, these products may not be the ones that our customers like. That is the challenge of the artisan; how to express the artistry and beauty of your work and …
Book Review “Design the Life you Love” by Ayse Birsel
Is your life simply happening while you watch? It can feel that way sometimes. You wake up in the morning and it’s the middle of February. How did you get here? Seriously, it feels like it is still early January. You go through the motions, one foot after the other, one day following another, one …
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Trade Show Checklist
Trade Show – Checklist I just got back from a trade show in Vancouver. I wasn’t selling my turnings nor was I in charge of the booth. I was helping out. I realized that there are so many things to bring when you are at an event, trying to sell your products, or just give …
7 Benefits of Goal Setting for 2016 and Beyond
Goal Setting for 2016 Goals are a part of life. Your business should have a business plan. That is, what are the goals of your business? Goals are not obstacles but are a reflection of where you want to go. Here are 7 benefits of goal setting for 2016 and beyond. I’ve set many goals …
What you need to know about Craft Shows
How to Decide if a Craft Show is for You For 10 years I earned about a third of my annual income doing the craft show circuit. In that time I learned from a lot of mistakes. Some of my mistakes were dumb, others were costly. After a few years I’d made enough mistakes that …
Pricing Strategies for the Woodturner
Have you ever wondered how stores set their prices on their products? You face the same challenge with your wood turnings. Your challenge is to price your product so that it will sell AND give you an appropriate return for your work. The post “The nuts and bolts of pricing your work” discusses the specific …
Book Review “The One Thing”
Struggling with your business, fitting in wood turning, family pressures and the like? Want to know the secret to making it all work out? So did I. The One Thing, will give you the secret to finding that focus and creating a success in your life. What will this book do? It will help you …
