Sunday, 14 February 2016

Nothing Ventured

As an artist in a small rural community, I have found that there are not a lot of venues for selling art. When I saw an ad about the Monthly Pop-Up Mall, I thought I would give it a try.
 Jewellery, interesting bookmarks, tea boxes and soap balls down this aisle.
my table

 'It Works' products for detoxing, revitalizing and more, and the apple seller
Essential Oils, and Epicure with a mystery product in the middle - lol!
Leslie's table
 Leslie is a fellow artist with lovely painted glass products, mostly wine glasses.
Scentsy, Avon and Mary Kay down this side - scent like crazy! There were more that I didn't get pictures of but you get the idea.

The Pop-Up mall is organized for home-based and small businesses to showcase their wares and to let people know they are around. There were 25 vendors with everything from Tupperware to Essential Oils; there was also an orchardist with boxes and boxes of apples and apple juice to sell. This is a new venture and many of the residents of the area are not aware of its existence so visitor numbers were low.

One has to expect that start-ups will take a while to prosper and vendors need to give it time to attract the public’s eye. However, after watching what people were buying and which tables they spent the most time at, I decided that the Pop-Up Mall is not for me. I spent an uncomfortable day amid strong scents from soaps, perfumes and an essential oil diffuser and only made a bit more than my costs.

Although I do not consider my day at this market a success, I figure "Nothing ventured, nothing gained".

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4 comments:

  1. Joan Tavolott16 February 2016 at 05:18

    Glad you at least covered your costs. I find that unless it is a show that is specific to "art" it is very hard to sell art. For some reason people will buy an expensive bar of soap or jar of jam rather than buying something that will touch their heart forever. I usually won't even do a show where crafts are allowed.

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    1. Mellowood Gallery16 February 2016 at 07:58

      Hi Joan. Generally I stay away from events like this one except for the one at Christmas. I make a number of small things and cards that often do well at Christmas but, I find art needs the right venue - ie. and art show lol. thanks for your comments.

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  2. Nelvia18 February 2016 at 08:04

    Hey Val you never know before you try. Proud of you for going and getting through it. Chalk it up to a learning experience

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    Replies
    1. Mellowood Gallery18 February 2016 at 08:18

      Hi Nelvia. I might have tried it more than once if not for all the strong scents which are really hard for me to handle. I wish them all the best but will have to look for some other venue. Have a great day!

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