Congratulation! You’re going to be selling your handmade items at a craft market. It’s time to get organised!

  • Do you know what to take with you?
  • How much time do you need to set up/ pack up?
  • How will your customers pay?
  • Will they need a receipt?
  • How will you keep your stock organised?

You’ve probably thought of some of those questions already. But have you found the answers? Let me help you out! I have organised a few markets now, and whilst I’m still learning myself, I have managed to gain some valuable experience that can benefit you too.

What should you take with you?

Here’s a handy downloadable checklist for you: Market Checklist

When should you arrive/ leave?

It’s good manners to arrive an hour before the market starts. No events organiser wants the added stress of wondering if you are going to turn up or not. An empty table looks very bad to customers. So be prompt and set up quickly. Pack up equally as quickly, but don’t stress. Remember that even though you have had a long day, the person organising the event has been there longer than you. They probably want to go home too.

How will your customers pay?

You have options here, and the payment methods you choose will be entirely dependent on where you live. As I arrange markets in Norway, I’m going to list the options available here.

  • Cash – (Old school but still necessary, especially if you are likely to have tourists come by)
  • iZettle or other card reader – (You will pay fees for this method, but it is a good alternative – as long as you have access to WiFi)
  • Vipps – (Undoubtedly the preferred method of payment in Norway – Make sure that you and your customers have an up to date version though. If not, you may encounter problems)
  • Pindem – (If you have set up a Pindem shop through the Handmade in Norway portal then you can sell directly through your shop, from your market table – Just make sure you have listed all of the items you would be selling on the day).

Will your customers need a receipt?

The short answer is this – If they ask for a receipt then you are require to provide one. Vipps, iZettle and Pindem have you covered for this, so you will not need to issue a paper receipt. However for cash sales you would need to go old school and buy yourself a pre-numbered receipt book from your local book shop.

How can you keep your stock organised and register what you sell?

Well it just so happens that I have thought of that too and created a little excel spreadsheet just for this purpose.

Follow this link and download it here: Stock List

Anything else?

You know me, of course there is more! I have written a post about what else you can gain by attending a market. In this post (click here if you would like to read it by the way) I talk about all the valuable information you can get from your customers, even the ones that don’t buy from you. Have a quick read later, I promise it’s worth the 10 minute investment.

So, once you have read it this download will make lots of sense to you. This little gem will help you to record the feedback you get on the day. Because if you just try to remember it, you know you’re going to have forgotten it by the time you get home.

Click this link to download the Feedback Tracker

So there you go. Now just focus on creating all those wonderful handmade products!

kx

Handmade in Norway