Published:
10/27/2011 11:06am
How to Plan a Profitable Crafts Show Season Itinerary
How to Plan a Profitable Crafts Show Season Itinerary
By Nurit Asher Vagner
Nurit and Mick Arts exhibits in more than 30 Juried Arts & Crafts shows per year. Based on 20 years experience, jeweler Nurit Asher Vagner shares her best advice and favorite resources to plan a winning show season itinerary.
No one can guarantee that any one show will be successful for any artist. One exhibitor may be hot, while another may not cover expenses. Some shows can be very good for years, and then, because of weather or competing events, not as good the following year. We can only hope to make as few mistakes as possible with our itinerary choices.
My husband Mick and I do that by creating our own list of show criteria, analyzing available information and data, and reviewing past experience. Our goal is to find shows that will be a good fit for us.
For instance, we only consider juried arts & crafts shows, and those in which artist presence is required and no representative is allowed.
Create Your Own Criteria
Here are some things to consider while making your choices:
The Show Zone - How far will you travel? By car? Will you be able to fly and ship your art and your display?
Traveling Expenses - Gas, rental car, flight, shipping, hotels in the show area, and on the way to and from the show, shipping expenses.
Booth Fee - How much you are willing to spend on booth/application/commission/electricity fees? Set a budget.
Your Time and Your Calendar - If you are building an itinerary of shows for the whole year, look at the big picture. Consider he combination of the time you can be in the studio, with the time required for traveling to, between and from the shows.
Sources for Data
Gather your data carefully from several different resources on each show. This will save you from making costly mistakes. Here are some of my favorite sources:
ZAPP & JAS Jury Process and Data
Most juried arts & crafts shows today select their artists using two websites:
www.zapplication.org or Zapp for short
www.juriedartservices.com or JAS for short
On both of these websites, artists create their own free profile, and can load their images and information in order to apply to shows. The show directors/producers provide valuable show information, such as show dates, application deadline, jury notification, booth fee due date, show amenities, rules and regulations, and some PR.
Juried Arts & Crafts Show Websites
Individual shows also have websites. These can be quite valuable in helping you decide if the overall quality of the show is a good fit for your work. Check the artist lists from previous years and look at show photos. In particular, look for artists who work in your media, to see if you are of the same caliber and if your odds of acceptance in the show are high.
Art Fair Source Book
Our personal favorite source is the Art Fair Source Book website, www.artfairsourcebook.com.
This is the guide for the top-selling 1,400 arts & crafts shows in the nation. The shows are listed by specific location or state, and can be arranged by start day, application deadline, jury notification, average net sales, attendance and more. There is an annual subscriber fee to log on, but there is a free “test drive” that you can try before deciding to join.
I like that the Art Fair Source Book site provides data about shows from an exhibitor's perspective—the info is based on artists’ reports, show reports and the editor’s opinion and commentary. Greg Lawler, the editor and publisher, travels to 60-75 shows a year, gathering information from thousands of artists and from show directors.
Here are few of the most important details listed:
How many exhibiting artists in the show, how many in each category, and how many in your media.
Odds of acceptance, how many applicants, how many exhibitors, how many jury exempt, how many re-apply, how many are returning and total odds of acceptance.
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