Crafty1_AJ Posted December 15, 2019 Share Posted December 15, 2019 (edited) Did our last show of the year yesterday. It's a very good show for us -- an intense, but fun, one-day dealio. DH and I did not have time to draw breath for the first 3 or 4 hours of the show. We forgot to bring chairs, but it was irrelevant -- we were on our feet until the last hour. Had customers waiting in line to pay early on, mostly because we were only taking one CC at a time. But most of the time, business was steady and we didn't have to make anyone wait for checkout. Next year, I plan to have two cc processors so we can take cards independently. Anyway, I feel like it's VACATION TIME!! Still have lots of website orders to ship, so not totally out of the woods. But it feels so great to know I don't have to schlep any product, tables, shelves, etc.ANYWHERE until next spring!! Looking forward to staying indoors and working around home for a while, especially since we're getting a lot of snow today. So thankful that the weather came today and not yesterday! I sold a LOT of Christmas scents in both soaps and candles at this show. Sales were slightly better than last year when comparing raw gross numbers. I'm happy about that. I love "last minute" shows because people come ready to buy gifts. "Give me 6 candles, 3 soaps, and 8 lip balms for stocking stuffers." Yeah, we can do that!! Tossed a ton of empty boxes into the cardboard recycling bin on our way out the door. Felt great! We've done our share of so-so, blah shows this year, so it felt fantastic to have a winner and go out on a strong note. ETA: Oops, forgot to report what kinds of scents sold, which was kind of the point. We sold lots of classic favorites such as Christmas Tree, Cranberry, Cinnamon, Vanillas, coffees, etc. The good ol' popular ones that never seem to go out of style. Lots of herbals, fresh & cleans, and bakery moved. Even a few florals sold. But loads of Christmas scents! I was surprised because we typically don't sell a lot of Christmas scents this close to, well, Christmas. LOL Edited December 15, 2019 by Crafty1_AJ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SueH Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 I am so glad for you!!! That's fantastic that you did so well. After the website orders be sure to take a well deserved rest! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shari Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 Congratulations! Sounds like the way to wrap up the year for sure. A rest is well deserved. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YellowButterfly Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 Awesome! What a great way to end 2019. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candybee Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 Congrats on a great show! I had a really good one last weekend and one more this Saturday then I am done until next year. My number one sellers this year are my beer soaps and lotions followed by Christmas scented candles then soap. But everyone wants beer soap and I can't make it fast enough. Who knew that would be this years big ticket item?!!! LOL 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldieMN Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 7 minutes ago, Candybee said: Congrats on a great show! I had a really good one last weekend and one more this Saturday then I am done until next year. My number one sellers this year are my beer soaps and lotions followed by Christmas scented candles then soap. But everyone wants beer soap and I can't make it fast enough. Who knew that would be this years big ticket item?!!! LOL So people want to smell like beer? Or have that scent in the air? Or am I misunderstanding. GoldieMN 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldieMN Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 Congratulations on your fantastic sales! GoldieMN 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandlekrazy Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 That's great! Sales in general have been down this year (even brick & mortar) so it's nice to hear at least Christmas sales are good. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crafty1_AJ Posted December 16, 2019 Author Share Posted December 16, 2019 We did have one screw-up. Things were so hectic at one point! So a customer got home to discover that she had the wrong candles in her shopping bag from us. Whoops. Thankfully, even though the show was 20 miles from home, the customer happens to live right here in our hometown, just a few blocks from the B&M where we sell our products. So we met at the shop and exchanged their candles for the correct ones they had purchased. Couldn't have been less painful. Super happy that if we had to goof up, it was to a local. LOL 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candybee Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 7 hours ago, Crafty1_AJ said: We did have one screw-up. Things were so hectic at one point! So a customer got home to discover that she had the wrong candles in her shopping bag from us. Whoops. Thankfully, even though the show was 20 miles from home, the customer happens to live right here in our hometown, just a few blocks from the B&M where we sell our products. So we met at the shop and exchanged their candles for the correct ones they had purchased. Couldn't have been less painful. Super happy that if we had to goof up, it was to a local. LOL Sounds like a happy ending for all! You probably have a customer for life now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candybee Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 9 hours ago, GoldieMN said: So people want to smell like beer? Or have that scent in the air? Or am I misunderstanding. GoldieMN The beer soap doesn't smell like beer! It's made with beer. I make mine with oatmeal, wildflower honey, aloe vera, and of course beer. They are great for dry, itchy, sensitive and winter itch skin so they are perfect for this time of year. This makes them a great seller during fall and winter months. But this year they are flying off my shelf faster than a speeding bullet! LOL 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candybee Posted December 16, 2019 Share Posted December 16, 2019 Doesn't it feel good to have finished your last show and have that time off? I can't wait til this Saturday's market is done. Like you I found that sales are better this year but what I have noticed the most is how percentage wise I have about 45% of my sales are now CC sales while the other are cash. My CC sales have grown in leaps and bounds over the last 2 years from 35% of my overall sales to now slightly over 45%. Plus the CC sales are the larger ones and average $40 to $50 per sale. I have noticed during the last shows I have done that I had less cash and a buttload more CC sales racked up for the season. Not complaining, just musing. Of course it is the holiday season which is typical for more CC sales. Are you working a regular job on top of your soap & candle biz? I am doing this full time now since 2012. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CandleRush Posted December 17, 2019 Share Posted December 17, 2019 Excellent reports from all of you! Thanks for sharing your results! I sold not one bar of soap, first time ever but.......... SOLD out of everything else! Jumbo bath bombs, lavender and oatmeal, French lavender and honey, eucalyptus/spearmint, blue Hawaiian, lemon crazy and volcano f.o. These just flew off the shelf! Lip balm, Unscented and pink peppermint. Soy/coco wax candles, various scents, mostly bakery types. I did have a few wax melts but folks weren’t interested at all! Emulsified sugar scrub, scented with pink sugar type revised from Aztec, all sold out! Number wise my sales were slightly up even with no soap sales. 10 years ago I sold lots of soap but I’ve noticed the trend here is changing a bit. Maybe it was a fluke. Anyway, Each venue is so different! It will be nice to relax now before the holidays!🌸 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crafty1_AJ Posted January 12, 2020 Author Share Posted January 12, 2020 On 12/16/2019 at 5:52 PM, Candybee said: Doesn't it feel good to have finished your last show and have that time off? I can't wait til this Saturday's market is done. Like you I found that sales are better this year but what I have noticed the most is how percentage wise I have about 45% of my sales are now CC sales while the other are cash. My CC sales have grown in leaps and bounds over the last 2 years from 35% of my overall sales to now slightly over 45%. Plus the CC sales are the larger ones and average $40 to $50 per sale. I have noticed during the last shows I have done that I had less cash and a buttload more CC sales racked up for the season. Not complaining, just musing. Of course it is the holiday season which is typical for more CC sales. Are you working a regular job on top of your soap & candle biz? I am doing this full time now since 2012. YES, I am happy for the quieter months of January, February, and March. It does feel good to have a break after working hard for 9 months. I don't start up with my markets and shows again until April, so right now I am just focusing on website sales, local B&M shop sales, and restocking. Shelves are fairly empty of stock after the holidays. Yay! My cc sales are up as well. Used to be mostly cash, then about half & half. Now it's trending towards mostly CC's. I don't work another job -- this is it! My DD used to work in the biz with me, but she is done with college and left the nest, so now it's DH and me. We make a great team and have complementary strengths! He is super friendly and a great, personable, enthusiastic salesman. He makes lots of candles for us, packs orders, and helps with the muscle jobs in getting us set up at markets and shows. I still handle making some of the candles, all of the soap, and do most of the online techy stuff. I love having him on board. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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