classiccandle Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 I'll be doing my first ever craft show this weekend and would like to ask how many of each fragrance do you typically take? If I take 20-25 different fragrances would I need to take 20, 50, 100 of each fragrance? It's a long established and well visited show, depending on the weather, so I would like to be prepared but also don't want hundreds of candles/melts sitting in inventory should the sales not be up to par.I know Paul (jackbenimble) recently participated in a show and sold out of several of his fragrances. On the other hand mzphee is having a terrible time at her show. I guess the question boils down to, is it better to sell out or to have inventory left over after a show?Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChandlerWicks Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 I did home parties for 8 years. Not with candles or B&B products though. I always found that it was better to have too much, then too little stock. What would it hurt to have plenty of stock on hand? Other then your back, of course? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OldGlory Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 If only someone out there knew the answer to that question...You most likely will have several people ask you for products you don't have - even if you have 100 different fragrances. Stick with your bestsellers.In my eyes, the answer is somewhere between these two thoughts:How much stock do I need to take to reach sales of $xx. In my experience, the best case scenario is selling half of what you take.How much stock will I be ok with bringing back home unsold. In my experience, the worst case scenario is selling 5-10% of your inventory for a 2 day show.I've done shows that have gone both ways. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackbenimble Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Hey there! I have 22 different candle scents and still was asked if I have such and such ;-) I took about 12 of each scent. Some that weren't great sellers I only took 6. Also I did not sell one of my Vanilla candles and that's all I heard last year was, "I wish you had a Vanilla, I love Vanilla" plus I had tons of clamshell melts and serveral different soaps. But that's all I sell. I can't focus on much more than that. It was funny, I had a scent for two years called Garden in the Fall, very herbal, and no one would touch it but I added some Mac apple to it and it flew off the shelf. Crazy!!! Also not many folks like Winter Wonderland or Apple Jack & Peel. So weird!!! Maybe it wasn't close enough to fall for them to get into it. But my balsam wreath sold like hot cakes so go fig! I would take 3 or 4 year round types. Fresh maybe your best floral. IDK really. It's such a craps shoot when guess people's tastes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mzphee Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 I agree with Jack I have about 30 scents in calmshell melts and 2oz portion cups. and 8-10 scents in candles, I didnt sell 1 candle but sold out of several calmshells and 2oz melts... I would rather be overstocked then under...I had people asking for scents I have never ventured into and a few I have the oil just didnt make....take what you have ....I guess...lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacktieaffair Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 (edited) Is it an indoor or outdoor show and how much room do you have at your booth, and in the vehicle you are transporting things in.Can you ( or someone else ) run to the car/truck and get more product if one sells out?If it's THAT big of a show usually, and it's a show YOU have personally had vendor experience with, I'd take 5 of each to sit out, 5 more of each to sit in boxes under the tables and probably 10 more of each in the vehicle / trailer if you have it.If you know a certain scent, in your area, sells really well, take a few more of that scent and something like it.But don't skimp on the other scents thinking they don't usually sell as fast as the others... A lot of us have found out the hard way that the ONE scent we thought would not move, was the ONE scent everybody and his brother wanted to buy that day.How far are you from the venue? Is it a weekend show or just a day show? Can someone run home to grab more stuff for you if you sell out and need it?If this is YOUR first time at the show, I don't think I'd take more than 15 of each scent in a particular product.. ( like 15 candles, 15 clams, 15 lotions, etc ). Edited October 9, 2012 by blacktieaffair Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
classiccandle Posted October 9, 2012 Author Share Posted October 9, 2012 Paul, I pretty much have done what you did. I'm taking 24 fragrances, 12-18 each of my best selling melts, 6 or so of those that don't sell so well, and 6-12 of each candle. I also sell soap, lotion, bath salts, and candle melters so hopefully things will go well. It was only $75 for the two days so if I can't make that back then perhaps I should look into doing something else...lolbta - it's an indoor/outdoor show but my booth, a 5x10, is indoors. It's also my first time selling at this show, or any show for that matter...lol. We have an SUV and my wife will be with me so yes one of us could run to the truck for more but I will probably just keep everything under and behind the table. The administrators advertise that an average of 3,500 people visit over the two days (Saturday/Sunday). It's in the same town as we live but I'm taking just about everything I have so I don't think we'll need to run back to the house for anything. I will definitely let you guys/gals know how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacktieaffair Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Good lucky sweetie and I hope you sell out of everything ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
classiccandle Posted October 15, 2012 Author Share Posted October 15, 2012 Well, I survived my first ever craft show. My wife and I had been to this particular show a few times in the past and from a visitors view there seemed to be a lot more traffic than from the view of a vendor. Saturday was s-l-o-w! The weather was a little gloomy and windy so that may have contributed to what I consider slow traffic, even though it was an indoor show. Sorry bta, I told you it was an indoor/outdoor show but I was thinking of a show I'm doing in November. Sunday picked up a little bit (it was sunny) and after all was said and done I didn't do as well as I had hoped but I did make about 4x my booth fee so I can't complain. Melts were my biggest selling item, I sold more bars of soap than I thought I would, sold 3 candles total, a few Candlewarmer melters, one bottle of lotion, and no bath salt. I have a few more shows coming up next month so hopefully I'll be able to report positive results on those as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blacktieaffair Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 Congrats on make a lil money. That's always a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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