Monday, October 15, 2007

Bagged Up


Laurie loved the little red bag for Michele, the secretary at school. I will bring her some hand creme to put in the bag tomorrow before she gives it to Michele. Laurie also bought my jungle bag for her sister in Maine. That is such a hoot because I never thought this animal fabric would go over so big. This is the bolt that Kelly saw in the chest freezer in the tractor shed and went goo-goo over. I have a lot of it and lining fabric to go with it. I will cut out a few more bags to hopefully sell at Riverkeeper in December and over Christmas. I am thrilled and honored people at work like my goods. They are classy, educated people and their business is the ultimate validation to me. I'm not just the teacher in the back of the room, they appreciate my crafty talents too. Tonight it's getting my Mother Fiber Sampler Kits ready, cutting out more shaving blocks and tying them up with brushes, and hopefully one more bag. Kelly and Gretchen are still wrapping soap. I am finally beginning to feel better about having enough product. Matt moved the trailer down for loading. I need new Christmas lights and another shop light. I wish I had a classier booth - mine is kind of homemade...but not as homemade as some who really need to be more creative. I am right next to Morehouse Farms, a gazillion dollar operation with a real nice set up. They only sell knitting kits but have a lot of marketing behind them...TV shows, pricey ads, big name knitting book authors holding book signings at their farm, glossy coffee table book telling the story of their farm, etc. I like the challenge of making my business more market savvy but lack the skills...like better graphics, etc. A bigger operating budget wouldn't hurt.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Personally speaking, I don't like all the glitz and flashy booths. These shows are where I go to find and see the "real stuff" made by real people. Fancy glossy books and only kits can be produced by anyone that has either had a "formal" education in marketing, or learned via someone else's money! If I wanted that, I'd just stay on the internet and buy the pre-packaged stuff from there. Not me -- give me something I can touch and someone that knows how each product was made and the love and care that went into each product!

Hang on to your beliefs and values. There are many many out there that appreciate the "real" thing.

There will be time to work on some marketing ideas when I get there. From your related experiences of last winter, we'll have plenty of cold snowy evenings to plan and create some new approaches.

Can't wait to see you Saturday!

jan