(WARNING: All the opinions express herein are mine and mine alone. My opinions sometimes annoy other craft professionals. Proceed with caution! What follows is ME working through MY ISSUES and striving to find ways to achieve MY PROFESSIONAL, ARTISTIC AND SPIRITUAL GOALS.)
All my friends are calling and e-mailing me this week. "Did you have a good show?" "How was the show?"
To be brief: It sucked big time.
Was it me? It's possible. Many, many artists had a dismal show, but some came out okay. I'm sure most of it is simply the economic times. (My favorite comment I received--"Luann, it's not always about YOU!!") The craft industry is not an easy one to be in right now.
And yet, this bad show may end up being just the wake-up call I needed.
I asked for feedback from other artists and industry professionals at the show and this is the advice I got:
"You need to do the ACC Baltimore show."
"Don't do ACC, it's a pain in the neck show."
"You need to do more regional retail shows."
"You should travel to do really high-end retail shows."
"Don't travel to do high-end retail shows, the expenses and the hassle will kill you."
"You should make some inexpensive fiber pieces." (My lowest fiber retail price is down to $150, my highest is over $5,000. Seems like a good enough range to me, but what do I know anymore??)
"You should make cheaper jewelry." (Two years ago, several buyers said, "We want to see really FABULOUS jewelry, yours is too cheap for us.)
"You should display your jewelry differently. People can't tell you do jewelry. You should have a poster up of your jewelry... Oh. You DO have a poster up of your jewelry."
"You should do a gift show."
"DON'T DO A GIFT SHOW!!!"
"You should do a show out west."
"There are no comparable shows out west."
"You should get a rep."
"Don't get a rep!"
"You need to add more animals to your line. How about cats? People like cats!"
"Have you targeted horse markets? People love horses!"
I am not making fun of the people who made these comments. I asked for their thoughts, and they gave me their best. It's not always easy or fun to advise someone else on their business, especially if they are not ready to hear what you have to say. I thank each and every one who took time to help.
In the process of listening to all their suggestions, some threads became clear. I share this process with you for several reasons.
One--This is what it looks like throughout your art/craft career. Just when you think you you have everything figured out--your booth, your display, your product, your support materials, your salesmanship, your venue--you realize it's not working for you and it's time to rethink your career strategy.
Two--No one else can really tell you what you should do with your business. Gather all the information you can, then listen to the parts that resonate with your heart.
ALWAYS follow your heart. That's where your power lies, and that's what will eventually carry you through.
Five years ago, I chose the BMAC show over another show, making a decision with my head and not my heart. And to be truthful, partly out of fear. I thought BMAC would be a safer choice with tenure yet access to the same buyers as the other show I secretly thought was a better fit.
It was probably the right decision for many reasons, at the time. The show is artist- and buyer-friendly. It's well-run and well-respected. I learned a lot, probably the equivalent of a college education, in the business of craft. I met incredible, wonderful, talented people.
In the end, though, I have to ask--Where am I right now? The answer is, expending all my creative energy to be successful AT THIS SHOW. The art itself has come to a standstill and everything devoted to finding what price point, what jewelry design, will sell at this show.
There are many things I could do to become more successful at this show. I could make the work smaller, cheaper, faster, less intricate, safer--water it down, so to speak. It's my decision whether to do this or not. It's not a right or wrong decision, except whether it's a right or wrong decision FOR ME.
Or perhaps what a friend said is true--this show is an east coast show, with an east coast aesthetic. Although there are some buyers from the west and southwest (where many feel my work would do extremely well), they are few in number, and their stores seem to reflect the same east coast aesthetic. Something to think about.
I don't need to have horses on everything. My "supporting design elements" (the bone needles, buttons and beads I make) are strong enough to be dominating design elements on their own (I actually used to do this, and will explore this again.) This feels right to me. The horse is a powerful symbol to me, of facing change with hope and passion. But my other symbols are powerful, too, and it's okay to let them take center stage once in awhile.
I may have to go back and build a stronger retail customer base, so I am a "safer bet" for stores--that is, I come with a built-in audience.
I may need to target a true retail collector market. This means making the very best, very finest work I can make, and making a LOT of it--so I GROW instead of HOLD BACK as an artist.
Some of these ideas will be easy to implement, others will be difficult. It will take a lot of research, a lot of soul-searching, a few phone calls and a tremendous amount of faith. Dare I say it? It will feel like starting over from scratch.
But I'm not.
I know now, from my year of injuries and surgeries, that as long as I CAN start over, I will. I know how to do that. It may feel like my only asset sometimes, but there you go.
So here comes the BIG CHANGE I've anticipated over the last year, in my face and not going away anytime soon. This show has been a key part of my business-building strategy, but it MAY be time to take the money and energy I put into it, and put it into nother strategies. That's what I'll be deciding in the months ahead.
Feel free to e-mail me with your thoughts, if you'd like. I'm going to be in information-processing mode for a long time. I know there are many possible answers out there, and I hope to find the ones that are right for me.
