selling uniquely designed knitted items

jasonwatkins

i'm asking this on behalf of my mum, so please don't shoot the messenger

she's knitted loads of different things from mobile phone cases to hats, scarfs and bags. all quite quirky and different and she's fairly convinced she can make some money with them.

she's not interested in ebay because she thinks she might be able to find a retailer or outlet that might be interested in taking the items she's made on some kind of 'sale or return' deal.

i've tried to convince her to let me put them on ebay but she won't have it yet, so i thought i'd at least ask if anyone had any ideas - thanks

COOLTRIKERCHICK

tell your mum you would use the free listing weekends to list them, so it would cost nothing to try,

you could also mention folksy and etsy to her, they are selling sites for crafted/vintage items

maybe come autumn time when the weather starts to get colder ( hahaha it will prob turn out to be a heatwave) and the christmas fairs start, it might be worth her having a stalls at them, especially the school fetes... she should sell well, if you say her knits are on the funky side, as this would appeal to young kids..

It might be worth going over to the special occasions board, as there are loads of ideas nd advice on fetes and fairs etc..

jasonwatkins

Thanks for that

She now wants to go to london to find a 'boutique' that might be interested. I guess it might be a day out I s'pose !

COOLTRIKERCHICK

jasonwatkins wrote: »

Thanks for that

She now wants to go to london to find a 'boutique' that might be interested. I guess it might be a day out I s'pose !

There are lots of people now trying to sell their crafts to shops sale or return...dont forget the shops will need to make their profit, so this is normally the 'sticking point' when selling to shops...they bash your prices down, so they can make their mark up,

If you just mention this to your mum...

amancalledmartin

Getting interest in London will be incredibly difficult as competition there is huge. Whereabouts is your mum geographically? I live near the New Forest and most market towns near here have a vintage /craft / gift shop which would probably be a better bet for her. There are also lots of regular craft fairs which charge around £10-15 a table.

I really wish her luck, but it is a very competitive market. Etsy is a very good website for that sort of thing. And eBay is definitely worth her while if she tries free listing days.

jasonwatkins

she lives in kent, near to bluewater. i don't think she's really looking to become the next debra meaden or anything like that, she just really wants to try and recoup some of the money she's spent on materials.

but even that really isn't a huge amount either. i'll certainly suggest the idea of craft shops to her though, that's a good idea indeed