So you have your very first boutique market or exhibit coming up for your handcrafted pieces. What should one expect?! I have some tips from my very first boutique christmas market for my handmade polymer clay earrings that I have recently experienced to give you a heads up! 

Towards the end of November, I entered my first exhibit for my handmade jewelry pieces for a Christmas show....and in a pandemic! I was so excited and nervous at the same time. But let me tell you, I had such a success! This was a friday evening and Saturday event. Here are some things I learned.

Display, Display, Display!!

Pay close attention to the theme of the market, time of year, and ambiance. Your display is so important and really attracts the customers to your table. Of course your pieces are the most important, but your presentation is also just as important. Think of it like you are about to give a powerpoint presentation to a room of people. How boring is it when someone gets up there with bland bullet point typed slides. I get up there with fun clip art, colors, video clips, and music! This is how you need to treat your table.

I decorated mine with a christmas theme but kept it very simple and chic. I dont do corny! I had so many compliments and attracted so many new customers with this beautiful presentation of my jewelry line. Think different textures and contrasts but keep to your branding and colors. I used furs, fun mats, sparkling branches, mirrors for subtle reflections, and lights. Things that really draw the eye, yet keeps it classy!

Inventory

I remember going absolutely crazy thinking about my inventory. I was just starting out, so I didn't feel I had quite enough pieces. While you definitely want to make sure you have a good amount to display, you want to focus more on the quality rather than the quantity. I decided to create some designs I knew took more work to make but would be more of a show stopper than the easy pieces I wasn't as excited about, just to put more on the table. This turned out to be the best technique because they sold like crazy! It's worth getting those quality pieces out and not go crazy on how many you have. 

Packaging

Make sure to have a packing setup ready for the on the spot sales. At one point I had a few customers all at once ready to check out and I didnt feel ready. I was looking for the scissors, dropping boxes, not sure where I put my extra business cards. A hot mess at one point! So be sure to have a nice assembly line set and ready for all those sales!

This is also another touch point on how you will present your brand. Use a nice box, ribbon and cute branding pieces to really give that great first impression. 

I hope these tips helped some! Its such an exciting time for your business and even better when you feel prepared and confident! I would love to hear some other comments or experiences below.

Happy Holidays to all the makers out there and best wishes of more success in 2021! 

Love, 

Lauren Marie 

Follow me on Instagram @jewerlybylaurenmarie

JewelrybyLaurenMarie.com

*Checkout my Etsy Shop as well!