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SECURING
FOR THE WINTER
Are you sitting down? The holidays are nearing and the critical
months of November and December can account for as much as 50% of
the total annual sale for galleries that carry your work!
The National Retail
Federation cites that total holiday sales are expected to grow
by 5% over last year, a DROP from 2004’s growth of 6.7%.
NRF’s Chief Economist stated that combination of many factors,
including "energy prices, the job market, disposable income,
and consumer confidence," are affecting sales.
Don’t despair. A retail analyst from Ernst
& Young feels, "Higher gas prices could boost Internet
sales, while luxury sales should continue to show strength."
Re-think your holiday plans and develop an ACTION plan by...
1) Finding your weakest link. Turn weaknesses around or eliminate
them. These could be a person or pieces of equipment.
2) Streamling your systems – paperwork, production,
marketing, etc.
Limit your risk. Cut back on credit extensions and courtesy orders.
Trouble-shoot for lax pre-qualification methods with new accounts
and stay firm with returning accounts.
3) Taking your banker to lunch. Find out how to earn interest
on money sitting in your checking account. Lower your credit card
processing fees. Consolidate any debt (credit cards may be burning
a whole through profits).
4) Taking your suppliers out to lunch. Give them the ‘heads-up’
about your slowdown - they might help extend payments, offer volume
discounts, etc.
5) Rethinking your overhead. Re-examine rates on insurance,
telephone long distance, credit cards.
Above all... don’t panic or take it personally. This is what
you have been preparing for when building to each new plateau of
success – how you would weather the tough times. Keep the horizon
in view and keep your goals in check.
ORGANIZATION
SPOTLIGHT: SOUTHERN ARTS FEDERATION
The Southern
Arts Federation (SAF) is a non-profit regional arts organization
that has been making a positive difference in the arts throughout
the South since 1975. SAF works in partnership with the state art
agencies of: of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana,
Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Recently, a great amount of SAF’s resources have gone to accepting
donations for those affected by Hurricane Katrina and aiding in
the support of the Gulf Coast states arts organizations and artists.
For more info, click here.
Did you know that SAF offers these programs of interest to craft
artists?
Southern
Artistry Southern artists of all disciplines along with
their work and contact info. Spotlighted artists have all been selected
and nominated by state art organizations.
Arts
Opportunities provides a wealth of user-friendly information
regarding art-related job opportunities and calls for submissions.
Southern
Visions is a traveling exhibition of traditional and contemporary
arts and culture. Handcrafted arts are displayed in hundreds of
public venues like: community centers, libraries, universities,
and mid-sized art museums throughout the region for a minimum of
two years. For information on how you can submit work for consideration,
click here.
Have you had an arts organization make a difference in your
life? Tell us about it by emailing info@rosengrp.com
CHANGE
IS IN THE AIR
Feel something shifting? No, it’s not the wind-chill, there’s
a changing of the guard in many top craft organizations going on
right now! Take a look at the current job openings in our community.
Thanks goes out to the contributions of former craft industry leaders
and best wishes to future endeavors.
Society
for Contemporary Craft (SCC), Pittsburgh, PA, seeks an Executive
Director to lead this nationally recognized non-profit craft gallery
and education center. For more information about SCC click here.
HandMade
in America, Asheville, NC, seeks an Associate Director to
staff this multi-service non-profit corporation. Email info@handmadeinamerica.org
and click here
for more info.
Check the Craft
Organization Development Association’s board and the Southern
Art Federation for more craft industry job postings.
WANTED:
RETAILERS WITH TECH SKILLS
Do you know of a retailer who is opinionated, knowledgeable, and
professional? And has internet access??? The AC Forum’s 2,048
members seek quality retailers, gift shop and gallery owners who
are willing to: support the community, strengthen artists success,
and comment on weekly polls. Rumor has it that Niche
Magazine’s Editors are posting polls on the forum, searching
for quotes from retailers to publish. Have them sign up at www.americancraftforum.com
or call 410.889.2933 ext.223 to sign up for a personalized account
or to be walked through the posting process.
PR
OPPORTUNITIES
Giftware News Baby & Kids is now quarterly. They are
seeking items in the categories: infant & children’s
wearables, on the go travel accessories for kids, stylish eating
tools and table settings for little hands, and precious baby: fine
gifts and keepsakes (boxes, photo frames, etc) to mark milestone’s
in a little one’s life.
Send press releases, information, and press kits with images. Images
should be high-resolution (300 dpi) digital images saved as EPS,
JPEG or TIFF, at least 3" x 5" or larger. Be sure to identify
your emails with company name. You can email images, or send a Mac-formatted
ZIP, Jaz, CD or floppy disk. Giftware News also accepts slides,
transparencies or quality photographs (no catalogs or sales sheets)
Send to: Pamela Graves, Editorial Director, Giftware News Baby &
Kids, 20 W. Kinzie, 12th Fl., Chicago, IL, 60610 or email pgraves@talcott.com.
Deadline: Nov 11.
Men’s Vogue is a new publication that seeks to be something
different in the world of men’s lifestyle publications, which
tend to rely on pop culture, sports and sex to appeal to young singles
in the 18 to 35 age bracket.
Every issue will feature something on architecture and design, covering
everything from a London shop that custom builds furnishings based
on top designers’ styles, to framing fine art and remodeling
antique cars. Deputy Editor Ned Mertel can be reached at ned_mertel@condenast.com.
OPPORTUNITIES
KNOCKING
15th Annual American Vision Award Design Competition –
Conducted by Manufacturing Jewelers & Suppliers of America (MJSA).
This competition recognizes the talent and innovation of designers
whose work is influencing the future design trends. Students and
professionals are invited to enter the competition by submitting
their designs, with or without the use of gemstones or crystals.
For more information click here.
Deadline: Oct 30.
7th Annual Ceramics and Sculpture International - Artwork
now being accepted for online exhibitions with over 400,000 viewers
per month. Criteria of acceptance is based on a genuine significance
or originality in content and style. For a prospectus call: 402-991-4741;
email shows@upstreampeoplegallery.com;
or download here.
Deadline: Oct 31.
Ceramic Art Exhibition: Call For Entires - Skin Deep is a
national juried exhibition of ceramic art celebrating the variety
and beauty of contemporary ceramic surfaces. This exhibition is
open to functional, nonfunctional, and sculptural works which use
clay as the primary medium. The exhibition will be housed in the
Hyman Fine Arts Center Gallery on the Francis Marion University
campus located in Florence, South Carolina. For more information
click here.
Deadline: Nov 11.
Studio Furniture Makers Celebrate the Drawer – Show
Us Your Drawers, a Biennial traveling exhibition sponsored by The
Furniture Society. Entry Fee: $35. Prospectus available on-line
here
or by sending a SASE to The Furniture Society, 111 Grovewood Road,
Asheville, NC 28804. For more info contact Andrew Glasgow at 828-255-1949
or email director@furnituresociety.org.
Deadline: Dec 15.
DON'T
MISS A THING!
Do you know a craftsperson who should be receiving Market Insider
each month? Do you know someone who recently changed their e-mail
address and forgot to tell us to forward future newsletters to their
new address? Contact us at news@rosengrp.com
to be added on the Market Insider mailing list.
WHY
NOT...
Take a moment to sift through our archive? Remember, great craft
tips don't have an expiration date!
Market Insider
Archive - MI newsletters from previous months. |
