Two Regional Artists Chosen as 2010 Niche Award Finalists

Congratulations to:

Mary Gwyneth, fiber artist, from Colton NY
http://www.marygwyneth.com/2009/11/mary-g-holland-of-marygwyneth-llc-named-2010-niche-awards-finalist/ whose White Peacock Coat was selected.

and to:

Stephen LeBlanc, jewelry artist, from Argyle NY
http://www.dransfieldjewelers.com/designer_leBlanc.html
whose Mokume Continuum Hoop was selected.

The 161 Niche Award Finalists were selected by a panel of experts from nearly 1000 entries in 36 categories. Works were judged on technical excellence, both in surface design and form; market viability; and a distinct quality of unique, original and creative thought.

Niche Winter 2010, p. 45, www.Rosengrp.com

Shop Inventory Management
"Finding the right balance between service and savings can be as much of an art as a science...If the customers who do come in see old inventory, they are not likely to come back for another visit this year.
1. "Moving your store around every two or three weeks can save you... That will help make the merchandise seem like new... Clean every bottle and shelf and add lights... "
2. Control your impulses. Just because you like something does not mean you have to buy it. One way to avoid inventory bloat is to match purchases with sales." Sell $500 worth in pottery, buy $500 in pottery.
3. "How far does your real inventory differ from your documented inventory? ... Measure the disparity by reviewing stock on hand... It may be that you don't have much of the stuff you are really making money on, but you are swamped with stuff that is not moving."
4. How much merchandise do you have that's more than six months old? A year? ... If eliminating five or six slow-moving items would cause your
profits to zoom by 20%, would you do it? ... Sometimes just eyeballing your shelves can do the job... Do a "half off' sale if you need to...

POS companies listed in article:
"Everest Software: www.everestsoftwareinc.com
Integrated accounting, inventory, point of sale (POS) and e-commerce software
JDA Software Group: www.jda.com
POS software integrated with inventory management
RMSA: www.rmsa.com
Software that help you purchase the correct amount of inventory to achieve optimal sales."
Excerpts from Inventory Management, author Phillip M. Perry, Niche Magazine, Summer 2008, p. 81.

One Person Wood Shop Receives 80% of Business via Website
Dan Alleger, New Orleans furniture maker, "describes his website as 'the saving grace' for his business. He estimates about 80 percent of his business comes from his website and 20 percent by word of mouth.
'I take the business of marketing very seriously and do everything I can to get the website out there; Google ranking, search engine ranking,
creating a proper site map, following everyone's protocol so that when anybody types anything about New Orleans and furniture, wood or seating, I want to be at the top. I recently added a "Clients Comments" page to the website and that is one of the pages that gets the most traffic on the site. People want to hear what the other clients are saying.'
Excerpt from Jazzed About His Job, author Brian Caldwell, The Woodshop News, August 2008, p. 39.

Posted four new studio tours at http://www.adknccrafts.com/:
The Artist at Work Studio Tour sponsored by the Adirondack Artists Guild in Saranac Lake, The Plein Air Studio Tour sponsored by The Arts Council of the Northern Adirondacks and the Westport Chamber of Commerce, The Spring Studio Tour sponsored by the Adirondack Artisans Guild of Lowville and the Farm Tours sponsored by Adirondack Harvest, are now posted at http://www.adknccrafts.com/studiotours.php. 20 annual and monthly studio tours in the region are listed.

Sales per Location:
In late 2004, sales per square feet for craft retailers with an average of $111,190 in sales was $136 per foot. Advertising budget averaged $4,695 at 4% of their budget. The average in inventory was $39,583. The sales to stock average was 2.81. Profit as a percent of sales was 17%. How do these figures compare with yours?
The stats are from 182 craft retailers (NICHE subscribers) mostly from the Northeast and the Mid Atlantic States. (thanks, Bernard, for turning me on to this one and thanks to the American Craft Council for posting it). I still think that for retailers and artisans, the Canadian Gift and Tableware Association annual survey is one of the most informative ones especially to monitor product line trends from year to year.
FMI: http://www.americancraft.com/BMAC/buyer/PDFs/PF06/CraftRetailerSurvey.pdf
and http://www.adknccrafts.com/resourcesstatistics.php