Our craft fair is coming up. Last yr we made 2 changes that made a big difference. In addition to the tables that we sell to crafters we also decided to open it up to people who sell silpada, tuppeware, taste of home etc. This added to our vendors. We also added a room where kids could make crafts for gifts then a wrappping area. We got local girlscout troops to sponsor and run the craft making tables andit worked out really well. This way we also felt legit charging a bit of admission and told moms to come shop while their kids did crafts. Huge hit.
Just bumping this thread up. We just got the following
question on Facebook
and I'm hoping to get some help for Rita.
Q: We are going to be hosting our first PTO Craft Fair - does anyone have any experience in successfully pulling one of these off? I would love to hear some ideas.
We've had our Craft Show for over 20 years, coming up on the next one in a few weeks. We sell spaces to the Crafters. We also have a raffle table, with items that we purchase, as well as "Crafter Baskets" made up of donations from each Crafter at the show (the donated item from the Crafter is a requirement we spell out in the Crafter Contract). We also have two bake sale tables, one at the front of the building and one in the cafeteria. In addition, we have a "Cafe" of various foods, including lasagna, mac and cheese, various soups, hot dogs, etc.. We also charge a small admission fee for the people coming to shop, and in return they get a hand decorated large shopping bag to put their purchases in. We hold a 50/50 raffle throughout the show (winners do not need to be present for any of the raffles), we collect their contact information and the phone calls are made from the school once the winning tickets are pulled. We have just over 200 students in our school and consistently make over $10k over a Friday night and during the day on Saturday.
We do one of these in the spring. We have vendor tables, a raffle, children's games, crafts, silly pictures (we have a digital with a printer), food (pizza, hot dogs, chips, nachos), & a bake sale. Last yr we had someone doing balloon animals too.
We make money on the vendor tables ($25 each table), raffle tickets, game tickets (these include crafts, pictures and food too) and bake sale.
I started this event about 3 years ago and everyone loves it!
Invite parents that own or can represent their businesses or jobs -charging from $15-30/table-booth. They can either sell their wares, pass out brochures/biz cards, offer discounts on services, etc. Then.... sell printed (cardstock covers) 'Business Directories' for $2-3 dollars each -you could also sell 'ad space' in the Directory. As each 'business' enters to participate, you just add them to your database, then catergorize and print the Directory 'in-house' -either using the school printer or printing at one of the local Office Supply stores -folding & stapling together -super cheap project.....just requires 'some elbow grease and a bit of organization, willingness to help and time.....but super successful !! ....plus.....this encourages student families to do business within the school community and be aware of the types of businesses and services that are 'out there'!
Our school is having a fall craft show and the person in charge asked me to come up with some ideas to make extra money. For instance, we have sold raffle tickets in the past to the vendors to win a free space the next year. We have also had a collection of craft items donated by vendors and we have raffled them off. We also sell food like hotdogs and nachos etc. We could do a bake sale? Does anyone have any new, fun or different ideas for ways we can make a few extra dollars at our craft fair? Any ideas are greatly appreciated!!!
