Written by: Kristen Moore

Published on 11/13/23

Does your crochet business have a cohesive color palette?

The first thing I quickly learned was how having a cohesive color palette for your crochet business will bring CUSTOMERS into your booth!

One of the biggest compliments I kept getting throughout my very first market was how unique and pretty my color palette was! I tried sticking with a similar theme for all of my items, and it was truly worth it and did SO well for me. I had several interactions where people would state how aesthetically pleasing my products were and how they enjoyed the uniqueness of my booth.

Finding what makes YOU unique and sticking with that will go a really long way for your crochet business. And I totally understand how hard that can be, especially when you’re first starting out, have never applied to a market, and aren’t sure of your branding yet. Here are a few helpful questions to ask yourself: what colors do you always lean towards most? What’s your FAVORITE color and why? How do you want people to feel when they see your brand/booth? For example, do you want them to feel cozy and warm, or maybe spunky and cheerful? I honestly wasn’t so sure about my color palette at first and thought I probably shouldn’t have made so many items in pinks and purples. But in the end I was pleasantly surprised by the attention my booth got and the sales I made because of it.

Make YOUR crochet business unique.

Finding what makes YOU unique and sticking with that will go a really long way for your crochet business.

2. Do not underestimate those lower priced items! They are VITAL.

The pretty and big eye catching pieces will CERTAINLY bring customers in, but the lower priced items will most likely be the first to sell. This is a simple one, but seriously don’t lack on the lower $5-$15 priced items. My $10 items sold the most, and I even had some tiny $3 pumpkins that were a HIT. Make sure you’re giving yourself enough time to prepare all the small stuff. I really wished I would have prepared more smaller items for my first market! I’ll definitely be more prepared for my next one!

3. Tagging EVERYTHING individually made customer interactions more comfortable!

I don’t know about you, but it is sometimes awkward when you ask for a price and it’s maybe a little out of budget for you. Having to gently set the item back down and endure some awkwardness with the seller isn’t really a comfortable interaction. I’m not saying you should lower your prices AT ALL. But, you’re well worth the price handcrafted goods just won’t be in every visitor’s price range and that’s okay.

You definitely want to make the people coming through your booth feel as welcome and comfortable as possible while they’re shopping and having tags on every one of my items REALLY helped with that! Customers were able to come through, shop, and find the things that did meet their needs without an uncomfortable “how much is this?” interaction. The only thing I would have done slightly different is order smaller tags for my smaller items. Or, maybe not tag the smaller items at all but have them sitting by a small sign with clear pricing. Either way, prices should be clear and I’m so glad I followed other makers advice on this before attending my first market!

**Tag those items!**

It never hurts to have a little extra branding attached to each of your items as well. Customers can remember where they purchased the item, and it gives your booth a more professional vibe!
**A little money saving tip:** I know some makers who actually attach their business cards to their items as tags! This way, you don’t have to purchase both tags and business cards if you’re on a budget.

4. Having multiple forms of payment options was well worth it!

For some reason, taking payments was actually the most intimidating part to selling at my first market. I was nervous about the technological side of things and that I wouldn’t be able to take a payment for one reason or another. I’m not really sure why to be honest, but as I was taking payments it definitely became less nerve wracking! I wanted to be as prepared as possible, so I tried having all forms of payment available - cash, Venmo, PayPal, Cashapp and Credit/Debit cards.

I had NO idea which would be the most popular, but I’m so grateful I came prepared! It ended up being that Venmo and credit card payments were what everyone wanted to use. I had a few cash payments, but the rest were from the others! I was SO glad I had applied to Square when I first signed up for this market. They do take a small percentage with every sale, but they send you a free card reader that easily plugs into your phone to use for the day. It was convenient and easy to set up, and I have no doubt I would have lost out on sales if I didn’t have this payment option.

5. The things I thought would sell, didn’t. The things I didn’t think would be a hit, sold really well!

Finally, one of the biggest things I learned about this market is how you really cannot predict what will sell the best! I had prepared SO many pumpkins. I’m telling you, I had A LOT of pumpkins because it was a fall market and everyone said they were so popular. Aaaand, I sold ONE pumpkin. I DID sell out of almost all my mini pumpkins at just $3 each, so that was fun. But I really sort of wish I wouldn’t have spent so much time on those darn pumpkins.

Secondly, everyone was saying to make TONS of crocheted chickens. So I FULLY embraced making all the chickens and was positively expecting to sell more than only 2 of the 20 I brought. That being said, there’s really no way to predict what will actually sell. Unless you’re at a themed market and you already have some extra info on what people will expect, or you’ve worked the market before and know what are usually best sellers.

Now, I’m not a market expert so maybe take my advice with a grain of salt. But, if I could give someone first starting out some advice, I would say along with having plenty of smaller items, just make sure the rest of what you make are items YOU enjoy making. When you love the items you make, and they’re made with your own unique brand in mind, it will absolutely show through your display and products!

Hanging out at my very FIRST market!

There were several ways to enter the pavilion I was under so I ended up separating my tables for more of a “walk through” setup. I think I ended up getting **more** customers this way because people had to walk through and see my items instead of passing by!

When I was preparing for my first big market experience, I was incredibly nervous. The MAIN thing that got me through and helped me feel more prepared was all of the wonderful tips and tricks provided by our amazing crochet community. Now, I’ve conquered that first market experience and I am SO ready to tackle my next one!

If you’ve been thinking about signing up for your first market, even if you feel like you don’t know what you’re doing, I highly recommend just jumping straight in and leaning on our amazing community for tips and feedback! There is PLENTY of room for YOU and your unique business.

If I’m being really honest, it wasn’t until I applied, prepared, and finished my first market that I finally started feeling like a real small business. Now, I know that’s silly. But whether I continue doing markets on a regular basis or not there was just something about the experience that allowed me to grow and gain confidence. There really is something about looking at all of your hard work laid out directly in front of you and watching people marvel at what you created. I can’t describe it, but I want YOU to experience the same thing if you’ve been wanting to begin selling at markets!

As always, PLEASE reach out to me if you have ANY questions or just need someone to support you and cheer you on as you begin one of the most exciting journeys of your life!