# I am doing my first bazaar!!!!



## beebarf (Feb 14, 2003)

Hey Isaac, where are you doing your bizarre at.??? also is that you selling the honey on craigslist seattle??? (I just saw the e-address was chef something).... just curious..I got tons of honey this year (20-25 gallons) I'm thinkin bout' selling some of it too...


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## gardenbees (May 8, 2005)

I was just doing a search last night on tips for making my booth look good. Google craft booths or some such and you will get some sites with lots of tips. Just make sure you bring enough honey to make a profit plus expenses. Most people end up under pricing themselves too. I am from Wa state and depending on where your bazaar is and what type of venue, you should price your honey accordingly. Down here in the south like I mentioned I get $7 for a pint and $5 for a half pint. Up there where people really like the natural stuff so you should be able to price the same or better. I think we talked about packaging in another thread. I have some of my honey is wine bottles with a high end label and charge $10 for 12 oz bottle. People will pay it because they want high end. Consider having other products from you hive if you can manage it. Beeswax candles are a natural pair for honey. NOt hard to make either. Good luck! Wish I was back home! Theresa.

[ October 25, 2006, 05:49 AM: Message edited by: gardenbees ]


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## ScadsOBees (Oct 2, 2003)

I don't get too fancy, but like to have a nice table cloth, some homey/fall stuff(fake leaves,little stuffed scarecrow or pumpkins), and then all of the bee stuff. Usually an empty frame of drawn comb, veil, gloves if I have a clean pair, a little sheet with some pictures I've taken or a kids bee book, and then the price lists. We get a lot of people who come by to ask lots of questions about bees and beekeeping, and that helps sell honey. 

Of course the main part is the honey. We are trying for variety this year with some lip balm and candles (both new this year), honey, creamed honey, and a big seller--honey butter. 
Oh yeah, part of the table is dedicated to samples, some biscuit pieces, honey, honey butter, and spoons to put honey on.

Everybody talks about underpricing, but keep in mind who you are selling to. I am selling to a dutch community who have primarily big families, so a good value is always at the top of the list (and I am smack dab in the middle of that demographic so I can understand).

We are still experimenting, so we'll see what happens this year. 

But have fun doing with it and make it just as much educational as sales.

-rick


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

I am planning on having an empty hive with equipment. I think between my wife and I, we can sell ourselves and sell honey. I do hope it works.

I do know about sampling. I was thinking of buscuits but wasent sure about it. I will also have toothpicks and spoons and napkins. 

I am going to get a board for pricing today so people can see it. 

I am soooo excited!!!

Fall leaves... yes... I will have to do this. Great idea!!

As far as botteling goes, I bottle in queeline jars and honey bears. I think I will kick those up a little in price and than maybe go buy some smaller mason jars and not use a label but just a simple ribbon and that will be cheaper.

Any other ideas???


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## BULLSEYE BILL (Oct 2, 2002)

The GF and I have been doing arts and crafts fairs together. She does ceramics (pottery) and has been doing quite well selling honey pots with dippers along with cups, mugs, and platters, etc. 

In our booth we have three shelving units in a U and a small table in front to the side. I let her set up the displays and I attend to the grunt work. She likes to mix our items in bunches, but the small table out front is the drawing attraction. 

When it was warmer, I set up an observation hive. You get all kinds of looks, some scurry away, but it attracts more than it repels. 

For the rest of the year we will only have honey stix, spun honey, extracted honey in different sizes, on the front table with recipes and business cards, and signs with pricing. And the most important thing, samples for taste testing. I have coffee stir sticks to dip in the honey jar for taste testing both my light and dark honey as well as the spun honeys. 

Don't forget your office supplies either. Tax table for the area you are selling in. Reciept pad, pens, notebook, change box with seed money, business cards, calculator, money apron or cargo pants, sacks (paper or plastic?), and a waste basket. If you really get into it, you will need a credit card account and cell phone to call in the sales.

It's also nice to have a banner above your table or as a skirt in front of it.


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## stangardener (Mar 8, 2005)

do not take a chair. give eye contact and a hello! to every one who passes your stand. it makes a big differance. one of my sayings is "don't drop the ball now" about the market. we work very hard to get to market and if we don't shine during that last leg we don't get paid. try to keep things full looking by rearranging things during market.


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

I plan to use some supers that are newly painted and not used to give some height. I also plan to have a fake hive with a bottom board, inner cover, outter cover and a frame or two,

I also plan to have a honey for sale sign up somewhere in the booth. 

I plan to have a honey tasting area with maybe some tooth picks, creamed honey and mini biscuits. 

I also plan to have a chalk board type thing with my items I have for sale and maybe the prices. this will be on a small table isle. 

Any other ideas????


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

strange garder's comments are more than a bit important, although if the bazarre is long enough you will need to rest your legs from time to time (but perhaps this advice only applies to us old guys???).

I typically take an emptry drawn frame (which I encourage the young folks to touch-it will be invariable mangled in the process) plus some rendered bee wax just to display the differences in it's form.

good luck...


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## BULLSEYE BILL (Oct 2, 2002)

I take a tall stool to set on when needed. Having had a broken back 25 years ago I just can't stand that long without a rest now an again. However, the stool is tall enough to still be at eye level with the public.

Clorox handy wipes. This is a sticky business. 

Stan is right about greeting people. If you want them to stop, you have to get their attention. Ask them questions about liking sweets and if they would like to sample your honeys. I tell all my employees at my store that every customer needs to be greeted and thanked when they leave the store. It's no different in a booth.


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## Maine_Beekeeper (Mar 19, 2006)

I sell honey in our local market and he usually has samples of something to taste right at the register. 
When my honey is the "featured" product, we sample it with pretzel sticks (the ones that come in a small box like for a lunchbox). 
People can dip the pretzel stick in the honey and then lick the honey off (and then eat the pretzel.) 
Very clean and easy!
Also, the salt on the pretzel enhances the sweetness of the honey. It is GREAT! (I stole this idea from a magazine article last winter - I think it was Bee Culture.)
Much neater than biscuit crumbs on a plate and very effective.


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

crap.... i make a mean biscuit!!!


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## stangardener (Mar 8, 2005)

-I also plan to have a chalk board type thing with my items I have for sale and maybe the prices.

remember that you can turn anything into a chalk board by spraying it with black paint.

the deal about the chair is more of a consiousness than a hard and fast rule









one thing to keep in mind about many markets is that people are there looking for an experiance.
they might be able to get the product at the grocery store or health food store but not the interaction with a real live strange garder.


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

I think what strange gradener and bulleye are trying to suggest is that selling requires some pro active interaction with the customer base. I find it is good to have a few questions handy that typically gets the ball rolling....

at this location my first question is to everyone who shows an interest.. do you prefer light or dark honey?

another slightly more subtle point is to make certain a bit of natural sunlight strikes at least a few bottle of your product. it is my little 'theory' that the color of honey strikes some folks eye just like a diamond.


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## jean-marc (Jan 13, 2005)

Some folks might have lights shining on the honey instead of the natural sunlight. Ther may not be any where you are. I've seen products displayed at different heights kinda like steps. So you may have large, medium and small sized jars in tiered levels. Honey sticks are good sellers. Everybody will drop a quarter just to keep the kids quiet for about 1 minute. These quarters will add up and often will pay for the table cost. if they like the honey then they may purchase a jar or two.

Good luck Chef.

Jean-Marc


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## stangardener (Mar 8, 2005)

didja do the bazaar? any feed back?


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

it was AWESOME. We covered our table cost and brought some money home too. It was awesome.

I would have liked to have a small OB hive to attract people easier. We really had to "hook" people by offering them a taste when they would have probobly just looked and left. 

We did get a lot of people who did not want to taste the honey. Which was surprising. Who wouldnt want to taste local honey???

So funny... people bought more honey that was bottled in glass than plastic. 

I would like to have a table hanging banner next time and/or a bigger "honey for sale" sign. 

I am doing another in December so we will see how that one goes. 

The bazzaar we went to was somewhat crouded. We were in the middle so it was weird if we stood up. We were also on the second floor which sorta sucked. Plus it was pouring down rain, which was nice.


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## stangardener (Mar 8, 2005)

be careful marketing is also addicting








i understand people who don't take a sample. i'm one who rarely samples if i have no intention of buying.
i'm not suprised about the preferance for glass. tho i haven't started marketing honey yet i've talked honey with many produce cutomers who have mentioned a preferance for glass. i have never competed with others by intentionaly priceing lower. but i would certainly compete with packageing/presentation.
if we stood up?








thanks for the feed back.


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