The Rumor is TRUE

Yep. Be prepared to do what you love! Be prepared to do it a lot less often!

I never realized how much time it takes to RUN a business. Inventory, bookkeeping, designing a portfolio, printing and designing business cards, marketing, making contacts, looking for sales leads, deciding which craft show seems promising, etc, etc, etc. I spend so much more time at the computer and on the phone than I actually spend CREATING that thing I love. Jewelry.

If you think going into business means crafting all day.....think again. Think long and hard. Don't just take my word for it either....next time you visit a craft show, ask one of the vendors what a typical week is like. Ask them how their day has been.

Chances are they woke up way too early, loaded tables and boxes of product into the car or van, ate breakfast on the road, with luck they didn't get lost on the way to the event. Assuming they arrived at the beginning of set-up time, usually between 7am and 8am, they check-in with the promoter(s), find their booth assignment and unload all their tables and product. If the vendor is a bit seasoned, they can probably have everything set-up in their booth in less than two hours. With a little more luck they finish booth set-up with time for a potty break, quick shot of caffeine, and a few minutes to check-out the competition and layout of the area. Now it's 5 minutes before "showtime"....brush your hair, check you breath and teeth, get comfortable, and smile...it's going to be a long day.

Personally, a show day can last 12 or more hours from the time you wake-up to the time you get home and unload the car/van. This of course is not including follow-up and post-event bookkeeping and updating inventory levels. That's a few more hours.

Do you have the time and dedication necessary to be sucessful?