Managing Orders During the Holiday Season

The holidays are a busy time, especially for cold-weather items! Mittens make a great gift because they stretch to fit and come in many colors.

The busiest time of year for Marion's Mittens is during the months of November and December. Temperatures drop and people start thinking about holiday gifts.

I have a little system in place to help process orders quickly. I usually ship within 1 day of purchase despite working a full time job.

Everything's on sale Friday-Monday!

Inventory Management

I use a simple database to track my inventory. This way I know exactly what sizes and colors are on hand.  Later on, I can look back at the best sellers and make sure there are plenty of those in stock next time.

I keep the mittens neatly stacked and organized by size and color so it's easy to find a pair that's been sold.

During the busy season we do not take custom orders. (Well, we do, but don't promise them any time soon!) It's much simpler to keep the orders flowing from existing inventory.

Packaging Supplies

I wrote a little bit about packaging supplies once before. During the busier time of year I keep them at the ready! The basics are:

• Poly envelopes
• Printable shipping labels
• Tissue paper
• Colored paper for receipts
• Digital scale for weighing packages

Online Postage

Etsy makes it easy to pay for postage right through my shop. It's cheaper than at the Post Office and I can leave the package in my mailbox for pickup. No lines.  :)

I use my Staples rewards from recycling ink to buy supplies like shipping labels. I've found that the Avery 8126 5.5" x 8.5" labels work well in my printer.

Introducing Mini Mittens!

Today I officially added our newest product to the Etsy shop. It debuted at a craft fair a few weeks ago and our stock sold out, so it took some time to make some more to sell online.

Mini Mittens!  

Mini mittens are thumbless mittens for babies.  They measure 4 to 5.5 inches long.  They are ideal for newborns, infants, and toddlers and can be used as no-scratch mittens or just to make it easier to fit little hands into something warm.

The colors in the photo above have all sold out but there are some new colors in stock.  These can also be made to order in a week or so in just about any color you'd like.  Enjoy!

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Thoughts on Our First Craft Fair

Last week I wrote that I was planning on packing up Marion's Mittens and heading to a craft fair for the first time. The fair had its ups and downs but overall, it was a success!

The Good

The table looked great. (I later changed things so that the tags were not visible.) My packing list was comprehensive enough that I didn't feel like I'd forgotten anything. It helped to have an "assistant" to pack up the sold merchandise and carry things in! Next time I probably won't have that luxury.

The Not-So-Good

The turnout for the show was not that great.  I'd say only about 30 people stopped at the table. While it was located next to the entrance, it was not within sight of those walking in; they focused on the other tables across the room and headed there first. By the time they were ready to leave they did see the table but had spent enough or had somewhere else to be. So that was disappointing. But, of those 30 that stopped, at least 10 bought mittens, so that seems like a great percentage!

Next Time

Next time I'll research the anticipated turnout a little bit better and do my homework to see that the show has been advertised to more than just Craigslist and the local classifieds. I was disappointed that the committee were putting out signs the morning of the show. The location was an industrial area and if people had seen the signage during their commutes the day before, it might've helped.

Someday I'd also like to have a display for the mittens. I think that some type of wooden dowel rack would be a great way to display them. I did use a small basket for the baby mittens - they were a big hit and will have a new name at our next fair!

Marion's Mittens are Heading to a Craft Fair!

On Saturday, November 2, Marion's Mittens will be for sale at the Polish American Citizens' Club of Albany.  This is our first craft fair and we're really excited!  Here are the details:

If you're in the area we'd love to see you!  If not, the Etsy store will be open for business as usual.  :)

I did quite a few things to prepare for the craft fair and will share them below.  Next week I'll report on what I didn't think of but will know for next time.

Display & Signage

• I ordered a vinyl sign and some business cards from Vistaprint. They are great because they always have sales.  I love the neutral polka dots of this business card, and the M at the bottom looks like it's sitting on a ball of yarn.
• At this point I don't want to spend a whole lot on a display.  So I'm going with a white sheet for the front of the table and a sheepskin/suede throw for the top.  Cozy!
• I wrote up a description of the shop and price list and printed it out.  It'll go into an 8x10 frame on the tabletop.
• We are debuting a new product tomorrow (it's a surprise!) and it's really tiny, so I'm using a basket to display those items.
• The Marion's Mittens email newsletter is sent through Mailchimp (sign up by clicking the button on the top right of this page!) and they have an app for sign-ups on the go.  It's called Chimpadeedoo and I have it all set up to capture new subscribers at the show.

Selling & Packaging

• PayPal Here sounds like a great way to accept credit cards. I haven't tried it yet and hope that my reader comes in the mail before the show!  Of course cash is always good too, so I got some small bills to make change.
• I found some receipt books with carbon copies - both for receipts and for tracking what colors/sizes are sold.
• I ordered some white paper shopping bags from Nashville Wraps and stamped them using the logo stamp I ordered from Vistaprint last year.
• My tissue paper stash is still going strong for stuffing the bags.

Other Supplies

• Some basic office supplies like a notebook, pens, stapler, tape, and scissors seem like they will be useful.
• Snacks and drinks for me and my assistant.
• A little table for behind the scenes.
• An extension cord to charge my phone and iPad.

What else would you bring to your first craft fair?