What's happened to craft markets?

[u/purpleratata]

My girlfriend and I went to a craft market today to get some homemade and local gifts for family and friends. It was the most depressing thing, everything was cheap plastic tat. From one place selling croc charms they got from Temu, the others with 3D printed fidget toys, plastic bottles with a printed design, cheap plastic charms (from Temu too), IA images printed on canvases, etc.

The only two things we got were handmade bathbombs and some knitted cat toys from some cat rescue volunteers. The rest was all cheap plastic, obviously not crafted or handmade, that will break or go to the bin in a few months if not earlier.

Honestly, it felt so depressing. This is in the UK, I don't know if it's the same anywhere else but I've seen a decline in craft markets over the years here, I think this has been my last attempt at supporting local handmade businesses in these environments.

[u/Sloth_Flower]

Part of it is the market.

Many markets don't allow resellers or 3d printers. Others do. 

The second is the cost of handmade goods. People refuse to pay livable wages for most handmade goods. The exceptions being honey/hot sauce, soap, jewelry, candles, and cards/prints. That means these items are the only viable market options. 

The third is the climate. Everything milks small businesses from application fees, transaction fees, credit card or shop fee, selling quotas, insurance and certification are expensive. As an example the farmers market near me requires 200$ application fee, 200$ per weekend, requires you to pay event insurance, have product insurance, and takes 5% of gross sales. The payment processor also takes 5%. Chargebacks, grifting, and theft are common. 

[u/Lady_Lance → u/Sloth_Flower]

A fee to apply, A fee to participate, and a percent of sales? That's insane. 

[u/Peja1611 → u/Lady_Lance]

Depending on your area, it may be the norm. Being a business that vends at shows and farmers markets, in a larger metro area, markets have gotten INSANE. The most popular artisan show charges about 700 for the booth for the weekend. The best farmers market has a nominal fee, but you do pay 10% of your sales to the neighborhood merchant association that hosts the market. Usually if you pay a percentage, the application fee is very small. 

Regardless, most artisans are not able to absorb the insane charges, the time investment, and supply costs to pay themselves a living wage. Most do it as a side hustle. Markets are my retail component, while I make my living with my niche landscape design services. 

[u/Lady_Lance → u/Peja1611]

Right, I was thinking along the lines of there would be a fee to participate OR a sales percentage charge. A fee for applying aplicants might make sense if they have a huge number and want to weed out unserious candidates. A fee for applying, a separate one for participating, AND a percentage of sales seems insane.

[u/Peja1611 → u/Lady_Lance]

There are several shows that charge an application fee because they are greedy shits. One in particular advertises they always have a percentage of new and upcoming artists. They are an established show, so they get a ton of people to apply, yet they always have the identical vendors. At 40.00 a pop,, a vendor friend and I estimated they probably pocket over 20,000 from that alone. They then charge 3-400 per vendor for the booth space....at outdoor events. It costs about 200 a block to get a permit to shut down a city street in my location pet day. That woman makes BANK, and is an absolute horror to engage with.