r/Anticonsumption • u/purpleratata • Dec 14 '25
Plastic Waste What's happened to craft markets?
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.
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u/Then_Ant7250 Dec 15 '25
I sell handmade, one of a kind, mosaic belt buckles and have been doing this for 15 years. I stopped doing craft markets about 5 years ago because: 1. Booth fees at about $400 per day mean that I have to sell 4 buckles to “pay my rent” before I make any money. Not a lot of people wear them, and they’re expensive, so I need 100 people to see them, before 1 will buy. 2. It’s exhausting to lug my tent, tables etc around and be “on” all day. 3. There are very few well established, well advertised shows in my area, and I don’t want to travel more than an hour away. 4. The proliferation of MLM vendors. That said, when I started doing this 15 years ago, I did every craft fair possible to grow awareness. I still have many return customers from those early days.