@soaplog on twitter asked me if getting into markets and fairs was something difficult to get into. I have to say, I stumbled into doing them five years ago. I was selling my soap online and a supportive friend posted a link to my site on Meta Filter
from Meta Filter’s about page
“Metafilter is a weblog (what’s a weblog? | comprehensive history of weblogs) that anyone can contribute a link or a comment to. A typical weblog is one person posting their thoughts on the unique things they find on the web. This website exists to break down the barriers between people, to extend a weblog beyond just one person, and to foster discussion among its members.”
Claire of Poopscape.com reads Meta Filter. She blogged about feto soap. I looked in my referrer log and saw her link to me and her zines, and asked her if she wanted to trade zines for soap. We exchanged mailing addresses and I discovered that she lived in my neighborhood! We met for coffee at Brazil. A couple months later (I think in the fall) she emailed me about a new craft market that was held behind the same coffee shop! It was the Dunlavy St. Craft Market. I think I showed up with a dozen bars of soap… totally unprepared! They held a few more craft markets and I learned what to bring by figuring out what I didn’t have the last time.
I’m not sure how the organizers of the Dunlavy St. Market knew Andrea at the Midtown Farmers Market, but she shared her list of crafters with Andrea, and I started selling there too! I think a year later the Houston Farmers Market approached me to start selling at their market as a weekly vendor. so that’s how I went from online to in person sales at craft markets.
I’ll be at the Spacetaker Winter Holiday Art Market all weekend with finished products and a make your own soap station! Hopefully I’ll see you there!