Yesterday I’ve received my paperwork for the Rosen Group’s Visiting Artist program for this February’s Buyer’s Market in Philadelphia. I’ve been meaning to attend this program for the longest time, and I’ve finally just went ahead and did it this year.
Just in case you’re not familiar, the Buyer’s Market of American Craft is pretty much biggest wholesale shows for handmade craft. This is where buyers of American craft meet with craft creators and sellers. The Buyer’s Market takes place every February and August in Philadelphia, PA.
From what I understand, a wholesale show is entirely different animal than your regular retail craft show…which is why I’m attending their Visiting Artist’s Program. In this program, artists who are interested in entering the wholesale market gets to visit the show floor to get a feel of what a wholesale show is all about.
There’s also a series of great workshops that will educate you on the ins and outs of selling your crafts on a wholesale level. Booth design guru, Bruce Baker will be holding sessions on booth design and pricing, Milon Townsend has sessions on product development, and there’s a Q&A session about BMAC. Plus you also get an individual mentoring session with experience gallery owners, and possibly a group mentoring session with the president of the Rosen Group, Wendy Rosen. I had interviewed Wendy a couple years ago for my podcast, so it would be nice to meet her in person. Lots of cool things to see and people to meet…I’m getting pretty excited!
The Buyer’s Market takes place in Philly from Feb 15 to 18 (yikes! that’s only 9 days away!). I went whole hog and got the 4 day pass. If you’re interested in learning more about the show, you can find out more here.
