Replies

1. 
   surfside123 | Jan 22, 2013 10:08am | #1

   You must have learned lot of things about woodworking since you've been in the industry for a long time already . Hope to learn a lot of things from you. 

2. 
   9michael9 | Jan 22, 2013 12:29pm | #2

   Art verses custom made

   You have described the dillema of many people trying to "make it" in the craft business.  People pay millions of dollars for, say a Rothko, that is just a square of red paint, but a custom made table of an exotic wood and fine craftsmanship is diffucult to sell for the price of the wood, in some cases.  Now I'm not saying I wouldn't want a Rothko to hang on my wall, but it shows that the people who have the money to  pay these high prices is for  investment  purpose, for one reason, and for another they have so much money they just like to one up others like them.  For a woodworker of high skills he must find an agent who caters to people who recognize quality, and are willing to pay for it.  Trying to do this on you own is a catch 22 situation because of the time away from your love of woodworking, and to get into the selling end is ehausting, and not enjoyable at all.  If you can't do this you will have to get a job somewhere that you enjoy almost as much as woodworking that pays well. Good luck with that, but one must follow their bliss, according to Joseph Campbell.

   ~~Michael

3. 
   RalphBarker | Jan 23, 2013 07:56am | #3

   Location, demographics, and marketing

   Ah, the proverbial marketing issue.

   It seems to me that the first thing one should do is to closely examine the demographics for the area in which they live. In that process, you can get an idea of how many potential customers are there, and then devise a plan to make them aware of what you do. Unless you, too, have a membership at the country club, you'll need to find  appropriate "intermediaries" - people and advertising venues that are appropriate for your target market. These might include local interior designers on the people side, and local up-scale magazines, symphony or opera programs, etc. Professionally-done photography of your work will be essential, I believe.