Has anyone ever tried this?

In our town, there is an "Antique Mall" . . . which is essentially a large floor-space store front where individuals can "rent" sections of floor space along the isles. Because it is predominantly mid to high end items, I was thinking of renting a 10 X 10 space and hanging some of my work there. The advantage is I set the prices, I can rotate - increase - change the inventory as I see fit. Since there is a central check-out where credit card transactions can be processed and someone is on duty 7 days a week, I don't have to be there to "man" the booth. I just tag each item with a price tag and booth number. The mall owners charge strictly on a square foot basis, and there is no percentage or other charge involved with a sale. They remove the tags, collect the money, and at the end of the month reconcile all collected money, deduct the rent, and pay me all income over the rent cost. I get to decorate the booth any way I want, and include as many or few items as I think will be best.

At first blush this looks like a good way to stick a toe in the retail market without significant overhead or time commitment.

Thoughts anyone??

Are you selling your work now? Are you well-known and sought after for your work? I'm assuming you're talking about photographs -- high end buyers are either looking for fine arts photography as an investment or for particular types of photographs/framing to for interior design. I don't know your market but where I live (southern California) people wouldn't spend a lot for something they could buy for less at just about any shop that sold framing and prints.

Interesting thought. We have a few of those venues around here also. If you give it a shot, I'm curious to know how it works out. It may be worth trying for a month or two just to see if it's profitable. What exactly is the rent for small space?

jra wrote in post #11851981
Interesting thought. We have a few of those venues around here also. If you give it a shot, I'm curious to know how it works out. It may be worth trying for a month or two just to see if it's profitable. What exactly is the rent for small space?

They have different sized booths. They charge $1.65 per sq ft. The standard sized "starter" booth is 10 X 10, so $165 per month. There are quite a few vendors who have easily 3 or 4 times that size . . .

The two big questions will be 1) will the clientele be interested in your work and 2) would they pay enough for it to make both the work and the rent worth while.
Keep in mind that over and above the rent, you will also need to have inventory and attractive display ware.

If you do it, it might be best to plan on "manning" the booth for the first few months to give you the chance,to talk to prospects learn their interests, etc.

I shot catalog pictures for antique auction houses for about 15 years. From what I saw people who bought art were interested in landscapes, flowers, and believe it or not, bowls of fruit on a table top. I didn't see much in the way of photography being sold but those were the most popular subjects for prints and paintings. Naturally, well known artists work would sell with nearly any subject matter. Buyers didn't seem as interested in anything showing people, but dogs and cats were a big seller.

Decorating tastes are forever changing but I think for this market prints on canvas might be attractive. You might want to consider throwing in a few of those to see how they fly.

breal101 wrote in post #11853698
I shot catalog pictures for antique auction houses for about 15 years. From what I saw people who bought art were interested in landscapes, flowers, and believe it or not, bowls of fruit on a table top. I didn't see much in the way of photography being sold but those were the most popular subjects for prints and paintings. Naturally, well known artists work would sell with nearly any subject matter. Buyers didn't seem as interested in anything showing people, but dogs and cats were a big seller.

Decorating tastes are forever changing but I think for this market prints on canvas might be attractive. You might want to consider throwing in a few of those to see how they fly.

Actually, I print to canvas for most of my stuff. I really like it done that way, and I think it brings a type of quality to the work, which may attract the types of clients willing to pay the cost . . .

The only thing to do is go for it. You will never know until you try. Get a space and make your booth attractive. Present your best work. Try to keep the booth full of your work, but not too full. Try it for 6 months if you can and see how it goes. If word gets out that people are buying your work and telling their friends about it, you are in business!

Good Luck!