Posted by: whisperandfriends on: December 3, 2009
Whisper and Friends
www.whisperandfriends.com
651-905-1487
Supporting local communities, artists, and businesses
Dear Friend,
Welcome to Whisper and Friends. I would like to tell you about who we are, and how we can work together to support our community.
What do we mean by community? Our community is everyone – our neighbors, our friends, those we know and those we don’t. A local artist is the jewelry maker, musician, or painter who has a gift to share. Finally, a local business is one that is owned and operated by someone in the community like the local coffee house, dog groomer, or the small auto repair shop on the corner.
Whisper and Friends is a community based organization dedicated
to supporting the local community, artists, and businesses.
1 – Offering a place for the community to sell their products. We have many great artists and businesses that don’t have a presence on the internet. We list their items on our website. There is no commission fee unless the item sells. This allows for the community to support the local artists, and for local artists to cater to their community.
2 – If an artist or local business has a website, they can list a description of who they are on our site, with a link to their website and other contact information. Again, this allows for our neighborhoods to support local businesses and businesses to connect with the local neighborhoods. There is no fee for this, but donations are always accepted.
3 – We also list local events in the area such as concerts, craft fairs, and festivals. This helps us gather and connect as a community, building and strengthening our relationships.
4 – It is also our hope that local businesses and artists will help each other through assistance, support, and trading of products and services. For example, if you own a coffee shop and see a local musician, why not have the musician play in your shop and in return the musician can sell their cds? There are many ways we can help one another.
What this all comes down to, friends, is that our community is important, every aspect of it. We need each other, and it is our mission to create a website where that can happen.
Whisper and Friends is continually growing, just like our community, so spread the word! If you are interested in being a part of it, please send an email to whisper@whisperandfriends.com or call 651-905-1487.
Your Friend,
Whisper
December 13, 2009 at 11:32 am
My neighbor sent the Whisper & Friends site to me and I am glad to see that there is a community of people who have put this together to help us. I am fairly new at making beaded jewelry and don’t know where to go to sell my creations. I would like to have a chance at a craft fair or show but I’m intimidated because I don’t know what to do or where to start. Can someone give me the information I need to jump into selling at a craft show? I would like to have a website but I don’t know how to set it up.
December 14, 2009 at 8:16 pm
Thank you, Jeanette for the comment! I haven’t done a craft fair yet myself, but do want to try it. From what I have been told, success at a craft fair depends on the location of the fair, the number of vendors, how long it has been going on for, and if limits are placed on the number of vendors per category. For example, if the entrance fee is $100, but it is in the middle of nowhere, and it is the first year they are doing it, it might be harder to be successful.
The other thing I have noticed is the more established fairs only take so many vendors, and they fill up fast. At least two different fairs I wanted to participate in were filled already. You might want to make of area fairs that you are interested in, along with contact info, dates it is held, and entrance fees. That way, you can register early.
Lastly, I would recommend maybe partnering with another person at the fair. You can share the entrance fee, and help each other out. The best way to know how to do something is to do it. Sign up for one, not really expecting to sell a lot but consider it a learning experience. What you learn will be as valuable as all the wares you are selling.
As far as a website, options are far and wide. I recommend the person who did my site. His name is Scott Bohler. He is listed under businesses on the whisper and friends website.
You are always to sell your jewelry on our site too. Or, once your own site is up, you can list your website on ours.
Jeanette, thank you so much for your comments. I look forward to talking with you in person.
Your Friend,
Whisper