Ed Pien Night Gathering 2005

Work ranges from personal images from the myths and stories of his native Taiwan, to political issues this is then synthesised by the visual arts of the West. This summerises to me that his work is about bringing personal issues together with what sells in the current markets, giving his work depth and likability.

Ghosts and Witches are also referred in his work.

I uploaded this piece because it reminded me of the structure of insect wings as well as finding his influences interesting and relatable.

Phoenix Trade advertising

I thought this was a good idea for publicising a product. By introducing a sale as a party and by adding that some profits would go to charity is a good marketing approach.

Phoenix Trade job position

I've uploaded this as it might be a useful contact for anyone reading this.

I've researched Phoenix Trade and decided they weren't the publish house for me. They aren't statement cards which is what I am interested in and don't run along my Dark Nouveau project.

They are a successful business though and have good marketing strategies which I have learnt from, such as including parties with selling the product. I think with the products I am hoping to be selling next year holding parties in ways to sell your product are a great way of doing so. Anne Summers parties are a successful example of this.

They also work along charities. This perceives good working ethnic.

Understanding and paying a bill on Folksy

How do I pay my Folksy bill?

You can see your Folksy fees in Your account > Your Folksy bill. The balance that shows is made up of billed and unbilled fees for listings and 5% commisson on sales.

Whenever you list or sell an item a fee is added to your bill. These fees are 'unbilled' until the end of each month when the total amount owed for that month (if it is over £2) is turned into a bill. Charges under £2 are rolled over to the next month.

While the fees are 'unbilled' you don't need to worry about paying them. When a bill is due you will receive an email from Folksy to let you know. The bill will also show in Your Folksy bill and you can pay by following the steps below. .

What are the charges?

The charges are:

Listing fees £0.20 for each listing. This listing can include a quantity of up to 5 for handmade items, or up to 100 for materials. Whatever the quantity the cost is still 20p. The listing lasts for 180 days (6 months approximately) or until the item is sold out.

Commission fees From 1 May 2010 we charge 5% commission on the list price of each sale (this doesn't include postage).

How do I know what I've been charged for?

If you log in to Folksy, go to Your account and look for the Money heading on the right hand side. This shows your outstanding balance. If you click on Your Folksy bill you will see a list of all your bills for each month. If the status shows as Submitted the bill has been paid. If not it will say Pay Fees. Click on the status for any month and you will see a breakdown of the charges for that month.

How do I pay my bill?

To pay your bill click on Pay Fees. The total amount payable will show with a Pay Using Paypal button beside it. Click this to go to Paypal. Log in to your account as normal and follow the steps until Paypal confirms that the payment has been sent. If the payment is successful you should also receive a conformation email.

Emily Wardman Interview

Emily Wardman's stall is very well presented, her products which are mainly hand printed motifs on a variety of products such bags, kitchen towels and hand stitched decorative replicas of owls, birds and dolls are being hung on string from brown pegs, while the placement of the products doesn't look over crowded and the colours are very fresh. Ideally situated as the second stall in from the front. Emily Wardman is an independent seller but is supported by friends and family who sit with her and knit products for her shop.

Your stall seems to be doing really well today?

Yeah we've had a constant stream of people.

Have you had many sales?

I've not done too bad, but I've not had as many as I'd of liked so far.

How long have you had your own business set up?

It's all relatively new, since I graduated this year from Uni.

Do you have your products on any other outlet?

Yes, I have an online store on folksy.com

Oh right, I've not heard of folksy.com, what is it?

It's the English version of Esty.com, a networking shop outlet. It's really good for showing you how many sales you've made, how many people are following your shops and it also has on the website a 'making' section so you can learn new crafts and a forum, so you can get involved in daily chats and discussions which has been really good for me building contacts.

Do you have to be computer literate to use it?

No it's really easy to use, with a step by step guide on how to set up your own shop with the paying system included. It's really straight forward.

How does the paying system work?

The paying system is Paypal and it runs along side the site. The buyer has a shopping cart and when they come to buy it is through Paypal.

Do you use this business solely as your income now or do you have another job?

Right now it is not possible as the business is new, but I would like it to take off so it is just my sole income.

Like you I would like to set up my own business but in Stationary, do you have any advice on setting up your own business?

My advice would be publisise your product as much as possible, promotions is really good. If you're going to go down the online route it is important to attend as many art & craft fairs as possible because as well as building contacts you are showing your products to the public and generating awareness.

You can find Emily Wardmans shop on www.folksy.com/edify. Looking at her shop I have noticed she has had only 1 sale, which suggests to me the craft fair was probably more successful. Looking at the site you can tell it's a really competitive market of similar products. There seems to be a lot of 'cutesy' designs that include cupcakes, birds and Russian Dolls. On a site of this scale having a similar theme of work through out it you can see why it might be hard for your product to sell when there are too many of the same styles on it.

The forum and 'making' session of the site though would be very useful for building contacts and learning new skills.

With my theme of work I can't see where I would fit in but it might be exciting to see if it develops new trends on the site, it might be what is needed.

Phoenix Trade Interview

Sue Summersgill is holding Phoenix Trade stall at the Vernon Park Art & Crafts Fair. They are situated at the end of the run of stalls as doesn't seem to be holding interest for very long. This could be because its stall is placed near the cafe and as the rain wasn't holding off for very long, people may have be more inclined to take cover for the indoors. The stall has a huge range of cards, but they all look too similar. It also has homemade cupcakes, which you would think would draw attention to the stall but with a cupcake stall being situated just a few stalls down I don't think they were selling too well.

Are you an independent stall holder?

I work as a Trader for Phoenix Trade an independent card publishing house, that sells work from multiple designers.

Do Phoenix Trade sell their work through outlets as well as through independent stalls?

No, Phoenix Trade only sell their cards through direct contact.

How many designers work for Phoenix Trade?

There are roughly 78 designers working for the team.

What are your most popular designs?

At Art & Craft fairs the cards with a more handmade style sell well. In this season (Autumn) our Christmas Card ranges sell well too.

How many designers work are on this stall today?

There are 25 designers work on this stall, ranging from 12-16 cards per collection.

Can anyone submit their work to Phoenix Trade?

Yes as long as they are presented well. We receive samples off designers and they get work through commission.

What is the price range?

£1.20 each or £1 each for 10+ cards.

Has Phoenix Trade ever got involved in fundraising?

Yes we have raised over £500,000 for charities since we have been established (for 14 years) through our exclusive christmas card range, to charities such as Cancer Research and Childrens Hospice UK.

Have you had much interest in your stall today?

Yes we've had a lot of interests and sales have been okay.

Do you have a website?

Yes you can find us on www.phoenix-trading.co.uk

Phoenix Trade are in the Top 10 Publishing Houses in the UK.

Cards are recyclable as they don't use any chlorine chemicals or other adhesives. Although printed on the back of every Phoenix Trade card says "paper from sustainable forest sources" Phoenix Trade say that this isn't entirely true as there isn't a sustainable forest source in either Europe or the States as legalisation is so tight.

Their cards are normally blank inside so that they can suit any occasion.

Interviews

Ideally I would like to interview people within the Stationary industry. I'm keen to talk about numbers, profit margins, overheads, publishers, card production, retailers, material suppliers, market strategies, cliental and tradeshow experiences as this is all very relevant towards developing my understanding in that market and setting up my own business is something I would like to achieve myself in the next year. As I would like to sell other products as well I see it as just as important to interview other businesses as any information is potentially going to help me further my knowledge.