I was scrolling through Threads lately, and I’ve stumbled upon so many artists asking questions about freelancing and business, that I’ve been enjoying my time answering them with my blog posts. Suddenly I found this unique post with a genuine question and decided to take a look.

Artist who sell their products online, at craft fairs, and in retail stores; do you price your items the same or do you price them higher in retail stores since in consignment that usually takes about 30% to 40%? Would that make people mad if they found out it was cheaper if they bought it directly from me at the craft fair?

This section had mixed responses from various artists. From my observation, most of them admitted to changing the prices of their products depending on the circumstances (location, expenses, third-party involvements, etc.), while others stated that prices remain the same regardless of the situation. However, I stumble upon a comment from someone who seems to be shaming the artist and is ignorant about business management and investment, stating the following:

There you said it. I was too horrified to read some of the comments to actually comment. Be fair to your collectors and your sales partners. Would never buy again if I saw an artist selling cheaper somewhere else. No. Just no.

Have You Ever Heard About “Regional Pricing”?

I got flooded with messages about “regional pricing” which is a business strategy where the pricing setup of goods and services changes or gets affected depending on the customer’s location, taxes and markets regardless of where the transaction takes place.

The key factors that can influence or impact your profit are the following: cost of production, market demand, competition, economic conditions, and regulations. For example, in Puerto Rico metropolitan areas (larger populations) tend to price essential foods (bread, eggs, coffee, etc.) higher than suburban or rural areas, regardless of the food brands. I certainly will not spend around $50 between gas and tolls (God forbid I also have an accident or emergency during the road), and drive to the south for 4 hours just to buy the cheaper essential food.

A one-size-fits-all pricing strategy often falls short of achieving optimal results thanks to fluctuating consumer preferences and diverse costs of production and distribution. The shipping cost can be minimal in one area and significantly higher in another. This is where geographical pricing steps in, offering companies a powerful strategy for fine-tuning pricing for maximum profitability.

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Well, Is It Wrong?

1. Artists can price their products however they want, regardless of the situation.
2. This mentality is subjective, meaning there is no right or wrong answer to this.
3. And lastly, no, is not wrong or a scam.

What’s The Difference Between All Of Them?

Local events are about renting a place temporarily where you socialize with people and operate with instant transactions/deliveries. It has fewer risks, minimal commitments (to a certain degree), and successful transactions compared to a virtual store, where you’re not face-to-face with the client, and it’s a bit more difficult to convince them to buy since there is a lack of interaction or bonding (emotional value in products). 

E-commerce stores have so many risks, consequences, and expenses involved; especially if you’re also renting a virtual space that doesn’t belong to you (Etsy, Big Cartel, Shopify, etc.). Any involvement with the following is tied to huge investments that are necessary to operate:

Retail stores usually may charge the artist a percent or a flat fee per transaction due to their storage, sales, and possibly distribution of the products to other stores. Personally, it doesn’t make any sense to sell my products at the same price as the local events, especially when I’ve been charged other fees that have to do with a third-party involvement to make the transaction successful.  Also, has it even occurred to anyone that when you have your local store there are other expenses like maintenance, water/electricity bills, certifications, permits, employees’ wages, etc.? Let’s not forget that retail stores help to:

1. Curate and expand the reach of your audience.
2. Help you distribute your products to different locations (depending on the store).
3. Products are taken care of when there is mismanagement, damage, or theft.

Why I Charge My Products Higher In My Store

Despite pricing my products higher in my store ($2- $5) I also offer a reward program to my customers. When they become loyal buyers regularly, with each transaction they earn points to redeem them for exclusive prizes and even freebies. This way, I incentivize them to return to my default revenue and support me directly and instantly. I don’t have the luxury to afford events in different locations (where there are many risks of losing money or having accidents) when I can do all of this from my home.

How Much I Should Charge?

It will depend on your necessities, demands, and your laws (location/tax). Talk to your colleagues and peers, compare the situation, and put it into practice. The artist can charge the price they think is convenient for them, as well as for their clients. Things can change between stages, it’s up to the artist to discover what works for them. Not everything has to be cheap, free, or affordable just to survive this inflation; we are not Amazon or Temu.

What Could Be My Solutions?

• Negotiate with the retailer about any fee and their services to see if both parties can agree on new terms. If the retailer refuses, then either walk away or adhere to their rules, but keep in mind that you will have some losses.
• If your prices are higher in your store offer some exclusivity or benefits such as reward or points programs with freebies or discounts. Your customers will be able to enjoy these perks only in your store whenever they place an order based on loyalty. That way you don’t “compete” with the retailers due to community or “niche” services.

Personally, if a retail store has the ability to sell my products successfully periodically, and on top of that generate income indirectly or passively by directing the clients to my store to buy different merch that is not accessible elsewhere or order commissions, then I would definitively will be happy to consume those expenses/losses by charging my products the same price everywhere.

What Are Your Expenses?

I started with Storenvy in early 2015 because it was easy to set up and allowed you to have 1000 products listed for free compared to Etsy. The problem with Storenvy was, and still is, doesn’t have the same effective marketing system as Etsy does. Now that I have a WooCommerce it’s still the same story, but I have much flexibility and freedom with the systems and work around with a few plugins and codes.

• Both domains I own are $50 per year.
• I pay around $400 (I have the essentials included) for hosting every 3 years.
• I have spent +$100 on several plugins that can work with automation on my store.
• My Mailchimp newsletter integration only offers 500 contacts for free, so eventually, I’ll have to pay for their services.

The Downside Of Using Marketplaces

Many e-commerce platforms charge you monthly to set up and activate your store, and even sometimes they have limitations with the quantities of product listing (WordPress.org and WooCommerce do not do that). Some other issues can happen in your web store like:

• The e-commerce platform does not offer you a vast of essential or functional plugins for your store.
• Your store no longer gets featured on the front page, the shop’s visibility decreases, or you experience a lack of special services or exclusivity due to one bad set-up, delay in shipping, or unfair/bad review.
• Some platforms obligate you to offer free shipping while charging you lots of fees due to different services for your store’s operation.

Conclusion

Listen, people getting angry or OfFenDed because they found out you sold products at different prices (due to different venues and protocols) won’t pay your bills. Especially those who are focused on cheaper prices or discounts. Those are not your ideal clients. Also, not every artist can invest in massive deposits to several events (whether local or international)  that may happen in the next several months. Let’s not forget that there’s no guarantee that these events will not be canceled or postponed. Compared to a virtual store that can be set up within the reach of your fingertips within minutes.

I doubt people will buy a plane ticket to the Caribbeans to visit me at a local event just to buy a product that is cheap or has a discount while refusing to buy it from my store due to an increment price of $3 or more. That’s fucking dumb.

Fun fact: when you order from Uber Eats, you pay much more for your food to be delivered by a third party compared to when you visit your local fast food and pick it up yourself.

Thank You For Reading!

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