Handmade Promenade is thrilled to announce the return of the Handmade Promenade Holiday Pop-Up Shop for the 2018 holiday season opening November 2nd and running through Christmas 2018.
This year, 2018, is the 8th anniversary of the Handmade Promenade pop up shop in Downtown Indianapolis. We are very pleased about the return of Handmade Promenade to 750 N. College Ave! This amazing retail & dining corridor is steps away from the corner of Mass Ave and College Ave and located along the Indianapolis Cultural Trail, near restaurants, hundreds of new apartments, theaters and much more. This year’s exciting location will be located in a the throwback location from the 2012 and 2013 seasons! The former location of a design firm for the last 5 years, the space is pretty swank inside! We can’t wait for you to see it! And best of all it is right around the corner our from our 2017 location- like literally on the other side of the building!
So…Where do you come in? The Holiday Pop-Up Shop will feature handmade goods from many of Indiana’s and the country’s top artists and crafters– and that’s you! Curious how the pop up shop will work? Read on for many answers to your FAQ’s and click on the link below to apply for the 2018 Holiday Pop Up Shop Season.
What will be the store hours of operation?
Our exact pop-open date is still being finalized and announced soon, but will ideally be open by November 2nd. While we may have a few short weeks in early November, we will be open on a increased amount of days and hours leading up to Christmas and by Thanksgiving Week/ Small Business Saturday we will be open 6-7 days a week. We will be closed Thanksgiving Day, but open for Black Friday and Small Business Saturday. We will also be closed Christmas Day. We are still working to finalize our daily operating hours, but they will be similar to previous years hours, approximately 11am-6pm Monday-Thursday and 10 or 11 am to 7 or 8 pm Friday and Saturday, 12-6 or 7 Sunday. We can’t even tell you how excited we are to be open on weekend again along this bustling corridor.
We’ll also be partnering with the other Mass Ave retailers for some very special events including Midnight Shopper and more.
Let’s get to it-How Do I Apply?
APPLICATIONS ARE NOW CLOSED
Fill out the above form above and hit submit, then PayPal your $25 application to handmadepromenade@gmail.com. Your application will not be considered complete until the $25 fee is received. No exceptions!
FAQ
When is the application deadline?
The official application deadline is October 10th, but applications will be juried in small groups by week or so as they come in. The sooner you turn in the application, the sooner you may be notified of being accepted, which means the sooner you can start making and getting prepared! We ask you to please apply immediately! If you are in a heavily applied for category such as jewelry, tee shirts or bath and body products, you probably want to get your app in ASAP anyway as that category will fill and close. Once you are accepted, you’ll be able to deliver items the week of October 29th. No matter your acceptance date you must have product in store by November 15th or you won’t be able to participate. More details will be send about how to go about this if you are accepted.
Do I need to be present in order to sell my goods?
No, you don’t! The Handmade Promenade Holiday Pop-Up Shop will be operating on a consignment basis. You’ll be able to drop off or mail your merchandise at my house, or drop it off at the shop during store set up. These dates will be the first week and first few weekends of October, the times will be passed along once you are accepted. Product MUST be delivered before the cut off date we notify you of or we have the right to refuse. Please be prepared to have products during the initial delivery period. During operating hours myself or Handmade Promenade employees will staff and operate the shop so vendors don’t need to work, though they are strongly encouraged to attend events like our Meet the Artists night, Ladies night, and more to be announced.
How do I get accepted into the Handmade Promenade Holiday Pop-Up Shop?
The Holiday Pop-Up shop will be curated and juried by Handmade Promenade Staff. We will strive to pick the freshest work from artists and crafters all across the state and country.
Please keep in mind that a few categories are quite popular, especially jewelry, tee shirts, items for children, and bath and body products. The competition is likely to be intense and what will make the most difference in the jury’s decision are high-quality photos and quality crafted products. Clever, self contained packaging and easy tag-ability will also help, too! We’ll be sure to use removable price tags so your items aren’t damaged, but each item will receive a barcoded sticker for quick check out.
Are you wondering-What if you already sell at another store in Indianapolis or even on Mass Ave? Well, we don’t consider that a strike against you at all. Please, still apply! We would encourage you to stock our store with something unique or different from other stores you may sell at close by, but we won’t discourage you from applying if you can’t do that. Even vendors who sell at other local stores still have had excellent sales at our pop-ups in the past. Even the store owner sells at other Mass Ave retail locations just a few blocks away, but for the pop up she brings in inventory that is special to the pop-up! Trust me, it works!
How much money do Handmade Promenade Vendors Make?
Here’s a secret, we don’t keep our business a secret! Our vendors are our business and we can’t be successful with out them. In 2013, the average pay out for Handmade Promenade Vendors for just 6 weeks of sales was $375, but our best selling vendors made over $2,000 each. These numbers have only grown in the years since (my time for such calculations however have not!). In 2017 we had 51 vendors. Here is a break down of total sales: 1 sold over $4,000 (that means a check of over $2,000!), 1 sold $3,000, 9 sold between $1,000-$2,000. Four sold between $90-$100, 1 between $800-900, 3 between $700-800, 4 between $600-$700, 3 between $500-600, 2 between $400-500, 5 between $300-400, 12 between $200-300 and 5 between $100-200. How much vendors make depends not just on what products they sell, but how quickly they can restock if a popular product sells out. Our consignment rate for the 2018 season is a 50/50 consignment, which means for each item sold the vendor will be paid 50% of the sale price.
If I am accepted, how much inventory do I send you?
If you are accepted, you will receive more detailed information, but remember that you’ll be sharing a space with many other crafters, please consider that only a minimum amount of space will be provided for each business. Don’t think about it like you will have your own table at a craft fair, but more like you will have your own spot on the shelf at a store. We want to sell lots of your work, so if you don’t think you can easily drop stuff off to re-stock, then send stuff we can hold in back stock, but don’t necessarily anticipate all your work being put out at one time. You can send some back stock, but don’t send boxes and boxes and boxes of products either please. Do be sure to send enough product to make the event worth your time and money. If we sell through your work quickly and need re-stocked, we will tell you! Because we anticipate having a soft opening before our more grand opening we would be happy to take a small amount of products early on and ramp up the amount you have available as the holiday season progresses.
What types of products will you sell at the shop?
All types of handmade goods will be accepted, from jewelry to pottery, prints, cards, bath and body products, if you make it, and it has an independent, fresh and contemporary feel, we’d love to sell it! If you need a little more of an idea of the aesthetic of Handmade Promenade, take a look at the some of our past vendors (photos on our Facebook page!) and scope out some of our regular vendors to help ensure you’re a good fit!
How will the Handmade Promenade Holiday Pop-Up Shop be promoted?
-Full color posters and postcards
-Press releases sent to all area publications
-Print add in local publications
-Partnerships with other Mass Ave businesses
-Events with snacks and various treats to entice customers to come in and shop
-Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and email newsletter updates
-And you, our artists!
What does it cost to participate in the Handmade Promenade Holiday Pop-Up Show?
The Holiday Pop-Up Shop requires a $25 application fee and we will operate on an consignment basis. Vendors will receive a majority percentage of the retail sale price of their items. Vendors will be paid 50% of the retail price of sold merchandise.
The application fee of $25 is non-refundable, even if you are not accepted to participate You might be thinking an application/ jury fee is something different for this type of event, but in the case of this pop-up shop, it has been successful for us for 7 years, and your jury fee will go towards promotional materials and costs associated with setting up a pop-up shop prior to our opening ( think rent, utilities, new displays as well as posters, ads and more). Think of it as an opportunity to buy into a part of this exciting event! And besides, where else can you get a $25 booth for a 6 week+ long show in its 8th year-and you don’t even have to work a 12 hour day? If you have any questions about the jury fee, please ask.
Refund Policy: The application fee is not refundable, even if you are not accepted to vend.
When will I get paid?
Final Payments will be mailed no later than January 15, 2018. In the past there have been 2 pay dates. One in December after Thanksgiving weekend and the other after the event ended. This may happen again but is not guaranteed. It’s highly likely there will be two this time- one in December and one in January, all by the 15th.
Are people from out of state welcome to apply?
Heck yes. We love every crafter and we can’t wait to see what you make, regardless of where you live! Keep in mind, if you are out of state, you are responsible for shipping your items in a timely manner, and you will be responsible for paying return postage at the end of the event. The return postage will be deducted from your final payment before it is made. You can choose your return shipping method (USPS/ UPS ect).
What did last year’s shop look like?
Thanks to Facebook, we’ve got this record of great photos of the shop you can view here (Also check out some photos of past vendors here too!): https://www.facebook.com/handmadepromenade/photos_stream
How many vendors will be accepted?
We don’t have an exact cut off for number of vendors. We will say that unlike past year we are shooting for a slightly smaller number of vendors due to space restrictions. In the past 3-4 years we have had between 50-75 vendors. This year we do not expect more to accept more than 40 (-ish we deserve the right to change our minds). What we will do is cut off certain categories once we consider them full. You’ll know if a category is cut off because we’ll list it right on the top page of the application. Jewelry is always the first to fill, then tee shirts, followed by bath and body and kids clothing, and painted wall art on wood is a super big category lately. What we ALWAYS need are unique items for the home (housewares), Christmas ornaments (absolutely must be delivered to us early on), good gifts and products for men, and fashionable adult clothing items (such as items beyond tee shirts).
Got more questions than are answered here? Hard to believe, but if so- Email ’em to handmadepromenade@gmail.com and give me a day or two or three to get back to you. If it is a highly detailed question about sending your work, you’ll likely get all the information you need upon acceptance.
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Handmade Promenade 
Hi- if you have a question, please don’t leave a comment, just shoot us an email at handmadepromenade@gmail.com