When I first started taking Crafted Runes Studio to events, I thought the artwork would do most of the work.
Make something good enough, put it on the table, and people would stop.
Some do.
What I didn’t expect was how unpredictable everything after that would be.
One person stops because of a particular subject. Someone else notices something completely different. Some people spend several minutes looking through the work. Others tell me how much they like it and then keep walking.
I’ve learned not to automatically translate interest into a sale.
That’s harder than it sounds when you’re standing on the other side of the table.
A compliment feels like you’re halfway there. Sometimes it turns into a purchase. Sometimes it doesn’t. And I’ve stopped pretending there’s always an obvious reason why.
Maybe it wasn’t the right subject. Maybe it wasn’t the right price. Maybe they genuinely loved it but didn’t want to own it. Maybe something else caught their attention ten minutes later.
I don’t know.
And that’s one of the things these shows have taught me: I don’t have to invent an explanation for everything I see.
What I can do is pay attention.
I’ve also had to accept that my taste isn’t necessarily everyone else’s taste.
There are pieces I’m particularly proud of that don’t get the response I expect. Other pieces catch someone’s attention for reasons I never anticipated.
That doesn’t mean I’m going to let a market table decide what Crafted Runes Studio becomes.
But I’d be foolish not to listen to it either.
The artwork has gotten considerably better since my first event. I’ve also gotten more comfortable talking about the work without feeling like I need to force a sale.
Those are two different skills, and I’ve had to learn both.
I’ve learned that something I’m proud of isn’t automatically something someone will buy. I’ve learned that a table can collect compliments without collecting the same number of sales. I’ve learned I can spend an enormous amount of time perfecting something a customer barely notices.
And I definitely haven’t discovered some magical inventory combination where everything suddenly works.
So I’m approaching the next show differently.
I’m not walking in expecting it to prove whether CRS works.
I’m bringing the best work I can make. I’ll sell what I can sell. I’ll watch what people pick up. I’ll listen to what they say. I’ll notice what they walk past.
Then I’ll come back to the shop and use what I learned.
Every show is another experiment.
And right now, I think that’s exactly what it should be.
— Rune Master