So here is another installment of From Spark to Sale, ideas and inspirations to mull over as you bring your creativity to the marketplace. Brainstorm on avenues to bring your product/art to consumers. I was reading in my Cottage Living magazine this month about 3 women who quit their corporate jobs and began baking! They sell their homemade cookies and breads via the internet, shipping and delivering their goods locally and nationally. I was reading Lucky magazine about a new store on Boston’s’ trendy Newbury Street, 1154 Lill Studio, Now they are in high end retail space, think they started that way? They began selling their custom made purses at home parties. Your can read about how they got started here. Don’t be a snob and be inventive, a home party doesn’t have to have some big company name behind it; it can have YOUR big company name behind it. Check out local outdoor fairs and festivals. This can really give you the chance to see how people respond to your products. When I lived in San Clemente, CA, I would go the farmers market on Saturday mornings not only for the fresh food but also for the handmade jewelry, clothes and art that was there. I read a great story about a woman who hosted a once a year event in her garage. She spent a year scouring flea markets and antique shops for items and furniture that needed embellishing, paint and love. She would then send out invitations and people would line up with their numbers for coffee and a chance to be the first people in to buy her “remade” creations. She has done it for several years and has quite a following with hundreds of people in attendance. How fun is that? There are all sorts of ways to get started bringing your creations off your shelves and to people that would really enjoy it. I opted to license some of my art work and now have a line of stamps created by Inky Antics. They can be found on their new website. I just got my first shipment of the stamps, fun! And I am already in the process of designing more…how did they find me and my art? Via the internet. (see cookie women above). Let the brainstorming begin…share your ideas with me!