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Trillium Artisans is a nonprofit funded by the City of Portland and others to "connect artisans to markets." More specifically, we help market fine and indie crafts made from recycled or reclaimed materials.
What's in it for You?
Product Review Information
Artisan Meeting & Workshop Schedule
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What's in it for You?
- Access to our credit card processing services. Each year, Trillium members run more than $25,000 worth of sales through our merchant services accounts. If you don't want to deal with the hassle of setting up an account, but don't want to lose those sales that only happen when you take plastic, we can help.
- Consignment sales - we'll give you 60% of each retail sale and 80% of each wholesale sale (if you sell wholesale with us, not everyone does).
- Possible piecework making Trillium Design products, such as our Organic Catnip Slugs and Mason Bee Condos, which pays by the piece at the equivalent of $12.50 an hour.
- Small business counseling - we're here to listen if you just need someone to bounce business ideas off of…or if you're having a problem with a wholesale customer, or a shipper, etc. And if we don't know the answer, we'll find someone who does! By appointment only.
- Product development "test marketing" and counseling through our product review process.
- A peer network of fellow artisans who are growing their "green" crafts businesses. This group is accessible through a google group, for members only. Members share ideas, resources, and referrals for craft shows, grants, contests, opportunities, and sales venues such as www.etsy.com.
- Invitations to hear guest speakers from craft leaders such as Queen Bee Creations, Portland Super Crafty and more.
- An opportunity to get your crafts on the Trillium website, our Etsy shop, and our store on WorldofGood.com by eBay. Wholesale buyers from across the country peruse our online catalog. Recent wholesale customers include the Gaiam and Sahalie catalogs.
- Someone to handle catalog orders for you - if 64-page vendor manuals aren't your thing, let us deal with the details.
- Access to a computer workstation, with Adobe software, high-speed internet access and printing. By appointment only.
- Access to our fax and copy machines.
- An opportunity to sell your crafts in our retail storefront at 9119 SE Foster Road in Portland, Oregon.
- A chance to show your work at private sales and nonprofit foundation events.
- Use of our digital camera and light box which can be checked out for two weeks at a time.
- Free product photography consultation and lesson with local jewelry artist and photographer Lisa Gastelum.
- Tax deductions to offer to suppliers of your salvaged materials. We are a 501c3 nonprofit.
- Luxury fabric samples for use in all sorts of projects, for $1/lb. (Ask about our $10 start-up grant for our fabrics.)
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What products do we carry?
All work sold by Trillium must pass a product review panel.
Download the Product Review Form
There are five main criteria upon which products are juried. The product review committee, composed of passionate customers, fellow artists, and wholesale buyers, asks:
- Is the craft item made from at least 50% recycled or reclaimed materials?
- Is it well made? We market to high-end green consumers who hold "durability" as a cherished value. We also guarantee all the products we sell.
- Is it priced to pay you at least $12.50 an hour, after consignment? (Trillium pays artisans 60% of the list price for each retail item. This means that if you spend two hours making an item, you'd have to get $25, so the retail price would be at least $41, as $41 times 60% is $25. This can be tricky, as the perceived value of an item is not always high enough to get your living wage out of it.)
- Does it fit with Trillium's existing products and product lines: Home, Garden, Women's Accessories, Pets, Gifts, Apparel, and Children's items? Sorry, we are not currently selling 2D gallery art.
- Would our customers buy it at the price identified above?
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Visitors on a tour of the Association for Enterprise Opportunity volunteered to help with product review. These guys took their responsibility seriously, making sure the aprons were well made and a good fit! | |||
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Your responsibilities:
Once your products pass review, you will need to:
- Write a very short story to market yourself and your products.
- Tag your own items with story tags (artisan story and product story) as well as Trillium tags. Items without tags will not be marketed.
- Deliver consistent, high-quality products on time for both wholesale orders and retail events. By "consistent" we mean that products must be consistently well-made, durable, and in compliance with our other standards, even if they are one-of-a-kind.
- Provide photos of yourself and your products if you have them (for our website). If not, set up a time with staff to get your picture taken.
- Make appointments! No drop-ins - please call before you come by. If you swing by there's a very high chance that we're working with a customer or another artisan, or on deadline for a grant report. We try to be flexible, but calling ahead is a good business skill that we encourage.
- Volunteer at least 10 hours a year for Trillium. We don't charge a fee for what we do - instead we rely on grants and volunteers!
- Write a business plan (or, if you already have one, provide a copy to Trillium).
- Be prepared to work on your business! We don't do marketing for individual artisans - we only do marketing that benefits the group as a whole.
- Make a three-year commitment. We are funded to work with artisans for three years, after which time artisans may stay with us by paying a small sliding-scale annual membership fee.
- Be prepared to report your business income on a quarterly basis, and your total household and business income on an annual basis.
2009 Product Review Deadlines
January 23
February 20
May 22
June 26
July 24
September 25
October 23
Please submit samples of your work and completed product review applications prior to these deadlines. To submit, please make an appointment with Christine by calling 503.775.7993, or send an email to christine@trilliumartisans.org.
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Artisan Meetings
Artisans with products accepted for sale are invited to attend Trillium's monthly Artisan Meetings. Meetings cover such topics as sales, marketing, product photography, and options for setting up websites. Guest speakers include sales representatives, bloggers, career coaches, and successful craftspeople. These meetings are also potluck dinners, so please bring a dish, snack, and/or beverage to share. Meetings are held at the Trillium Artisans store on the last Wednesday evening of the month unless otherwise noted.
This project is funded in part by a grant from the Oregon Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.
2009 Artisan Meeting Schedule
January: No meeting
March: Reaching Customers Through Social Media
Date: Wed. March 11, 6:00 - 8:30 pm
Guest Speaker: "Sister" Diane Gilleland, of Craftypod, DIY Alert!, and the Church of Craft. You've probably heard about how important Twitter and Facebook are for building a business, but exactly how do they work? This class will show you the ins and outs of using these two social media tools effectively to help you reach new customers and stay present with existing ones. We'll talk about the basics of setting up accounts, but ideally, you've already spent a little time exploring each one. (There will be time after class if you'd like some one-on-one help to get started with these tools.) This meeting is open to the public for a suggested donation of $5 - $10. Please RSVP by contacting christine@trilliumartisans.org.
March: Peer Networking to Share Resources and Opportunities: Craft Shows, Wholesaling, Consignment, and more
Date: Wed. March 25, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
By artisan request, there will be no guest speaker for this meeting. Artisans are encouraged to share information, contacts, and tips about craft shows, consignment galleries, wholesaling opportunities, and other resources. Bring your questions about displaying your items in a booth, getting your work noticed by retailers, attending wholesale shows, etc. This will be a casual meeting where we can all pool our resources, brainstorm ideas, and share information with one another.
April: Press Release Workshop
Date: Tues. April 28, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Guest Speaker: Amanda Siska, of Bread and Badger, a Trillium Artisans member. Amanda will share her tips and tricks for creating a successful press release to get your art or craft noticed by blogs, newspapers, and magazines. This will be a hands-on workshop where everyone will have time to get help with writing their own press release. Amanda will also discuss web advertising and the use of websites such as flickr to help promote and market your online crafts business.
May: Resources from the Economic Opportunity Initiative
Date: Wed. May 27, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Guest Speakers: Aliza Kuperstock from Metropolitan Family Service (MFS), and Michael Gurton from the Oregon Microenterprise Network (OMEN). MFS and OMEN are two of Trillium's partners in the Economic Opportunity Initiative, and they will present information about their programs that are available for our artisans.
Aliza from MFS will present "Choices for a Healthy Financial Future," an overview of their program in which they provide individual coaching, mentoring and resources to participants that will enhance and improve their ability to:
Michael from OMEN will present the MarketLink program, which provides access to the following research tools:
June: Product Photography Workshop
Date: SATURDAY, June 13
Location: Address and time TBA
Guest Speaker: Lisa Gastelum, of TQB Designs.
Lisa does all the product photography for Trillium and offers individual lessons for our artisans. The workshop will be held at Lisa's studio, and it will be outdoors during the day (please note, it is on a Saturday) to make the best use of natural lighting. Learn to take better pictures of your handmade items to post on your website, blog, and/or Etsy shop. The workshop will cover backgrounds, lighting, staging, modeling, and effective use of your camera's settings, including the macro feature. Lisa will also provide some tips and tricks for photo editing, and share ideas for how to get your pictures noticed by potential customers. Participants will receive a detailed handout full of information on taking great pictures. Please bring your digital camera (if you have one) and at least one of your products to practice with.
July: Creative Business Identity
Date: Wed. July 29, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Location: SCRAP, 2915 NE MLK Jr. Blvd.
Click here for a map.
Visit SCRAP's website.
Guest Speaker: Gretchin Lair, of Scarlet Star Studios, and a Trillium Artisans board member.
Customers don't buy an object from you: they buy the story you present about how it was made, who made it and how they'll feel when they use it. So the time you spend working on your identity will affect every aspect of your creative business. Explore what you really love about your business and what makes you different from similar creative businesses. Then learn how to create a "basic message" about your business that is clear and engaging to your customers and peers.
This meeting is open to the public for a suggested donation of $5 - $10. If you are not a Trillium member and would like to register for this class, please do so by contacting SCRAP. You may pay in person at SCRAP with cash/check/charge, or call in a payment with a charge card to 503-294-0769, or pay when you arrive (first come, first served).
August: Potluck Picnic for Artisans!
Date: Wed. August 26, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
A chance for our artisans to get together, socialize, share a meal, and unwind in a relaxed, casual atmosphere. Bring your favorite dish and/or beverage! Location TBA.
September: Etsy Basics
Date: Wed. September 30, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
Guest Speakers: Christine Claringbold of Eye Pop Art and LeBrie Rich of PenFelt (Trillium members). This is a basic workshop designed to help artists and craftspeople to improve their business and marketing capacity, providing training on the use of Etsy.com for marketing and selling artwork and handmade items. The workshop will cover an overview of Etsy.com, keys to creating an aesthetically pleasing shop, getting seen by Etsy users, getting seen outside of Etsy, and a question & answer session.
November: Trillium Artisans Holiday Open House and Sale
Date: SATURDAY, November 14
This is a "meet-the-artisans" event! More details coming soon.
December: NO MEETING
Due to the busy holiday selling season, there will be no Artisan Meeting in December.
Please note, artisan meeting schedule is subject to change.
For more information or to make an appointment, please contact Christine Claringbold at Trillium Artisans, 503.775.7993, christine@trilliumartisans.org.