04/04/11, 05:46 PM
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Join Date: May 2009
Location: Central New York State
Posts: 5,694
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I have been a crafter in a crafting co-op before and can tell you what my experience has been and what I observed.
When you sell homemade things, most folks want them to look homemade. Some use paper packaging/labels as opposed to shrink wrap. One exception would be gift baskets...those should be shrinkwrapped for the pretty factor!
If you will be selling homemade soaps at a farmers market, then you probably needn't bother with shrink wrap. But if you want to sell to a boutique, then shrink wrap or cello bags might be preferable because stores often have items on the shelf for a while and the scents may dissipate.
For potpourri, cello bags work really well, but paper bags do not because they leach the scented oil away from the product.
For food products, the items should look as close to what people are used to getting at the grocery store. Sheeple will talk a good game about wanting things to be natural but will freak out on you if they receive something outside of their scope of knowledge. So if a comparable product is generally wrapped in plastic wrap, then yours should be, too. Eggs should be in an egg carton, etc...
If you are making something to decorate the home, pay close attention to the colors that you choose. If you use funky colored fabric, then it may not sell well for you.
I always liked to include informational material in with my products. This was great for explaining anything that a consumer might need to know (ingredients, what makes my product superior, care, handling, etc...). A brochure or business card can help by encouraging repeat business.
I will look around to see who I've used in the past for packaging supplies. My focus was a little more on "gift" type items so my packaging sources will probably reflect that.
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