If you’re considering starting a crafts business or already own one and are looking to attract more customers, you will need to be very clear about who your ideal customer is. This will help you define marketing strategies that will appeal to your market and make them more likely to buy from you.

So who is the target market for a craft business?

The answer depends on the type of craft business.

Crafts businesses can range from making and selling jewelry to scrapbooking to quilting. There are a wide variety of markets for each type of business. For example, someone who sells jewelry may target a market of fashion-conscious women aged 18-35, while someone who scrapbooks may target a market of parents and grandparents who want to preserve family memories.

Knowing your target market is essential to running a successful craft business. So, let’s dive in and study the target market for a craft business.

Different Types of Craft Businesses

Before we can discuss the target market for craft businesses, it will be useful if we simply list the different types of crafts businesses that exist. This is important because different types of craft businesses have different target markets.

Target market for a craft business
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So here are 10 examples of craft businesses:

  1. Jewelry Making
  2. Scrapbooking
  3. Quilting
  4. Sewing
  5. Painting
  6. Glass Blowing
  7. Pottery
  8. Soap Making
  9. Candle Making
  10. Woodworking

… and many more

Who is the Target Market for a Craft Business?

Now that we have seen the different types of craft businesses that are possible, you can imagine that the market for each business will be different.

However, we can find commonalities between different kinds of people who buy crafts. In this section, we will focus on these commonalities to understand the target market for a craft business.

This gives us the following customer segments for crafts:

  1. People who like a specific type of craft being sold by a craft business
  2. People who like handcrafted/unique items
  3. People who are looking for a specific item that they cannot find in stores
  4. People who like to support small businesses or local businesses
  5. People who want to give a unique or handmade gift
  6. Tourists visiting a new region or country
  7. A Souvenir Shop looking for local crafts to sell

Let’s look closely at each of these customer segments.

#1. People who like a specific type of craft being sold by a craft business

People are always in the market for specific things that a craft business might make. So, if you sell a specific type of craft that someone’s looking for, then they may be interested in buying it from you.

For example, let’s say you own a jewelry-making business. Some people who like jewelry may visit your store or website specifically because they are looking for jewelry. Likewise, if you own a handmade pottery business, your target market will be people looking for handmade pottery.

So this segment of the target market for a craft business includes people who are specifically interested in the type of craft being sold by the business.

#2. People who like handcrafted/unique items

Many people like to buy handcrafted or unique items. This is because these items are often seen as being more special than mass-produced items.

If you sell handcrafted or unique items, then your target market will be people who appreciate these things. For example, if you make quilts by hand, your target market will be people who like the idea of owning a quilt that was made by somebody rather than a machine. Or someone looking for candles may walk into a craft store that carries hand-poured candles from a local artisan.

So this segment of the target market for a craft business includes people who appreciate handcrafted or unique items.

#3. People who are looking for a specific item that they cannot find in stores

Before going to a craft business or a craft store, most people will look for the item they want in a regular store. However, if they are not able to find the item then they will look for it in a craft store.

So this segment of the target market for a craft business includes “rebound customers”. They don’t care as much where they buy the item they want as long as they get them. This is the type of customer that large stores target by having an area devoted to crafts – many of them are just made to look handmade or artistically made but are made by machines.

#4. People who like to support small businesses or local businesses

Many people like to support small businesses or local businesses. This is because they feel good about supporting the community.

If you are a small business or a local business, then this segment of your target market will be people who like to support businesses like yours. These people go out of their way to buy locally-made products.

These people are less interested in what crafts your business makes or whether they really need another quilt or handmade soap or piece of jewelry but they will buy it nonetheless to support a local business.

Such customers are great to sell to during the holidays because they are more likely to buy multiple items or give your craft business as gifts to others.

#5. People who want to give a unique or handmade gift

When someone’s looking for a unique or handmade gift, they will usually look for a craft business to buy it from. This is could be a piece of handmade jewelry or a quilt that was made by somebody.

Many people like giving unique, handmade gifts because it a way to show that they care about the person to whom they are giving the gift.

#6. Tourists visiting a new region or country

When visiting a new region or country many tourists like to buy souvenirs. This could be anything from a postcard to a handcrafted local work of art.

If a region is known for its handicraft, art or local artisanal items tourists are more likely to buy one in a local, crafts store rather than in a large supermarket.

For instance, those visiting the town of Delft in Holland would want to buy a piece of Delftware – the traditional, hand-painted blue and white pottery from that region.

Similarly, someone visiting the American Southwest might want to buy a Navajo rug or a piece of Native American jewelry. So this segment of the target market for a craft business includes tourists visiting a new region or country.

#7. A Souvenir Shop looking for local crafts to sell

Souvenir shops are always on the lookout for local crafts to sell. This is because they know that tourists are looking for souvenirs from the places they visit.

If you have a crafts business, you should contact every souvenir shop in your neighborhood and ask them to carry your products. If they are unwilling to buy them outright consider offering your products on consignment for a while until sales take off.

Getting your craft products into souvenir shops can be the fastest way to get them in front of tourists who are the main customers of a souvenir shop.

Conclusion

The target market for a craft business varies depending on the craft being sold, the location of the business and the channels that the business uses to get its products to market.

Some examples of crafts that can be sold by a crafts business include jewelry, quilts, pottery, candles, and paintings.

The target market for a craft business range from people looking for a specific craft to those looking for a special gift, from those wanting to support a local business to souvenir shops looking to stock up on locally made crafts for tourists.