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Scoot on in and check out this idea. Everyone needs to
buy Christmas gifts. Why not make it an event? You can sell crafts,
trinkets, collectables and more. This is an easy set up and can be held
the 1st week in December. You can collect items from our list of
wholesalers as well as a great place to get home items for less...shh! It
is a secret. Read on to see how.
Well, stuff. You have to have stuff to sell. Think about what your
household typically buys at Christmas time and what they have bought in the
past. It could be things from towels to trains to video games. Then
you always have Great Uncle Ernie and nobody knows what to get him. Well,
make a list, lots of lists. No spontaneous shopping here - you know what
I'm talking about. The point is to make money, so pull all your best
shoppers together and make a church Christmas list. Write down things they
usually buy, ages the gifts are for, inexpensive hobbies - such as scrap booking,
and prices your congregants can afford. You can divide items into categories
such as: Bakery, Toys, Baby, Home, Holiday, Hobbies, Soft Drinks, and more.
This is the tricky part. If your budget allows, you will need to spend
some of your children's ministry budget up front to purchase the items. We
sell BELOW WHOLESALE to churches! We have a Christmas brochure with full
color pages and descriptions to fill your fair. And if you still want more
items (like soda and cookies) try clubs like Sam's Club and COSCO. This way you get more
without breaking the bank. Also consider the old Christmas time favorites
- cookies, homemade fudge, brownies, cakes and pies. Ask if any congregants
would be willing to donate any of these items. Free is always good.
Always pair food with drinks...offer food on the way in and drinks on the way
out...you'll sell more. (Cookies and Fudge make people thirsty).
This is my secret weapon - shop BELOW WHOLESALE - with us. Over the years
I tracked down a fantastic vendor that sells below wholesale, has
quality items, a great return policy, low shipping rates, and excellent
packaging. And since our vendor is so great we can provide you with a selection
of merchandise with over 3,000 different items. (You may be wondering why
I became a wholesaler - fair question. I paid for the bulk of my ministry
degree by myself and I am the mother of two precious children. Selling
wholesale allows me to pay off my student debt that I accrued to get my ministry
degree, while I can stay at home with my children and give more time to
church. College is insanely expensive). There is no membership fee,
items are guaranteed to be spectacular, and we have everything from Christmas ornaments
to Winnie the Pooh plush toys.
This could make or break your fundraiser. Be careful to plan it in late November
or early December and let everyone know at least 3 weeks ahead of time it is
coming. Silence will be your biggest adversary here. And people have
a way of being out of town at this time of year so they may not hear all your
announcements. We suggest you have a Christmas Fair team that meets together
in early October, makes the list, sets a tentative date, and confirms that
people will be in town that day. Then 3-4 weeks ahead of time start
telling people about the fair. Keep a raw count of who is coming.
Make sure you tell them proceeds benefit the children's ministry and there is no
obligation to buy anything. One week ahead of time send out a postcard to
each family if funding permits. Tell all about it, list the date, time,
location and prices.
This is the fun part. Find you party people - the ones that play Christmas
music at Halloween and borrow their CDs. Use the largest room in your
church and fill it with tables, stands and lattice all hanging with items to
buy. The key is to make the room "look" full - not
crammed. An empty room has a way of making people walk out thinking there
wasn't anything there. Make sure you fill the ceiling with streamers - red
and green, use lots of Christmas lights, and get those empty spaces filled with
still live scenes, photographs, or whatever Christmas stuff you can.
Stagger heights of items on tables. Try to make everything easy to see
without coming over to the table. Place signs over major areas like TOYS,
HOME, BABY, HOBBY, and more. Place food items at the entrance so people
will eat while they shop. Sell soft drinks at the door as they
leave...cookies make you thirsty. (Buy soda at Sam's - it's cheap).
Make sure all your booth workers are smiling and happy.
Since this is for the children's ministry odds are you will have parents with
kids wandering around. Wouldn't it be a great idea to entertain the kids
to let parents shop? A pleasant shopping experience for Mom means she will
look and browse and buy more stuff, talk to her friends and just have a better
time. You should consider hiring babysitters for this event or use your
youth group. Have the kids get into the Christmas spirit too by watching
Christmas movies and playing games. Have hot (warm) cocoa for them and
cookies. Make it as much fun as possible for everyone.
Your primary goal is to raise funds for the children's ministry. That
means you need to think of how people prefer to spend their money...in an empty
listless room, or in a vivacious colorful place that accommodates to their
needs. When shopping is a positive experience people look forward to doing
it again. When it is a drag and bleak, good luck trying this again.
The funny thing is we pay for ambiance and atmosphere. Who cares that piece
of cake was $7.50 when you had so much fun eating it? And is eating ever a
fun thing? Well, it depends on where you are. The same goes for
shopping. When it's fun you'll spend more and not regret doing it.
So atmosphere and profit goes hand in hand...you want higher profits, then kick
up your ambiance a level and see what happens.
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