Design, Create, and Build in Your Retirement Years

Posted by Donna Mae Scheib on November 07, 2017

Design, Create, and Build in your Retirement Years

How Doug and Kathy Uecker became sellers of fine woodwork pieces

Doug Uecker, 74, and Kathy Uecker, 71, of Council Bluffs, Iowa have been married for 51 years. They both grew up on farms in South Dakota before moving to Omaha, Nebraska for college in the mid-1960s. Throughout the years, their family has grown to include three daughters, seven grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, with two more greats on the way. In 1980, they began their adventure in selling their handmade woodwork in craft shows. The Ueckers have invested money, time and hard work into their crafts and both still are enjoying their hobby 37 years later.

Doug has always been interested in woodwork—he built his first bookcase in his high school shop class when he was 17 years old. After that, through trial and error over various projects, he began to collect many of the tools and necessities for a functional work shop. Before they began selling woodwork at craft shows, a hobby of the Ueckers was maintaining their aviary, selling birds and bird supplies. It was during this time that Doug began to build nest boxes for the showcases that they attended. This started the Ueckers’s learning about supply and demand, good knowledge to have for their future efforts at craft shows.

When they first started out as vendors at craft shows, they attended 12-14 events per year. Many of these events were located at schools and churches for one or two days. Now, the Ueckers typically go to only four or five shows per year, though these tend to be larger, three-day events held in event centers. They find that woodwork is still a popular product to buy at craft shows. The Ueckers often receive compliments about the finished look of their products like that they could be found at a furniture store.

Some of their most popular and unique pieces include the following:

• A furniture piece that holds single- or double-tall kitchen trash cans
• Jewelry chests
• Sofa tables
• End tables
• Lazy Susans
• Armoires
• Flag stands
• Wooden box banks with antique US Post office mail fronts

Other miscellaneous items that they have sold in the past include the following:

• Marshmallow toy gun shooters made from PBC pipe
• Various cork board pieces used for hot plates or bulletin boards
• Button dolls with sewn dresses, button arms and legs and painted faces
• Bread boxes
• Game pieces for games like Tic-Tac-Toe or peg pyramid games

Joining in on the craft show fun

Doug and Kathy love sharing with other retired seniors that participating as sellers in craft shows can be a fun hobby. As Doug notes, “It’s a way to socialize and a reason to get out of bed in the morning to start working on your craft projects.” Doug and Kathy both agree that the craft show environment is typically not a competitive place. Most craft show coordinators allow for distance between vendors selling comparable products throughout the venue space to avoid competitive clustering.

If you have a craft or project you’re interested in selling or if you’re interested in trying a new hobby, the Ueckers recommend attending a few local craft shows or farmers markets to see what’s out there and get an idea of ways you could personalize the products you see. Then, when you’re ready to start selling your own goods, start with one or two small shows to see how you like it.

Helpful advice to get started as a craft show vendor

If you’re thinking of starting a new adventure as a craft fair vendor, Doug has some advice. “Be sure that your craft is something that you enjoy doing. You aren’t going to be making a fortune doing it, so the projects that you are working on should be fun.” He also recommends thinking about the following:

• One of the hardest parts of the craft show is the prep work: loading, unloading, setting up and packing up at the end of day. If you are by yourself, many craft shows will have volunteers to assist you with prep work. Don’t be afraid to ask for help!
• For the larger craft shows (and some smaller ones, too) you will likely be charged for your space. If you need tables or a plug in for electricity, these may also cost extra.
• Consider mobile technology to help receive payments like iPads with credit card attachments or portable, easy-to-use card machines. Remember—many people don’t have cash when coming to these events and it would be a shame to lose a sale because you’re unable to accept their payment method.
• While you may feel your product sells itself, it’s still a good idea to try and create conversation with passersby to inspire them to view your booth and ask questions!
• For a three-day event, don’t be disappointed if you don’t have many sales the first day. Often people spend their first day checking out what’s available, returning later to buy.
• Handmade items are normally considered best at these events. People are often looking for personally crafted items rather than store-bought items that have been painted or “dressed up.”
• Listen to customer feedback—it’s a great way to get ideas for new projects, especially when potential customers request something custom made.
• Fall events are usually the busiest as attendees are often looking for holiday season gifts.

Project Ideas

Need help getting started with a craft idea? Here’s a list of common items sold at events—don’t be afraid to try something new or check out the internet for more great ideas!

• Wood work
• Jewelry
• Wine making
• Cheese
• Baked goods
• Baby products (bibs, blankets, onesies, etc.)
• Doll clothes/accessories for popular brand-named dolls
• Decorative wine bottles
• Quilts
• Metal work
• Holiday items like pillows, ornaments, wreaths
• Cutting boards
• Leather work

Don’t want to sell, but are interested in going to a craft show? If you live in a senior living community, see if transport can be arranged for a group to attend a nearby shows!

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