has anyone ever sold traditional handicrafts successfully. i have handicrafts from different countires, so do you think selling them would be profitable?

you mean on auction, or in a storefront?

I think the storefront makes it easier to present an image...you know, like the whole handicraft/natural/organic thing is big right now (in fact, I have a Gaiam catalog right here next to me at the moment).

I would think you'd have to be very choosy about what you'd pick to auction. None of the "loving hands made at home" look tends to do very well.

i am planning to put them up in storehouse section as it wouldnt be right on the part of the people who are making it as lot of hard work is put in making them and putting them for auction wont do much good

I agree, hand made items are sometimes looked down upon as being inferior. My ds makes handmade instruments, but that's a different ballgame altogether. They are a specialized item, so only people who are really looking for them will even go looking.

I think the hardest part about selling any kind of handicraft is getting a reasonable price for them, really, which extends to the issue of getting the appropriate traffic to your website or physical store. It takes some careful targeting of your marketing and the look and feel of your storefront (web or physical) is often key.

I've seen some kinds of handicraft sitting on store shelves gathering dust, but put the same things in an area where they're seen as luxuries or necessities in a storefront that presents them well to the target demo, and poof! they're flying off the shelves!

can you suggest any way by which i am able to sell them for right prices from my store.

Well, I can try--at least I'll give it a go!

First of all, define "right price"? What was the overall cost of the things for you, and do you want to make 100% back, or are you willing to eat part of your profit margin in order to sell these?

Do the goods have some kind marketing theme to them that you can use to find a theme for the whole thing on your website? Are you planning on opening a new site for these, or do you already have an established image you're working with?

I mean, at the very least, you can market them as all handicrafts, handmade by professional artisans from around the world, support them in their efforts to make a good living in their chosen artform, etc. If you're cutting your profit margin, you can even make a marketing point out of that, how you're helping in your own small way to keep these artisans producing their goods, etc.

Also, do you have good marketing materials for the items? Really good pictures? Really good copy? Often the right pictures are KEY. Make sure the lighting is excellent, the setting is perfect, etc. (One look at a catalog like http://gaiam.com/ or http://www.potterybarn.com can show you how to style your pictures to appeal to an upscale audience -- same with the copy.)

HTH. If you give me some ideas of what kind of products you have, I'd be happy to try and suggest some specific stuff instead of general... :)

Cat, you had some really good suggestions. I'll discuss them with my dh and see if there are some that we can use with his items. Thanks for the information and suggestions.

What does your husband make, mamab? Who buys them now? Who does he WANT to buy them? I'll be glad to be more specific if anyone wants to give me more info. I love doing this kind of stuff, it gives me practice for my own businesses! :)

in the beginning i will be content with selling them for what i have paid to get them. after my sales pick up i can price them better to get some margins. and those sites were pretty good. well what i have are the products from different tribes of different countries like various designs on bed sheets which are not common and have been made by traditional methods