Export Readiness
Work in Culture in partnership with Craft Ontario
Are you considering selling your work internationally? Wondering where to start?
Work in Culture teamed up with Craft Ontario to produce a series of video tips and resources to help artists and craftspeople prepare for exporting their work internationally.
Topics include:
- Networking Internationally
- Researching Your Markets
- Online Sales
- Shipping
- Policies and Pricing
- Working with Customs
Tip 1: Invest In Your Artistic Development
Tip 2: Diversify Your Practice
Tip 3: Building Your Network
Tip 4: Researching Your Markets
Tip 5: Learning How To Sell
Tip 6: Make Shipping Easy
Tip 7: Build A Community
Tip 8: Customer Service
Tip 9: Customs And Borders
Craft Ontario Team
Andrea Graham is a multimedia artist residing in rural Ontario, Canada. Andrea exhibits, teaches and lectures internationally and is recognized for her technical skill and innovation. Andrea is a 2013 Niche Award Finalist as well as being named as one of the top influences in contemporary fibre art by Fiber Art Now magazine. Her work is included in the Sonny Kamm collection and three of her sculptures have recently been acquired by the Bronfman family for the Claridge Inc. corporate art collection. Her work has been shown in Museums in Canada, U.S.A., France and Italy and in many international exhibitions and galleries. andrea-graham.com
Heather Shaw received most of her training as an artist outside of the city. Always knowing that she would go into the arts, she began by studying fine art but chose to concentrate on textiles and the art of functional objects for the home. p i ‘ l o was started while still at art school (twenty years ago) and has evolved over the years as Heather settled in her birthplace of Toronto. Always based on a cottage industry model of producing and sourcing everything locally, the business has remained small and true to its simple vision of creating long lasting pieces that would make people happy. The downtown studio was replaced with a coach house studio behind the Victorian home where she lives with her partner, two boys and where deliveries and outgoing orders come and go quietly as she supplies to over 400 stores in North America. Heather’s work, art, business and family are all intertwined into a common preoccupation with process, lifestyle and the reintegration of hand-made objects into our daily lives and she feels very lucky to be doing what she does. pilo.ca
Kim McBrien Evans is a lifelong textile artist and educator, fluent in dyeing, surface design, knitting, spinning, embroidery, contemporary basketry and sculptural textiles. Kim’s career has straddled both the creative and business management side of the arts world. She has held a number of positions in arts and not-for-profit organizations such as Visual Arts Ontario, the Arts Network for Children and Youth, the Laidlaw Foundation, Arts Council~Haliburton Highlands and the Nathaniel Dett Chorale. She has also served on faculty at the Haliburton School of The Arts, teaching Marketing, Presentation and Portfolio courses. indigodragonfly.ca
Emma Quin has developed valuable and healthy relationships with the cultural sector. She has an important grasp of Craft Ontario’s history as an organization, and understands issues and concerns faced by craftspeople. Emma’s leadership and dedication to the organization have instituted major changes. Specifically, in terms of the organization’s overall financial health, she is recognized for accurate budgeting practices in both creating and managing a $1.7 million operating budget. She has also initiated a revitalized engagement between the organization, makers, and the public. Emma has helped Craft Ontario redefine its goals and business practice, as well as what it delivers and how it functions — effectively making Craft Ontario a valuable cultural institution that gives back to the community. craftontario.com
Special thanks to Sara Washbush. sarahwashbush.com
