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Post Info TOPIC: Monday Rant
EmmDee


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Monday Rant
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I belong to a number of local artist/Etsy/craft vendor type of Facebook groups.  Recently we had discussions about copying and what point makes it wrong in the craft/art world.  My stance on it is there are really few innovative things in the craft/art world when it comes to technique and there will be a lot of overlap in tastes and we all get inspired by the things we see in the world.  Some times it may be seeing an item and having it trigger an idea for something in your own product line.  The combinations of technique, style, and inspiration can cause some similar items.

Now, there were some who were very adamant against "copying" and how you should never do anything like some thing you have seen somewhere.  One in particular makes pasta, isn't that innovative?  Flavored pasta, hmm, I think I see that in stores everywhere.  There is another lady in our are who now does pasta too.  They names are kind of similar, one has Texas, another has Austin in it and both have gourmet pasta.  Okay, still no big deal to me.  The first lady BASHES the second at every chance she can get about how she is a copycat. 

Now, to my rant.  This same woman has more than once posted a photo of something along with "can anyone make me this" in these groups.  How is that not copying?  That is taking some one's creation via photo and asking some one else to copy it.  I guess as long as it doesn't hurt her sales and helps her pocketbook by saving her money, it is a-ok.  Ugh, some of these women are just so damned catty that I want to leave the groups but then I lose the resources that I get out of 10% of the group.

 

Add your own rants if you wish



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Desdenova


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Yeah I think that the lady asking "can anyone make this" is asking to copy, and she has a double standard going on. Since the other lady making the same thing she does affects her then it's wrong.

I have no rants!

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EmmDee


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It is just interesting to see double standards at work. I try hard to take a step back and check myself for double standards. When I find I am guilty of one I try to reconcile my POV to eliminate it.

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Aardvark


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She's just trying to eliminate the competition!

I don't think I could do craft shows if I ever decided to sell my stuff. I currently donate the bulk of my jewelry to our church's women's group to sell and I do work the town festival that's our main fundraiser. Another jewelry artist kept coming over, checking out my display, my designs, etc., and while I didn't mind, I'm only a hobbyist, just the way she acted was on my nerves. She was fairly hostile that we were selling jewelry, even though our styles were completely different. Maybe it was because mine was priced significantly less than hers.

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EmmDee


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I bet that is it, the lower price thing. It is a different ball game once you venture into selling true retail. I have to charge more than I used to now so that I have a wholesale and a retail price. I also spend a lot of time advertising so I have to count that as time worked. I hope to make this into a real business that we can some day use as a retirement thing or some thing that will allow us to relocate and DH do his IT consulting and me do the stone thing. It is hard to compete with someone who does it as a hobby and not as real income.

It was interesting at our first month at market days. We had reserved our July spot months out to secure it. We are setting up and there is another engraved stone/etched glass booth across the aisle and one down. We are the only two vendors in the whole 6 barn, 360 booths plus lots of outdoor vendors who engrave stones and we were right across from each other. My heart dropped for a while until I realized there are tons of jewelry vendors out there, we use similar techniques but have our own design style so it would just push us to each do our best. I was actually sad when she stopped coming after the holidays.

I hate that she (pasta lady) is trying to eliminate the competition with her tacky statements. I would refer people to the other stone lady because her husband did larger stones than I want to mess with and she had a different process for glass that allows different detail than I can do.

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RichardInTN


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People like that complaining woman are TOTALLY "rant worthy"!

I could see having an issue if your craft/product/service was something entirely unique... but... it's pasta. Every friggin store in the country sells pasta. Is she complaining about/to them too (I wonder how the managers at the stores take her complaints if she does... LOL)?

You have the right idea on how to deal with customers that want/need something you don't/can't provide. Most (if not all) of them will remember that you pointed them in the right direction and if you phrase your "they can do that" pass-on just right, they will consider YOU when when they need/want something you do provide/do.

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EmmDee


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I have no problem telling them what I can and can't. If it is clear what they are wanting isn't something I can provide, I won't try to convince them to settle for what I can do and then have them be unhappy.

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Balloon Animal


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Yeah you are probably not that creative for stuff like that and yes, someone will probably be making something similar even without attempting to copy you and you can get over it. But intentionally copying someone is bad.

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Ivy. That is silly

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