Selling self-made craft items on Amazon

By Sharon Fussell, October 10, 2013

Having been brought up in a family of talented ‘crafters’, I have to admit that my late father and myself have not made a great contribution to this field.

If I attempted to knit, my creation was only ever fit for a church because it was always ‘holey’!

Recently, on my birthday, two of my birthday cards were self-made by my very ‘crafty’ sisters.

They must spend hours creating cards for friends and family. I note they have labels or stamps with their names on – very professional.

Over the years I have noticed an improvement on the standards of the cards they create, looking less amateurish every year, as they hone their craft.

I envy them their patience; making cards would not float my boat:

• crafts are not my strong suit;

• I would just not find the time.

Both sisters inform me that they often get asked to create cards for friends to give to their respective family members or friends. Because they can tailor-make and adapt cards to suit, they are held in high esteem.

This also tells me there is a demand for unique, bespoke items.

My sisters must spend hours collecting bits and pieces to create the cards. I think my one sister has a personal account at the pound store (just kidding!).

They find and use all sorts of products to create a card – for example dental floss makes great fishing line when creating a card for hobbies relating to angling.

I know my mother was a very talented knitter – she would spend hours either machine-knitting or hand-knitting, following patterns or creating and designing her own fashion items.

However, although she would sell her products on a regular basis, if you calculated how much she received after buying materials and time spent creating the item, she was probably paid about 10p an hour!

But I am aware it’s not always about money – I know crafts are created through love, and I guess hobbies can be therapeutic, but it’s such a shame that many well-made, often unique products are difficult to sell online.

However, if you do create sellable, quality products, are you aware it is possible to sell them on Amazon?

Most products on Amazon do require an EAN number, but you are able to buy them, apparently for around £4 for 10.

Additionally, Amazon often waive the need for EAN numbers for self-made products.

If you need extra clarification on this matter, try contacting Seller Central.

If you want to try and self-list a self-made product, go to your seller account and choose the link to ‘add a product’.

There are a plethora of choices: pick one that most fits your product genre.

Take photos – the more images you show in regards to your product the better.

Also, write a good description and add lots of key words that will aid any search by customers for your product.

Why not have a go?

Good luck.