Craft Show Prep and Profit Tracker
A profitable craft-show booth turns on four numbers: pre-show break-even, the packing checklist that prevents leaving with no signage, in-show conversion data, and a post-show reconciliation that subtracts every cost. This printable workbook has all four — print one per event.
A printable workbook for makers, bakers, and creators selling at juried craft shows, holiday markets, and farmers markets. Walks through the numbers most vendors don't run until it's too late: the break-even calculation you should do before you mail the application, the booth-setup and packing list that keeps the truck from leaving without the price cards, the five numbers worth tracking during the show, and the post-show reconciliation that turns "I think the weekend went well" into a defensible profit-per-event number. One sheet per event — print, fill, and file.
- Pre-show break-even math: booth fee, travel, lodging, supplies, average ticket, gross margin, conversion — solved for the unit count you need to clear
- Application & jury-fee tracker so the upfront cost of getting accepted shows up in the per-show math
- Booth setup and packing checklist — tent, weights, tables, lighting, payment system, signage, change, bags — so nothing gets left at the studio
- Pricing-tier worksheet: anchor piece, mid-tier, and stocking-stuffer price points proven to lift conversion at juried shows
- In-show tracking grid: revenue by hour, transactions, top sellers by units and dollars, email captures, honest conversion estimate
- Post-show reconciliation: cash and card vs. inventory variance, true profit calc, three-axis show score, and a "re-apply / skip / scale" decision line
Pre-show break-even math
Before you mail the application, calculate break-even: (booth fee + jury fee + travel + lodging + meals + supplies) ÷ (average ticket × gross margin × estimated conversion rate) = units you need to sell to clear costs. A $250 booth fee, $80 jury fee, $120 travel, $20 average ticket, 60% gross margin, and 5% conversion rate works out to needing 75 units sold from foot traffic of 1,500 — a hard but plausible target.
If the math says you need to sell more units than the show's expected attendance allows, the show is structurally unprofitable. The application should not get mailed.
The five numbers worth tracking during the show
Hourly revenue — peak hours and slow hours guide booth staffing, lunch breaks, and the decision to attend a Saturday-only vs. weekend show next year. Transactions per hour — the conversion-rate signal. Top sellers by units and dollars — the SKUs to bring more of next time. Email captures — the post-show follow-up list, which usually outearns the show itself by month two. Conversion rate (transactions ÷ booth visits) — your honest read on whether the show was the right audience.
Track these on the in-show grid in real time, not from memory after the show. Memory inflates good numbers and softens bad ones.
Or skip the spreadsheet entirely
Print the tracker for your next show and you'll know whether the weekend was worth it. Run it for a season inside Ardent Seller and the per-event profit, year-over-year show comparison, and customer list build themselves — booth inventory in, sales out, true profit on Monday.
Multi-location inventory
Tag a show as a sales location, count inventory in and out of the booth, and see exactly what came home unsold.
Per-event profit reporting
Roll booth fees, mileage, lodging, COGS, and processing fees into a single profit-per-event number — the metric every show decision turns on.
Pricing tiers & customer list
Apply retail and wholesale markups in one click, capture buyer details at the booth, and keep your follow-up list with the rest of your sales data.
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if a craft show was profitable?
Subtract every cost from gross sales: booth fee, jury/application fee, travel and lodging, meals, supplies, mileage at the IRS rate, packaging, and your hourly time (setup + show hours + breakdown × your hourly rate). The remainder is true profit per event. Most makers stop at "gross sales − booth fee" and miss the real number; the post-show reconciliation page in this tracker walks all of them.
How much should I charge at a craft show?
Use the same retail prices you charge online, with three pricing tiers visible at the booth: an anchor piece (highest-priced item, sets the brand quality), mid-tier ($15–35 for impulse buys), and a stocking-stuffer price point ($5–10 for the "I have to buy something" customer). Studies of juried shows consistently show the three-tier display lifts conversion 15–25% over a single price point.
What inventory should I bring to a craft show?
Bring 2–3× the units of your break-even target across your top 10 SKUs by recent sales velocity, with deeper stock in the mid-tier price band. A common rookie mistake is bringing one of every product — buyers want to see depth (multiple of the same item) and feel the booth is established. Better to bring 30 of 5 SKUs than 5 of 30.
How do I track conversion rate at a craft show?
Count "engaged visitors" (people who picked something up or asked a question, not just walked past) for a 30-minute sample twice per day, divide transactions during that window by engaged visitors, and you have a conversion rate. Healthy conversion at a juried show is 5–15%; under 5% suggests pricing, signage, or audience fit needs work; above 15% suggests you should raise prices.
Related resources
Craft Seller Startup Checklist
36 things to set up before — and after — your first sale. Inventory, pricing, and the legal essentials in one place.
End-of-Month Closeout Checklist
Seven steps to a clean monthly close — sales reconciliation, inventory counts, expense review, P&L, planning, reordering, and backup. Print one each month.
Monthly Inventory Count Sheet
Three sections, one page. Print, count, and reconcile raw materials, finished goods, and packaging — with expected, actual, and variance columns.
Small-Batch Production Planning Playbook
A printable six-page playbook for handmade-goods producers — five planning principles, the demand-driven batch-sizing formula, and four worksheets for sizing, run logging, weekly WIP, and post-run audit.
Jewelry Maker's Cost-Per-Piece Calculator
A working Excel cost-per-piece calculator for handcrafted jewelry — metals by the gram, gemstones by the piece or carat, findings, chain, labor in minutes, and gift-wrap in; per-piece fully-loaded cost plus suggested retail and wholesale out. Defaults stamped with a date so metals-price staleness is visible.
From the blog
Articles that dig deeper into the topics this tool covers.
Selling at Juried Craft Shows: How to Apply, Price for the Booth Fee, and Actually Profit From a Weekend
Juried craft shows are not bigger farmers markets. The booth fee is five times higher, the customer is different, and the break-even math has to be done before you mail the application — not after the truck is unloaded. Here is the real walkthrough: applying, pricing for the venue, booth setup, running the weekend, and the post-show step almost everyone skips.
10 Farmers Market Mistakes That Are Costing You Money
Farmers markets feel profitable — until you count the real numbers. Here are 10 common mistakes market vendors make that silently drain profits, and how to fix each one.
6-Month Holiday Runway: Q4 Production Planning for Farmers Market Vendors
Black Friday is 28 weeks away. The vendors who clear in December are the ones doing quiet, unglamorous work in May. Here is the month-by-month production calendar.