Hello,

I set up my business - Evanga Boutique 6 months ago and I am listed as an Evanga Artist. I have an idea I would like to put forward to you and hopefully get some feedback in return if I may have some of your time.

The idea:

I want to set up a new programme called Evanga Fair Trading - arts, craft and design
which would encourage the use of art for charity, as well as supporting and promoting emerging artists worldwide. The aim of this is to support local artists by providing a platform for them to sell their work and promote their skills. This can be achieved by allowing artists to use the online boutique, helping them to create an online presence through online galleries and artist networks and creating an opportunity for them to sell through a catalogue which I plan to have within the next year or so. The catalogue would be distributed by ourselves. Artwork can range from paintings to greetings cards to jewellery to pottery.


The reason for this is that I feel there could be a lot more to be done to support new artists. My council tend to pass the buck and I am having to go to Farnham for the support I am looking for. My experiences of living in Tasmania - Australia (Artists state) as taught me so much in the way of how we could support artists in any stage of their careers. The capital Hobart hosts one of the most famous art markets in the world and have several organisations and charities dedicated to supporting artists. Their council actively promotes the arts and are heavily involved form what I saw. Hobart proves to me that hundreds of artists can live and work together - There always seems to be room for one more.

How could this idea be profitable?

The idea has potential to make money for artists involved. Of course it all depends on how well we all pitch in to promote it and how well I run it. If no money is made, there isn’t anything at loss for the artists involved and I would encourage them to continue to selling their artwork through their websites or retail outlets along with selling on my website. For artists, exposure is just as important as making money. Exposure is what I promise to give (I can organise exhibitions, community projects and help you create an online presence as well as get the media interested in your work. The idea won’t make money for me to start with, but I need to make enough to keep it running. I plan to take 15% from each product sold (Simply by adding 15% to the artist’s asking price) The 15% would the be spilt in half. Half going back into Evanga to continue to support artists and half going towards a nominated charity we would choose.

Why sell to support charity as well as Evanga?
I believe that artists now have to find a unique angle to pitch themselves from so that they stand out amongst the crowds. This is traditionally done through the type of work we create, but this is getting so much harder as there are now more artists to compete with and it is costing more money to get our art out there - through staging huge exhibitions and instillations to creating an online presence. So I am seeking other angles. One of these is to use my artwork to support a charity. The chances of selling are higher if a charity is involved. This could be from donating a percentage of the profit to donating a painting in return for a two page article about yourself in a local paper (This could then lead to commissions) More and more people are buying charity cards and charities are beginning to realise that raffle tickets are not as popular anymore and are looking for fresh ways to generate money.
My Exhibition in November at the Slug and Lettuce Bar was originally meant to be a place where I could put my work up. There was to be no private viewing so it wasn’t really an exhibition. The Slug simply wanted pictures to freshen up the pub and they could do this by supporting local artists. I asked the manager if I could host a private viewing that could be used to support Hampshire Deaf Association. This was agreed as it would raise exposure for them as well. The Slug paid and designed the postcards and provided half priced drinks for the charity buy to give away as free drinks. The charity provided goodie bags and prizes and sent out press releases. The pub also organised for the staff to learn sign language and set up the fun and games. All I had to do was paint. I was interviewed by the Hampshire Chronicle newspaper and gained exposure. I did send out some press releases myself as I knew a few journalists from other projects and admittedly this generated the best response. I really didn’t have to do as much as I expected. The hard part is getting other cafes and bars to do the same thing, but I am currently working with The Hampshire Chronicle to help me do this.


How would the idea work and why do I want to do this?
The artists who sell through Evanga Boutique will be known as Evanga Artists. This simply helps to promote the brand, business and raise awareness. Artists would be sent to the customer by the artist themselves - Think of eBay, to ensure the items are packaged accordingly and with insurance etc.
Unfortunately for most artists, art does not make money. I am not in this to make money. (If I was, I would have taken a higher commission and not opted to donate to charity) I set up my business to enable myself to sell my art online and promote my skills in graphic design. I decided to sell Fair Trade gifts (because they are so beautiful) to get people interested in the website. This would be phased out and replaced with handmade products created by my own artists. Unfortunately at the moment the boutique isn’t generating enough money and I am looking for a part-time job to do on the side. It would be unfair on the business and myself to close it so soon after starting (6 months) so I would rather keep it going and use it to support other artists in the hope that we can all help each other - Why? Because I am set up to do so and so I might as well put it to good use and if it starts generating a profitable income for myself in years to come then that would be a bonus and then I can do more to help myself and other artists.

How would this idea succeed?
This idea relies on artists as well as myself to help it succeed. To help promote it which can easily be done whilst promoting our own work. It relies on all of us to help support other artists by sharing our ideas, tips and success stories (This can easily be done online and via a newsletter which I can easily put together)

First steps first:
First I need to test this idea out and hear your own ideas to find out if there is a need for this and how I could improve the idea to benefit you further (And of course to find out if it is worth me perusing.)
I think this idea could work for art students and new artists like ourselves who may not have the confidence to approach art galleries or even sell our work in the first place. It is frustrating when a gallery owner turns you down without even looking through the rest of your portfolio in 1 minute flat or when a crafts shop finds your work too arty. I set up my business because it gives me control on how I sell my work, what work I choose to sell and more importantly I control how much goes in my pocket. It doesn’t cost much to sell via the internet once you are set up and if you know your way around and you haven’t got gallery owners and other professionals hindering your progress. This gives myself more freedom and I‘d like to offer that freedom to others.

Sorry I hadn’t planned to write this much! I would greatly appreciate a response from you.

Thank you for your time!

Donna Vokes