Art galleries could be one of the best options to start a new business. They attract people like critics, collectors, students, and even the general public. After all, it connects the creative world with the business world. If you want to start an art gallery business with calligraphy pens paintings or others, here are tips that can help you to set up your business.
- Planning Holds the Key
Planning is at the forefront of every business idea. No business can thrive without proper planning, therefore you need to consider some of the following points to plan out your art gallery venture.
- Survey the Market: Take a survey of what is available in your area and what are the requirements of your business. You may get some guidance from a senior artist who will help you in getting an idea of the size, scope and vision of this business.
- Keep a Clear and Broader Vision: If you want your venture to be successful, you should have a clear vision of what you want to achieve. A well-elaborated vision highlights the basic purpose behind the launch of the business and identifies the needs of the art gallery. Design your space and choose artwork that will attract clients. You should keep an eye on what other art galleries do to expand their reach. However, it doesn’t mean to change your direction, especially if your art gallery fails to make big bucks in the initial stage.
- Flaunt Your Expertise: Collect all the information about the type of artwork you will have in your art gallery. You can always visit galleries of similar artwork or browse through their websites to have a better idea of their expertise. This way you will know how you can stand out from the crowd.
- Get Space for the Gallery: Try to get space for your gallery near artwork school or near to other galleries. You should opt for a place which offers extra space which would help you to organize grand exhibitions.
- Let the Art Do the Talking: The interior of the art gallery should reflect your vision. However, you should try to keep it simple because it will allow the pieces of art to do the talking.
- Business Structure: Choose your business structure wisely. It may vary from a sole proprietorship to a corporation and partnership.
- Business Plan: Every business needs a plan and the same is the case with an art gallery business as well. Your business plan should include all the minute details and information about your art gallery business. It should detail your funding needs, revenue projections, and growth plans over the years.
- Set Up Your Business
Establish your business according to your plan, which may include the following.
- Funding: Obtain funding for lease, redecorate, utility bill and other expenses. A business loan can go a long way in helping you to deal with a number of tasks.
- Lease Your Space: If you like any space for your business, make sure that you have the funds for it. Your business won’t be able to survive if your expenses, including rent, exceed your funding reserves and revenues.
- Registration: Register your business with a different name or simply your name with your partner’s name. This business name will be used on all legal documents related to your art gallery.
- Get License: In order to operate any business, registration licensing and a permit from the regulator is required. You will also need an additional license from relevant authorities if you’re planning to offer food and beverages in your art gallery.
- Start Your Gallery
After setting up your space for business, prepare yourself for the opening of the gallery.
- Recruitment: You need the right people for the job, so start hiring human resources for your art gallery. Some of the key positions in your art gallery should be a manager or curator, receptionist, and guards. The curator will be tasked to manage the affairs of the art gallery, including the selection of artwork. The receptionist would be required for paperwork, receiving calls, giving information to visitors, managing the schedule for meetings, and welcome people in the gallery.
- Join the art community of your vicinity: It is important to find new artists, owners of other galleries, dealers and collectors around the community.
- Invite Artists: You should reach out to different artists and ask them to showcase their pieces of art at your gallery. Generally, artists like to display their work at well-known galleries. Search in the art community to get to know artists, and select new artists who will be interested to gain exposure through your gallery. As your experience grows, you will become better at identifying the best artists for your gallery.
- Maintain Good Ties With Artists: You can understand and promote your gallery by forging good working relationships with the artists. Encourage your artists to display their artwork honestly. Furthermore, you can build a good repute by paying the artists on time.
- Focus on Sale: It is a great idea to display the kind of artwork that everyone likes but your core focus should be on to sell them.
- Reasonable Price: You should have a clear view of the market rates and your visitors’ buying reach. It will help you in putting the right price tag on your pieces of artwork.
- Marketing: Even after your kick off the gallery, you should continue to put in a decent effort on your marketing strategies. In this regard, a website can go a long way in finding buyers of your artwork. Make sure your website design and template facilitates high-resolution images so that you give your pieces of art the best chance to sell themselves.
- Plan Open Events: One of the best ways to spread the word about your art gallery is by planning awesome events. You may actually stage an event that highlights a particular form of art. You can invite the guests accordingly, which would give you good publicity in the local media. A green screen can also add a touch of fun and excitement to any business event. Guests can take photos in front of the 360 green screen, and then choose from a variety of backgrounds to have their photo taken against. This is a great way to add some visual interest to an event, and it can also be used as a marketing tool.
- Use Social Media for Promotions: No business can thrive in the modern era without having a decent representation on social media platforms. You should make sure to create and maintain profiles of your art gallery on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. It will allow you to connect with your visitors and promote your artwork.
Conclusion
The journey of an artist can be a tough, challenging and difficult one. As an art gallery owner, you have the opportunity to showcase their work and promote it. Always remember that an artist’s success converts to sales which transforms into the success of an art gallery. It is difficult to keep the success going between sales as it can be challenging for most art gallery owners, so get creative with new ways to bring and attract people and art lovers into your gallery.
Want to learn more?
- Just starting out? CLICK HERE
- Been working in your business for two years or more? CLICK HERE
We’re here to help you to take action just like we’ve helped thousands of other entrepreneurs, business owers and creative professionals all around the globe.
Now is the time to let your passion SHINE.
Now is the time to Make Tomorrow Today!
To your success,
Vinh Van Lam & Stuart Horrex
Your Coaches ArtSHINE industries
