American Press classified crafts a corner for creatives
Buy and sell art and crafting supplies, tools, and more
LAKE CHARLES, LA – The American Press is making it more affordable to begin a fulfilling creative pursuit, to market hand crafted items and skills and to recoup the cost of tools, easels, machines and materials that didn’t work out as expected. Creative Crafter is the newspaper’s specially designed and highlighted classified section.
“We call it our one-stop shop for the home-based hobbyist and small business owner,” said Kim Wright American Press classified manager.
Wright and staff at the American Press noticed an upward trend in the placement of classified ads to get rid of extra crafting supplies and big-ticket crafting tools and machines at great prices.
“When you use the American Press, you reach about over 100,000 readers,” Wright said. “Many of these readers aren’t active online.”
Customers were also using the classified for advertising their hand crafted items, photography and calligraphy skills.
“Now, readers can find all these ads in one place and it helps bring attention to the local craft scene,” Wright said.
Melissa Hill is a local crafter turned entrepreneur. She owns Niche Creative Studio and is a big promoter of the American Press Creative Crafter. Her business on Common Street has been described as a crafter’s oasis where a person can affordably find their creative “niche,” whether that is sewing, crafting, crochet or other creative pursuits.
“I think crafting is on trend right now,” Hill said. “With today’s technology and the ability to mass produce, creating something by hand is a way to add a unique twist or give a gift that’s personalized, something that you can’t order online from Amazon.”
“Yes, crafters and hobbyists are a market segment, but they’re also this really cool community of people,” said Wright. “Creative Crafter was developed for them.”
The American Press kept the small crafter in mind by keeping the ad cost low. Ads start at $7 and are posted on the American Press website as well as in print. Plans are underway to expand the section by offering step-by-step guides for crafts that everyone can do and will be fun for the whole family.
Creative hobbyists can sell handmade items such as soaps, jewelry and quilts, for instance – or advertise when they’ll be at a certain festival. Calligraphers can advertise their special talents. Mural painters can advertise their expertise at making one wall in the home a genuine work of art. Potters who decide to try painting can sell their kilns.
The American Press is a daily newspaper that serves Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Jeff Davis and Vernon Parishes. Readership is at 106,000 for print and web combined. Based on 2017 Pulse Research findings, over 90 percent of readers read the ads in the Classified section.
For more information contact the American Press Classified Department at 337-494-4000.