WHAT IS CRAFTED AT THE PORT OF LOS ANGELES?
CRAFTED is a permanent craft marketplace showcasing work from about 100 artists and craftspeople. Housed in two historic WWII era warehouses at the port of los angeles, we are a retail location for the handmade – a brick and mortar Etsy. Open Fri-Sun year-round, we offer visitors the opportunity to shop local for high quality, handmade items. We showcase art demonstrations, live music, special events, and of course delicious food from our fabulous food trucks.
ARE THERE REQUIREMENTS TO JOIN?
Is your work handmade with your head, heart, & hands? Are you the best and brightest LA has to offer? Are your pieces HANDMADE? Then we want you! We are looking for vendors who make anything from candles, to cookies, to custom surfboards – just leave the mass produced and imported stuff at the mall. See below for more details if you are a food vendor. Keep in mind that CRAFTED AT THE PORT OF LOS ANGELES is a juried marketplace. Quality is king around here. Our application asks that you provide photos of your work—hit us with your best shot.
WHAT DOES CRAFTED OFFER ARTISTS?
CRAFTED is the ideal opportunity to take your small business to the next level. We are a landlord that takes care of most of your marketing, event planning, and security. We offer a creative community of artists looking to share ideas and resources. On top of that, your space at CRAFTED is permanent and entirely yours – paint, put up shelving, bring in furniture, whatever you dream up to brand your retail space. We offer an amazing retail option, with hundreds of customers every weekend, at an affordable price.
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN OPEN?
We opened July 4th weekend 2012, so we are still relatively new.
WHAT IS THE VISITOR COUNT?
We are currently averaging 2,000 people a weekend. Obviously those numbers increase around holidays and special events.
WHAT ARE THE LEASE OPTIONS?
We have a 3 month starting lease. At the end of 3 months, the lease goes month-to-month. We ask that you give 30 days notice before moving out.
HOW BIG ARE THE BOOTHS?
Market stalls are available in 10’x10’ increments. Our standard options are 10×10, and 10×20, but if you decide to expand it is relatively simple to create bigger spaces. Wall heights are 5’9” and we ask that your items do not extend beyond that.
WHAT IS THE COST OF RENTING A SPACE?
Each 10×10 is $500 per month with a $8 county property tax. So a 10’x10’= $500; a 10’x20’= $1000… you can do the math from there. If you add it up and break it down, you’re paying about $40 a day for a market stall, PLUS you get all the amenities – daily demos, monthly events, and the mega-marketing provided by us. We also offer Wi-Fi for $20 per month, and electricity for $25 per month. Rent is due monthly on the first of each month.
There are a couple of additional start-up costs. At the time you move in, we will need a $500 deposit per 10×10 space – leave your space in good condition and we’ll return that to you at the time you move out. We also require that all artists have general liability coverage, and from what we’ve heard, this turns out to be about $500 annually. The last cost is for your signage blank – we provide every vendor with a blank sign for your marketstall, at cost, for $50.
WILL CRAFTED TAKE A PERCENTAGE OF MY SALES?
Nope! Your business receipts are none of our beeswax.
DO I HAVE TO BE THERE EVERY DAY?
We ask that Artists open their stalls a majority of the time – your market stall can be closed 2 days per month. We also offer a “perfect attendance” bonus: $50 off your next month’s rent if you are open every day.
DO I, THE ARTIST, HAVE TO MAN THE MARKET STALL FULL TIME? CAN I HAVE AN ASSISTANT STAND GUARD SOMETIMES?
We welcome your helpers with open arms! The artist must be the person signing the lease, but we don’t want to regulate how you run your business. We encourage you to implement whatever system makes the most sense for you!
CAN I SHARE A MARKET STALL?
Absolutely! We have 2 options for sharing: Shared Market Stall, and Curated Market Stall. Descriptions and parameters of each are below, but it is up to you to coordinate the internal logistics – we give some examples, but the possibilities are endless – use that creativity we know you’ve got!
The Guidelines
Shared Market Stall: You and a friend share a single market stall. In this scenario artists have a shared responsibility for their market stall. Artists will co-sign ONE lease, and pay rent in ONE check. Each artist will be highlighted INDIVIDUALLY in all online and print media. We will allow up to 3 vendors per market stall. We have some names of people looking to share, but you are responsible for making the final arrangements.
Curated Market Stall: A single person (curator) takes responsibility for a market stall but represents up to 5 artists. There is ONE application, ONE lease, ONE check, and ONE name on all online and print media. The curator must submit at least 3 representative images for each artist they are representing.
DO I NEED A VENDOR PERMIT?
As requirements vary based on each specific situation, we need you to take FULL RESPONSIBILITY for operating your business lawfully. All vendors must take ownership for operating legally on the local, city, county, state and federal levels. If you are new to this, www.calgold.ca.gov has great information. Other helpful departments:
- California Department of Revenue: www.ftb.ca.gov or 1-800-852-5711
- IRS: www.irs.gov or 1-800-829-4933
Packaged food vendors are responsible for clearing their products and practices with the health department! See details below.
WHAT ABOUT FOOD?
In order to sell your artisan food in the marketplace there are several things that you need to know:
- All food must be shelf stable – no potentially hazardous food.
- No formal plan check is required if your market stall is less than 300 square feet, but you will need to obtain a health certificate for your market stall.
- Your permission will be granted by Diane Lee at the San Pedro office of Environmental Health. You will need to provide her the following items: + LA Business License + Sellers Permit (if needed for your business) + A description of business organization. If sole proprietor, then a drivers license. If incorporated in some form, then the Secretary of State stamped page of the papers, the page indicating the officers, and the drivers licenses of those officers. + A description of the product + Sample packaging + Public health permit for your facility + Common use agreement (CRAFTED provides this to you)
Please note that a key item that the health department is looking for is continuity between the name on the health permit for the location where the food is produced, Your business name, and the permit being requested for CRAFTED.
No shared kitchens will be allowed by the health department. There is a singular exception that LA County will accept and that is an incubator kitchen called Chef’s Center in Pasadena www.chefscenter.org. If you have questions about how to move from a shared kitchen to Chef Center please contact Larry Bressler at larrybressler@chefscenter.org.
Check out www.publichealth.lacounty.gov for more information.
HOW DO I APPLY?
The application process is all online. Visit craftedportla.com/crafted-vendor-application . There is an application fee: $50 for a Single Market Stall application, $100 for a Shared application, and $75 for a Curated application.
WHEN AND HOW WILL I KNOW IF I HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED?
Within two weeks of submitting your application you will receive an e-mail from us letting you know one way or another. This e-mail will ask you to set a move-in date and a date to attend a vendor orientation.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER I GET ACCEPTED?
First off, CONGRATS – we are so excited that you will be joining us! Like we said before, accompanying your acceptance e-mail will be all the information you need to get started. Move in dates are up to you – construction days are Wednesdays and Thursdays, so turn around can be as short as 2 days!
Have questions that haven’t been answered here? E-mail our sales and leasing manager, Rachel Robinson, at sell@craftedportla.com and she will be happy to follow up with you!
