07/09/09 - CCDI takes TopHonours at SA Handmade Collection
A superbly styled stand, plus excellent sales, contributed to the Western Cape winning both the gold medal for the best stand at the SA Handmade Collection (part of Decorex, held in Johannesburg in August) as well as the award for best sales.
A Western Cape craft producer, Starry Eve Collett from Casamento, also won the prize for the best product (a handcrocheted designer cushion) at the SA Handmade Collection.
Cape Craft and Design Institute (CCDI) communications manager Marjorie Naidoo said this was the most successful CCDI stand since Western Cape craft producers had shown at the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD) in 2002. In addition, the good sales this year were achieved with fewer producers trading for a much shorter period.
Some 56 CCDI craft producers made sales of R525 000 over 21 days at the WSSD in 2002, winning the award for best sales. The key factors were the styling of the stand, the quality of the products, and their team spirit.
This year at the SA Handmade Collection there were only 18 CCDI craft producers, yet they ratcheted up sales of over R600 000 in just five days. The success of the CCDI could be attributed to the styling, design and branding of the stand, professional marketing approach, sales techniques, interaction with international buyers, exceptional quality of the products, and team spirit.
Decorex Johannesburg attracted more visitors this year – up from 42 092 in 2008, to 51 362.
The CCDI was set up in 2001 to promote and grow craft as an economic sector in the Western Cape. A Section 21 not-for-profit company, it is a joint initiative of the Provincial Government and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. It regularly holds workshops and numerous other programmes to develop creativity, design and innovation among craft producers and designer makers. Contact: www.ccdi.org.za
Issued by: Judy Bryant Communications 0832867168 / judybryant@telkomsa.net
On behalf of: Cape Craft and Design Institute
Contact: CCDI 021-460 3982
Communications manager Marjorie Naidoo 021-461-1488
