Gallery Pricing

[Pugs]

Hi,

I did a search on the words "gallery" and "pricing" and didn't find the info I was looking for, hence this post/thread.

I have an opportunity to display/sell prints at a local art gallery run by the School Sisters of St. Francis. The School Sisters require that the prints in the exhibit all be matted and framed. They also take a 40% commission.

So, out of the remaining 60%, I need to factor in the cost of printing, matting, and framing, PLUS a bit of a profit margin.

Off the top of my head, prior to researching the printing, matting, and framing fees, it seems that the prints should be priced around $200+!!

My questions are:

• Does this sound right?
• What is typical pricing for a local gallery show run by the School Sisters of St. Francis?
• How much of a profit margin do folks typically build into the price?

Can I just say that the thought of actually putting my work on display for sale makes me more than a bit queasy!

[Ads]

[Pugs]

As a bump and a follow-up question, is 40% a typical commission for a gallery?

What about other non-dedicated gallery spaces like cafés?

[ann]

the gallery cut can run from 35percent all the way up to over 60 percent. so their price seems in line

[ksmattfish]

As a bump and a follow-up question, is 40% a typical commission for a gallery?

What about other non-dedicated gallery spaces like cafés?

The art galleries I've worked with took 40% to 60%. The other places I've shown, coffee shops, bookstores, restaurants, music stores, etc... have never taken any commission, but that may be different from place to place.

I stopped putting my work in commercial art galleries. I found the price mark-up to be too much, and the galleries don't want you undercutting their prices elsewhere (which makes sense). I was having to price framed and matted 8"x12" prints in galleries at $200+, and that made me the same money as if I sold a matted (not framed) 8"x12" for $50 by myself. I suppose it's a reflection of the quality and/or popularity of my work, but I've found it sells a whole lot faster at $50 than $200.

[Pugs]

So,

As I've been mulling over the possibility of accepting the invitation to display/sell prints at this show (I'm leaning towards "yes," in spite of what it's doing to my stomach to think about it), I built a quick and easy little spreadsheets to help with figuring out pricing, up front costs, number of prints sold in order to break even, etc...

I thought that others might benefit from it also so I'm offering it to any who could use it. In the spreadsheet, the white boxes are where you enter your costs/pricing/number of prints you're selling; the grayed out boxes are the calculations that show net profit, gross profit, etc...

Eh... it seems that I cannot upload non .jpg files. If you shoot me a PM with your e-mail addy, I'll e-mail it to you, if you're interested.

I've attached a screen shot of what it looks like.