No interest in my handmade crayon tote bags on Marketplace

[Helensalsa]

Hi everyone,
I'm hoping for a bit of advice from fellow parents. 😊
I've recently started making handmade Disney-themed children's crayon tote bags and have listed them on Facebook Marketplace, but unfortunately I haven't had any enquiries yet.
I'd really appreciate some honest feedback from a parent's point of view. Is there anything that would make you more likely to buy one? Is it the photos, the description, the price, or is it just not something you'd look for on Marketplace?
I genuinely believe the quality and price are good, but I'd love to know what I could improve. I've shared them on a few Strood Facebook groups too, but still haven't had any messages or comments. Similar products seem to sell well in shops like Argos, so I'm wondering what I'm missing.
Any constructive advice would be hugely appreciated.
Thank you, Hels ❤️

If I wanted one (which i don't) it would be hugely easy to make one...I mean beginner sewer hugely easy. I am sorry but you are on a loser there IMO.

They sre cute bags, but i don't really see a market for them.

I can only see a picture of a child holding the bag? Can you show us the pictures you're using in the listing? Close ups of the actual bag?
I don't really understand the product and it's not something I'd buy for a young child as it doesn't look practical and I can't imagine an older child or adult using it.
You'd be better selling somewhere other than FB marketplace, that's more for second hand things and is also full of time wasters.

The bag is too big.
The pockets are not deep enough to prevent pens falling out.
It's not authentic Disney merchandise.

Came on to say this, one sniff and they will sue. They are famously very litigious.

They threatened our local hospital with legal action because they used Winnie the Pooh stickers on the Pharmacy Out Of Hours bags!

I like the look of the bag but I agree with previous posts about the practicality of pen holders on the outside of the bag. Could you make a pencil case in the same or a contrasting material, and the ability to attch it inside the bag with a keyring type attachment perhaps? Or put the pen holder inside the bag so they're less likely to fall out and get lost somewhere.
I dont see a problem with the handles on the outside if done neatly and either a matching or contrasting thread colour.

£20!!!! There's the answer to why they're not selling.

I have a bag that has 3 pen holders on the side in heavy stretchy material. Wouldn’t dream of putting my pens in there as they would probably fall out, get taken or just be a hazard

Now if those pen holders were inside the bag then I would definitely use it.

I would look at that and envisage melt downs when we got to somewhere because the blue/pink/green/yellow crayon had fallen out along the way.

If you have made several could you make up another lot “bag material in a larger rectangular shape and sew the bottom bit to the bag and then Velcro the other 3 sides to hide the crayons and so if they fall out they are contained within the pocket.

You describe them as crayon tote bags but then the photo is of pencils

Sorry but it just looks like a bad design. It would be a nuisance to have to individually place each crayon into it's spot only to have them all fall out the second someone threw the bag into the bag of the car.

Strood in Kent? Not exactly a affluent town. No offence I'm from Medway.

Depends on price. I sew so I know how much material costs. I like the pen part should be deeper

£20???? I’ve never paid for a tote bag in my life, you can always get the free as giveaways.

It's just not a product I'd have any interest in. Wouldn't look, or click if I happened to see it. Sorry!

Just not practical or useful. It looks fiddley to slot each pen into the slot. Can also imagine pens leaking all over the fabric. Looks a bit flimsy, like it wouldn't hold its shape. Would it not be better to just sell an ordinary tote bag?

Dangerous in my view if a child even bends over suddenly let alone fall the sharp pencils could cause injury and they don’t look like they’d stay in place long either

All is not lost OP, you just need to make a few tweeks here and there, like others have said get rid of anything Disney they're highly litigious and go after even the smallest side hustle.

Why not go seasonal? Halloween, Christmas etc always go down well and the rest of the year do seasonal patterns, snowflakes in Winter, Autumn leaves in November, beach scenes in Summer etc, I would rethink the pens though maybe have a clear insert on the inside or something?

Your pictures are really bad quality, you need to get better at that. Also Facebook marketplace is not great for this kind of thing. Etsy, instagram or TikTok shop would be better ,
I would perfect one or two products as it looks like too many random styles.
great idea I do like the roll up ones for travel. Go with the travel and holiday angle as it’s summer hols coming up.
i like the premise. I think it has legs but niche down. Pick two of your styles and go for the travel holiday vibe. Set the products in a staged holiday scene and take good quality pics

You can’t just sell Disney stuff as many others have said, you are infringing copyright. It looks like something made by a child at Summer camp on craft day tbh.

As many other posters have said the pencils / pens would fall out. I know both my children would constantly drop this or swing it around and lose all their stationary so that would put me off buying it.

However you haven’t given us any description of the dimensions, fabric used and pricing. I wouldn’t buy a bag that would be too long for my children to carry so there needs to be a lot more information.

Pictures of the bag in use as well as spread of flag would help allow a potential customer to view it properly .

I don’t think we can comment on the description of price when we can’t see either?

It looks to me like the pencils will all fall out?

I've reported this now because of the lack of engagement from OP coupled with the photograph of the child.

Hi @Helensalsa, I think that if you made that into an indoor childs apron it might sell better. I also agree with others, please don't use a Disney - or any other company's - print unless you have bought a licence to do so!

The pencils would fall out? Why would they need to be attached to the outside of an oversized tote bag? And yeah you're not allowed to sell Disney anything. I don't think there's really a market for this as I don't understand it's purpose.

Not something I would buy because I can and have made tote bags myself and there are no small children in my life.

If you’re open to advice, I would put the handles between the outer and lining fabrics with strong boxes sewn where the three fabrics meet. I would put any pockets on the inside. The straps seem a bit too wide. Maybe add a zip closure to the main opening? Give it a gusseted bottom so more can fit inside perhaps (can’t tell if yours has this). Don’t use any fabric that has licensed characters or logos on. Unless you have purchased a licence, you can’t use it on things to sell. Disney WILL come for you. Set up on Folksy or British Craft House. Lower your price. As it stands this is not a £20 bag. Do some research on handmade marketplaces (not facebook!) and see what similar bags actually sell for (look at the seller’s feedback to see how many actually sold at that price)
You can charge for your time but if it takes you ages then the price is too much for a tote bag. Can you streamline the process by batch cutting and sewing so you get more done in a shorter time and the price can come down a bit?

It's hard to comment without knowing the price, but in my experience, one-man band handmade products are almost always overpriced because it's not a viable business, and the hobbyist behind it hasn't realised that.

You hear people saying "I have to charge £££ to cover my time and materials, I barely make any profit as it is, I'm not a big business" and so on. Those are YOUR problems, not a potential buyer's. Trying to make a buyer responsible for your costs isn't practical. They don't care about your profit margin.

Ask yourself, why is your product is special enough to charge extra? Not why do you need to charge more than a bigger business would - that's for you to worry about, not the consumer? And I'll be honest: I really can't see why someone would pay a premium for knock-off Disney when you can't move for Disney licensed products in the shops.

It looks very impractical. Make a bag with a matching pencil case, I'm sure that would be more popular. And a smaller bag would be better for young children.