Businesses That Buy Handmade Cards

• Making and selling greeting cards is not that difficult, it just takes some time and perseverance. Valentine Candle with a greeting-card - close-up image by Werg from Fotolia.com

  Greeting cards are made for every occasion and there is plenty of room for you to take over a corner of the market. Creating and making your greeting cards may seem like the easy part, but finding someone to buy them can be just as simple. Spend a few hours each week researching companies to sell to, and pretty soon you will have multiple businesses to which to sell your work. Once your cards are in a shop, the hard part will be keeping your stock up.

Stationery Shops or Post Office

• Many stationery or paper shops sell paper that could be used to make homemade cards, but oftentimes customers are not going to take the time to make their own. Call or visit the store and talk to the owner about stocking some of your homemade cards. Create a basket or display that can sit near the cash register to catch customers' eyes as they make their paper purchases.

  A shipping or postal store is a natural choice for greeting cards. The cards can be a last-minute save for the customer who forgot one or who thought of another person they did not get a card for. A lot of the postal stores are independently owned, so you can approach all of the different stores in your area.

Pharmacies

• The larger chain pharmacies have multiple aisles dedicated to cards, so it may be difficult to break into those stores. Visit the smaller, independently owned mom-and-pop pharmacies. They will have more leeway in what they can stock. Again, arrange to have a display in a prominent part of the store where customers can easily see it. You can display any type of cards at a pharmacy, from birthday cards to holiday cards to simple blank cards for the customer to fill in themselves.

Restaurants or Specialty Shops

• Restaurants often sell gift cards that come in a simple paper sleeve. Offer the local restaurants in your area a chance to have personalized cards to go with their gift cards. You can sell them directly to the restaurant, who can give them away free with the gift card, or sell them alongside the gift cards as an alternative to the paper sleeve. With this option, you will have to make your cards reflect the restaurant's name and theme.

  Specialty shops, such as boutiques or sporting goods stores, also sell gift cards. You can offer customized cards for them, as with the restaurant. You could also sell an assortment of greeting cards in a display near the cash register. Again, privately owned specialty shops are the best ones to approach first, as they have more freedom in their stock.