10 Things I Learned From My First Show

It was a tough crowd last Saturday, mostly because there was so little of a crowd. All the vendors had a rough time of it and several packed up early without so much as an interested look, let alone a sale. I feel fortunate for the few sales I was able to make even if I didn't begin to recoup my costs. Despite that, I still feel positive about my experience. My display garnered lots of compliments and I know I'm headed in the right direction.

I was planning to keep a notebook handy for a list of things I'd do differently next time. During the day, not much came to me in that respect. But in retrospect, I have a better idea of what I might do differently next time.

1. Be more organized - It wasn't bad, but I can always do better. I've already packed all the items I will always need for shows and never need for anything else and they're ready to go again. Also, I've strategically packed in order of things I'll need (i.e.: tablecloths on top, then displays, then decor and signs, etc.).

2. Make deadlines for preparations - Print jobs should be ordered no later than the 3 week mark. Displays and packaging should be squared away at the 2 week mark. Once all of the above are in my possession, packing should be completed at the 1 week mark (pieces packed separately later). Work on pieces should cease no later than 24 hours before set up time. That gives me a full day to pack up pieces, tools and materials or last minute additions.

3. Portable storage for tools and materials - I can't sit still for an entire day without having something in my hands to work on. But, I wound up taking a couple of open containers (essentially drawers from my organizers at home) in order to have all my materials and tools on hand. I need organizers that will travel with lids, handles and maybe even wheels. The more compact and portable, the better. A hand truck or wagon might not be a bad investment.

4. Talk to other vendors openly - I chatted with the two vendors on either side of my table all day. However, I wish I had asked more questions of all the vendors present. I did get a little information about how to find other shows. But, I wish I had wandered around the floor more. Next time, I'd like to ask more questions. How did you hear about the show? What other shows do you do? Where else do you sell your work? Have you done this show before? If so, how did last year compare and what should I expect?

5. Do a trial run of the display before packing - I did a lot of fidgeting to get things to look how I wanted. It didn't take us long to set up. But it would have been nice to be able to tell Steffany (my friend and partner for the day) exactly what I wanted or even to have a picture or diagram. That would have freed me up to do other things and she probably would have felt more useful. She needed specific instructions and I didn't have them for her. So, she just put everything out and I came behind her and rearranged to suit my needs.

6. Have better storage for pieces - It's a good thing nothing is too fragile. All my pieces were gently piled into a Tupperware container large enough to hold everything. It would have been nice to transport and display earrings on their cards. It would have been nice to have the necklaces separate from the lamp/fan pulls. Dual duty for storage at home a must!

7. Check for things at home that I can use - I know I covered this in my last entry on the displays, but there's more. I took our camp table to use as a workspace behind the display table that I rented along with my booth space. Before I do another show, I think I'm just going to buy another one of those camp tables. It turned out that it was taller and more suitable for my display table than the one I rented.

8. Play to your style, not an assumed audience - I made 12 pairs of Swarovski Christmas tree earrings thinking I'd play towards what I thought was the demographic. Priced at $15 each, I thought they'd really move if nothing else did. Perhaps I was wrong, or attendance was just that bad or I didn't have them displayed well enough. They were on a miniature Christmas tree as "ornaments" and may have gotten lost a bit. I'll never really know what the problem was because once those are gone, I won't be making more.

9. Taller chairs - If I'm going to sit and work while at a show, I need a chair tall enough to clear the displays on the table and I need to sit near the backside of the table to be able to easily converse with passers by. I didn't have much problem, but was also competing with the DJ playing music from the stage 10 feet from us. Something about the height of a director's chair might be better than the low sitting camp chairs I took and would still fold away for easy transportation.

10. Develop a dialog for browsers - I don't like to be bothered while I'm shopping and I like to leave my customers the same peace. However, while someone takes a few minutes to look over my table, I should have something to say. Silence is awkward in those situations, especially if someone picks up a particular piece for a closer look. I should be able to discuss it with them unprompted and answer questions before they're asked. I don't want it to sound rehearsed or pushy. I also don't want them to hear the same thing if they come back around later. But I should be able to talk confidently about my pieces.

Well, I'm done until 2010 as far as shows. I just don't have enough free weekends through the end of the year to think about doing another one just yet. While I search out my next event or stage one in my home, I'll ponder over these things and others to hopefully make my next show a success.

Display and Packaging and Moments of "Duh!"

I'm on the home stretch of craft show preparations. Booth fee/table rental check has been mailed. PTO president has called to confirm my reservation. All that's left is. . . EVERYTHING!

I'm at about 40% of my goal for inventory. I'm short displays and decor and now even without a tablecloth which I had lined up to be borrowed. I still don't have my business cards. I realized yesterday I don't have enough jewelry boxes for packaging in the event that I actually do well in sales. And, I have less than 1.5 weeks to resolve all these dilemmas.

Therefore, Wednesday was a frantic search of the interwebs for ideas on displays, packaging and booth design. I have to say, I came away with some really awesome suggestions that people have shared at various resources. What I found would fill another blog entry, so I'll save it for later.

When I started making lists of materials to follow through on some of these projects, I kept coming back to the thought that I'm investing way too much money in this show already and I'm really trying to keep my costs down. I just don't know what sort of return to expect from this venue and I don't want it to be a total bust. I'm already toying with the idea of doing a mid to late November open house from my own home to perhaps make up the difference. Aside from the cost, a couple of the projects had the potential to eat up a lot of time which is at an even higher premium than the monetary investment right now.

So, back at square one, let's take inventory:

• An 8x8 booth space with either a 6x3 or 8x3 table that I have to fully dress and make functional.


• One necklace display (leatherette bust).


• One earring display (small flocked T-shaped for one pair).


• A myriad of fabric scraps and yardage.


• Various shapes and sizes of boxes I can use as risers to add visual interest.

*digging, digging, digging*

• I've got. . . large crystal clusters, crazy pieces of wood, bone, and other large more common stones (like limestone and sandstone) that I use for decor around the house.


• I've got lots of little trays and flat open candle holders, pillar sized and larger that can be dressed up with rocks or marbles even fabric to hold pendants and smaller items.


• I've got three little wire frame votive holders all different heights that could house lots of earrings.

Duh! Seriously.

If I had thought of this about 5 hours earlier, I could have spent the day making more inventory instead of looking at ideas I didn't have time or money to make right now.

As for things I purchased, I went and spent about $10 on a mini Christmas tree with a garland, a string of battery powered lights and a star topper. I'll hang my Swarovski Christmas Tree earrings on that as ornaments.

I was going to go for large wooden plaques propped up in wire plate holders (one of the ideas I found online). But the plaques I found were about $10 each and I wanted at least two of them. Instead, I found a pack of four 1 foot square cork tiles for about $6. They're only about 1/4 inch thick, but I though I could glue two together to make them thicker and sturdier. As it turns out, I still need something to make them sturdier, so I'll get a piece of black foam core board to sandwich between them. I've got some decorative upholstery tacks to pin the necklaces to the cork. The wire plate holders were $3 each (so a total of $12 spent there).

There's one more thing I need to do and that's a table top tree to hang my fan/lamp pulls on. I really want to make a copper wire tree, but I don't have the time right now. Instead, I'm going with my mom's old method of making Easter trees. Gather interesting twigs from the yard, lash as necessary, set in a base of plaster, spray paint branches copper and base black (or cover base with black fabric) and done. I estimate this costing me less than $5 to put together.

As for packaging, I received a timely Etsy newsletter this week giving lots of great tips on just the subject. Of the possibilities, this one is my favorite. I picked up some of the cheapest scrapbooking cardstock I could find (just solid colors in greens, browns and earthy yellows), an expensive ($5) small stamp that says "Created by" in a whimsical script along with the cheapest ink pads I could find (a $4 3-pack of silver, gold and black) and some silver and gold ultra fine paint pens. I did a trial run yesterday and the ink from the metallic pads doesn't match the ink from the pens. Also, my handwriting just looks pretty craptastic next to the nice, even, neat script of the stamp. I mean, my handwriting is fairly neat, it's just not very even. And I'm not learning calligraphy right now! So, I try one without the stamp, just my writing. I still don't like the look. It doesn't look professional or finished enough. Looks too much like my Christmas cards.

Back to the interwebs again, I found a 2"x.5" custom wood mounted art stamp for $9 including shipping. I quickly made a suitable graphic and within 10 minutes, I had a custom stamp on the way for $1 more than the one I bought plus shipping. Needless to say, that one will be going back. There's a 2 day turn around on the custom stamp and then it will ship from Iowa via USPS. I get stuff from Missouri all the time in a couple of days so I wouldn't think it would take much longer from there. Should be here just in time for me to quickly stamp a ton of envelopes (which I'll have done this weekend) just in time for the sale.

Now to just place an order for business cards. Then, I'll just have inventory goals which will continue to give me mini anxiety attacks until the Sunday after the sale.

Doing my first show.

Monday, I was contacted via Etsy convo about an elementary school craft fair as part of their fall festival. It was from the president of the school's PTO asking if I would be a vendor and she provided a link with more information about the event.

I was pretty impressed that she thought to scan Etsy for local artists to include in their event. That's pretty brilliant! This is only their second year and they claim to have had thousands of visitors last year. This year they plan to launch an aggressive marketing campaign and are doubling their vendor space in an effort to get even more people there. It really sounds like a great opportunity at a time when I should focus and try to grow my business. My horoscope on Monday even mentioned focusing on career matters or else later regretting it. Such things never usually hold sway in my decisions, but it was an interesting coincidence, I thought. As the magic eight ball would say, "all signs point to yes."

However, it falls on the same weekend of the Superhero 5k in Asheville, NC which I had been planning to attend since last year when things didn't quite work out. However, with the overwhelming evidence above, I just don't think I can turn down this opportunity in good conscience. I've decided to definitely do the show.

My husband is very supportive of it and has given me carte blanche to purchase any materials I might need to build inventory and set up a booth. I even have a friend who is excited to come help me set up and sit with me at the show. She has show experience with her mother who has done tons with her ceramics. She's even offered tables.

I'm very excited, since this is an area in which I'd like to get more involved. I feel a little lost in a sea of jewelers online. I think I could do better in a person-to-person, local setting. Perhaps it will open more doors to do more shows locally. For those who don't feel pressured enough to buy at the show, I'll have business cards to refer them to the sites.

I'm also trying to keep a level head about it. While it's a great opportunity to get my face and my work out in the public eye, I'm not going to count on making tons of sales. We'll keep that a nice surprise if it happens. I just don't want to be disappointed as I pack up. I'll do all the things I think I need to do to make it a success, but I'm not going to count on anything.

So, what do you think one should do to prepare for a show to ensure it's a success?