Vendor Fair Setup Advice?

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beloitdavisja

James
Corporate Member
I signed up for my first booth to sell my turned items. It's a small vendor fair put on by a HOA down the road from me. Any general advice for those who sell their wares?

So far I've:
- Signed up for Square to accept cards
- Bought a portable table and had a banner made
- Started ramping up my inventory (I mostly do custom order, so I don't usually have much on-hand)
- Probably going to setup an old iPad with a slideshow of my previous work

Some specific questions I had:
- How much cash vs card sales do you typically have?
- How much cash should I bring for change?

Thanks everyone
 

blazeman45

Steve
Senior User
James,

We do shows regularly... normally $100.00 of mixed bills and change is what we bring and has always sufficed. Credit card sales are the bulk of our transactions. I would print some business cards as everyone generally asks for one and we typically get additional post show sales from our brochures we hand out. Good luck!!
 

gmakra

New User
George
The wife does craft shows and I am just a lowly roadie who has been volunteered .
First off no two shows are ever alike.
People want to see goods in real life.
Typically 20% cash the rest charge.
Bring a comfortable chair and a portable pop up tent to keep your wares out of the elements.
Developed a really good sense of humor.
 

sawman101

Bruce Swanson
Corporate Member
Have a nice table clothe on the table. Think about making small, different sized boxes painted flat black as pedestals to display items. Have a variety of items but smaller, inexpensive items sell faster and are often the bulk of sales. My sales are about 50/50 cash, credit cards. Christmas ornaments also sell well now, but keep them low priced. Good luck James, I hope you sell out!
 

beloitdavisja

James
Corporate Member
James,

We do shows regularly... normally $100.00 of mixed bills and change is what we bring and has always sufficed. Credit card sales are the bulk of our transactions. I would print some business cards as everyone generally asks for one and we typically get additional post show sales from our brochures we hand out. Good luck!!

Thank you. I was figuring that CC sales would be the majority (I know I don't usually carry cash anymore). Good to know that $100 in mixed bills should suffice. I do have a supply of business cards that I'll put out.

The wife does craft shows and I am just a lowly roadie who has been volunteered .
First off no two shows are ever alike.
People want to see goods in real life.
Typically 20% cash the rest charge.
Bring a comfortable chair and a portable pop up tent to keep your wares out of the elements.
Developed a really good sense of humor.

Gladly it's an indoor event. I'll be busy the next 2 weeks with inventory to have there at the show. Got a shipment of kits on Saturday to keep me busy..

Have a nice table clothe on the table. Think about making small, different sized boxes painted flat black as pedestals to display items. Have a variety of items but smaller, inexpensive items sell faster and are often the bulk of sales. My sales are about 50/50 cash, credit cards. Christmas ornaments also sell well now, but keep them low priced. Good luck James, I hope you sell out!

Thanks Bruce. I know you do a lot of shows! Good tip on the table cloth and pedestals. I think I'll pick up a table cloth today, and make some quick pedestals. I got some ornament kits this weekend and will be turning them tonight! So far, I'll have a selection of pens, bottle stoppers, ornaments, bottle openers, yo-yos, key chains, snack bowls, yarn bowls, and maybe some other stuff.
 
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allisnut

New User
Adam
I typically start with $40 in 1s, 5s, and a 10. If the first customer pops out a $100 bill I dig change out of my wallet, usually not an issue. Once I get two $20s ahead I put them back in my wallet, then all the cash in the clip is proceeds form the day. I haven't gotten a square reader, I may have missed 2 sales this year because of it. I do have a couple of friends who will run the card for me if there isn't another option and they are set up at the same venue, but that is infrequent. I tend to go towards having pens in inventory, it is easier to sell what you've got rather than take special orders and have to follow up with the customer later.
 

ScottM

Scott
Staff member
Corporate Member
Question back to you. Are all your prices divisible by 5? If not you should have no less then $25 in singles. I bring $125 in fives and $25 in singles. For me only about 25% are CC sales. Every event is different. When I get a moment I will post pictures from my last show.
 

golfdad

Co-director of Outreach
Dirk
Corporate Member
Sounds like your on your way James...Hope its very succesfull. Remember...pics or it didnt happen :eusa_danc
 
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ScottM

Scott
Staff member
Corporate Member
Here are pictures from my recent vendor fair/craft show
South Hill 2018 pic 1.jpg
South Hill 2018 pic 2.jpg
 

beloitdavisja

James
Corporate Member
Question back to you. Are all your prices divisible by 5? If not you should have no less then $25 in singles. I bring $125 in fives and $25 in singles. For me only about 25% are CC sales. Every event is different. When I get a moment I will post pictures from my last show.

Yes, all my pricing is in $5 increments, so I’m planning on having a decent amount of 5’s and some 10’s and a few 20’s. I’m not expecting this to be a big affair, but who knows? It could go well. I also just signed up for another small show the Friday before Christmas.

That’s an impressive setup! I’ll probably never get close to that scale, but it’s still helpful to see.
 

Raymond

Raymond
Staff member
Corporate Member
I’ll probably never get close to that scale, but it’s still helpful to see.

James, take baby steps. Buy one table and one chair. If the show meets your expectations, buy another table and make (or buy) a small display wall/rack. Take your time, the biggest obstacle is that you may soon run out of transport space if you get too big. Remember, not all shows will be as successful as others and if you keep going back to the same show every year, some years will be better and others won't. Consumers are very fickle over time. Most of all enjoy the people you meet.
 

sawman101

Bruce Swanson
Corporate Member
Always have a pleasant smile on your face and look each person in the eye. It's OK to sit down, but when there are folks around your display, stand up and look interested in them; I like to greet everyone as they may stop and look at your work. You will receive about a million compliments on your work, but only a fraction of those folks actually make a purchase. Many lookers may remember you next time and make a purchase then.
 

tri4sale

Daniel
Corporate Member
We sell our breads at shows for $6 each. 2 shows down, 1 to go. Been doing it for over 15 years. Since we started taking credit cards years ago, about 1/3 of business is on cards, every show, every year now. Since we are not a divisible by 5 price, I do bring a $200 in ones and fives. I don't bring tens. If I need I can use the fives and ones to make up change for large bills. Most people show up with a $20 bill since thats what ATM's kick out. This year saw a trend of people not buying as much as in years past (I track inventory at the shows by the house so we know what is and isn't selling better to plan for future shows).

You need pay and take products for shows to justify the cost of booth and setup, not just custom order stuff. People want stuff they can grab and go, not have to wait for.
 

ScottM

Scott
Staff member
Corporate Member
As Raymond said take it slow and easy. What you see in my setup is about 15 years of mistakes. I am doing two local shows both in November. If the venue does not supply a table get a folding leg type. You also need a table cloth. i suggest black or red or other dark color which will show off your work. You do not want a floral, plaid, print or pattern table cloth as they are too busy and take away from your work. My back rack is made of gridwall panels with a couple black bed sheets clipped to them.

If you can stand for the entire event do it. Greet everyone who walks by. You will be amazed at the number of folks who stop and shop when you greet them. I am not sure what you are doing your credit cards on (phone, tablet, computer,....) but only use those devices to process a transaction. Make sure you know how to process a CC transaction ahead of time. Don't be checking emails and websites during the event. This is common sense for most folks but dress nice but comfortable. If you look like crap most people will assume your stuff is the same way and keep on moving. Finally stick by your prices. There are folks who will offer you less. Don't go there. Even if it means loosing a sale. If they really want it they will come back.

MOST OF ALL HAVE FUN......
 

Bear Republic

Steve
Corporate Member
Lots of great info from everyone. My input would be interact with potential customers as much as possible to leave a goid impression(share your passion), don't under sell yourself, and make sure to check out the other vendors and socialize if possible learn from them. Ask one or two questions and they'll probably share some insight.

Scott,
Great looking booth and lots of nice products. Great example for people. Is that all scroll work? Pretty impressive!
 

ScottM

Scott
Staff member
Corporate Member
Scott,
Great looking booth and lots of nice products. Great example for people. Is that all scroll work? Pretty impressive!

Yes all scroll saw work. No laser, computer or CNC in my shop. A few projects incorporate some simple wood burning too.
 

beloitdavisja

James
Corporate Member
Thank you all for the advice. I've been busy the past few weeks turning and making preparations (folding table, table cloth, product displays, etc). The show is Saturday and I'll make sure to take some pictures. I think it will be a pretty small show (only about 10 vendors total) but enough to get my feet wet, and hopefully a good turnout. I'm getting about 27 more pen kits in the mail today (that were SUPPOSED to arrive yesterday...), so I'll be furiously turning to get them ready by Saturday! (note: my only shop time is after the kids go to bed, usually 9pm-1am!)

I did sign up for another show the Friday before Christmas. That's looking to be a bigger show, and hopefully will attract some last minute gift shoppers! Again, it was a low vendor fee, so it's no biggie if it falls flat.

I'll let you all know how it goes. Thanks again.
 

beloitdavisja

James
Corporate Member
Post-show update!

First, a thank you to Mike (mquan01) and Raymond for stopping by. Always good to see some NCWW faces.

The overall attendance was a little disappointing, probably even smaller than I expected. The event was 8-12 on Saturday, and it was pretty sparse the whole time. The HOA that hosted is a small neighborhood, and I don't think they did a good job of getting the word out, or marketing it as a holiday sale. Despite that I did pretty well compared to the other vendors. I had one sale near the end that bought 5 of my bowls, which made the bulk of the day's take.

Overall, I think it was a good experience to begin with. Made some money, and it wasn't overwhelming. Got some helpful experience for my next show, which will be later this month on the 21st. I'm expecting that show to be a lot more well attended (put on by a recently opened upscale preschool). I'm probably going to pick up some more displays to keep it a bit more organized.

I had a lot of fun talking to the guy setup next to me during the down time; he sells socks and custom bow ties (tie-my-knot.com) and he had a nice setup. I ended up buying a bow tie for my son, and two pairs of socks for my wife and I.

IMG_3414.JPG
 

toolman

Administrator
Chad
James,

You may want to check out RC Market Days in Spindale about 1 hr and 17 min from the center of Charlotte. You may want to check out Gun shows. The wife and me go to a lot of shows (Gun Shows, Christmas Shows, Craft shows, and most of all Festivals) RC Market Days had a 3 day show in September, the wife and I went and did very well. But the cost of the hotel kill use. but we go the show up to 2 hrs away from home and do very well.. So well we just started Craft shows in Mall in eastern North Carolina. Glad you had fun!!
 

tri4sale

Daniel
Corporate Member
Congrats on the first one under your belt done! Starting at small shows is good way to go.

Couple things I've learned from many years at shows (just finished our 16th year at Sanderson High School show here in Raleigh) is the smaller elementary school shows and small neighborhood shows (HOA's, clubs, etc.) don't bring in the crowds to really get great sales, but usually are cheap to get into, so might be worth it. For next year, start contacting the PTA's at the area high schools now and ask about their holiday shows. Can be hard to get into (at Sanderson the room I'm in it literally takes someone dieing or aging out to get a space) but worth it. Look for schools that are in high price range housing areas.

Good inventory is key, the fewer things on the table, and people are more likely to pass you by, by the end of day when my table is 95% empty, I am practically begging people to stop and come over and check my table out. And customization is key, the booths that offered custom items why you wait/shop are the ones that were the busiest at the shows I've done this year. So start working on inventory in Jan for fall / winter shows.

And finally, your bowls and pens look good, but are not unique items, if you can find a unique niche item, that people can't get from other vendors, that'll give you a leg up. But just remember, once you've done that, the next year someone will have copied you and it won't be unique anymore.
 
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