Everything You Need to Know About Being a Craft Fair Vendor (Part 3 of 3)

Fair Day + The Aftermath

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I spent hours yesterday arranging and rearranging my set up.  I wanted it to be perfect.  And after a few glasses of wine, it looked great...or at least I thought it did.

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Packing the Car

I barely slept the night before the fair.  But I was miraculously able to get out of bed at 7am to get ready.  Thanks to my hubby, the car was packed and ready to go at 8am and after getting some much needed DnD we were on the road to Long Beach. 

Setting Up

When we arrived at the fair site, Marine Stadium parking lot, the fair gods were shining down on us as we were able to get a parking spot next to where I had to set up.  We unloaded and started setting up immediately.

Please note, my booth section was ii and I'm all up and in my neighbor's space. Sorry neighbor!

Please note, my booth section was ii and I'm all up and in my neighbor's space. Sorry neighbor!

It took a little under an hour to get everything in place before hubby had to leave to get change.  I’d planned to get change the day before but because it’s veterans weekend the bank was closed. By the time we got back we had just enough time to finish fiddling with the umbrella and go to the bathroom before the fair started.

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The Art of the Sale

I can be really weird around strangers. So I was pretty nervous about trying to sell my goods without being awkward or pushy or just not speaking at all.  But it all kind of worked out.  I tried my best to read the crowd.  No eye contact meant I didn’t say a word.  Cautious eye contact meant I say hello but nothing else.  But if the shopper seemed particularly friendly and engaging then I might say something or be a little more open.

Hubby, who’s friendly as hell, was a great wing man to help me navigate the customer service end of everything. I also got more comfortable as the day went on and the anxiety started to go away.

My confidence went up due to…

1. I made my first sale within the first 30 minutes and the sales continued steadily throughout the day. 

2. I was flanked between two awesome sellers: Bee is for Bear and La Luna Jewelry Studio.

3. I had the support of friends and family who not only came in person to support, but also cheered me on from the sidelines, in spirit, and on social media. #myfriendsarebetterthanyours

4. ALL of the shoppers were genuinely nice and had me wanting to move to Long Beach.

Cleaning Up

Clean up was a breeze because not only did I have Hubby for help, but two of my beloveds came to the fair in the final hour so that they could help us pack up the car.  Who does this?! Once again… #myfriendsarebetterthanyours

Money

You all want to know how much money I made.  Guess what, that’s none of your damn business NOSEY! But I will say that I set a goal for myself and tripled that goal.  Bloop! Take that extreme anxiety disorder and self-deprecation!

Final Thoughts

I have a lot of great takeaways from this experience. One simple thing I learned was that filling an umbrella base with sand is stupid and wrong and no one should ever be made to do it. I also received great suggestions by shoppers of products they would like to see me create like pet products.

But the best thing about this experience is that it forced me to do something that I didn’t totally feel comfortable with, sell myself.  I learned that I have an amazing village that supports me, my creativity, my talent, my goals and my business. I was complimented and told that I create products that are pretty, practical, clever, and useful. And finally, I learned that…

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A thousand thank yous to my village and to all the lovely people I met today.  I’ll be spending the next few days asleep (That’s a lie. I don’t sleep.) and then I’ll do inventory and regroup for the next act of bad-assery that I’ll be getting myself into.

Special thanks to the Patchwork Craft Show.  I can’t wait to work with them again.

DIYLo BrewerCrafts, Craft Fair, DIY2 Comments