Discuss the process of getting your t-shirt line into brick and mortar stores and selling offline. Topics include industry tradeshows, events, line sheets, sales reps and other retailing tips and advice.
next weekend will be my first outdoor show! i feel very comfortable about doing the show thanks to everyone's great advice on the forums.
it's a music/folk arts festival in northern ontario (about 3.5 hours drive north of toronto) and they expect over 20,000 attendees. i'm nervous, but goin' in with confidence. anyway, i just wanted to take the time to show my appreciation for the t shirt forums--what a valuable resource. thanks everyone for your continued help and advice...
hopefully, i'll have some good news to report after next weekend...
fyi...although winnipeg is only about a 4 hour drive from the ontario border, it's in the province of manitoba. i'm in ontario. the festival i'm talking about is in the town of sudbury.
do you have info on the winnipeg festival. sounds like it could have promise for a guy like me...
The Folk FEstival is middle of July or going into 2nd week i think, web search it,, It is all folk Music, kinda like a Moondance Jam, here in Northern Minnesota where it is all Rock.
sounds like it would be a great for you,
and if you get to Winnipeg, for the folk Festival,
Dont forget to stop by Lush, for all there handmade soaps, and shampoo bars and stuff. I also make all the stuff.
Sandy Jo
well, the festival was great! the weather was on our side, attendance was the highest it's been in years, i met some great artisans and other people, was able to make a few cool product trades with other vendors, and picked up a potential side job or two. i was also getting all of the reactions from people that i hoped i would. what i determined as the most important thing for us over the weekend was that those reactions came from the people that we anticipated they could come from...my target audience was identifying well with my designs!
although i took a hit in ther wallet for the weekend, i can't complain. after all, if i didn't have to shell out for a full inventory and booth set up supplies/fixtures, etc, things would have been a lot better financially. i recognize that and am hopeful that next time (with the initial inventory/other expenses out of the way) our experience will be even better financially.
as a learning experience...oh, man. goin' through this experience was a world of info for me. be sure to stick to the plan you set out for yourself and deviate from it never! of course, there will always be the odd 'on the fly' type of decision to be made, but deal with those as you need. try not to make hasty decicions (although that is very hard to do), as it will result in changing something later that you didn't expect and cause you to make yet another hasty decision...thus begins the proverbial snowball. do your best to calculate everything, including wind direction if it's an outdoor event. i'm not kidding. i didn't and i spent hours untangling hang tags...
the best advice i can give to those about to do events of their own is to regurgitate something important that i learned here in the forums. set up your tent and merch beforehand! you'll quickly realize what you may have overlooked when you do. i did, and in hind sight, if i hadn't set up first, the wheels would have surely fallen off the cart in the first couple of hours of the event. also, anticipate as much as you can...like the wind or the slope of the ground. further, it's easier to have the necessary supplies on hand just in case (and have to return any major unused items to the store after an event) than it is to run out to the local hardware store in the middle of a busy event for an extra 20 ft of extension cord and a handful of clothespins cause you didn't bring enough. so if you're not sure, err on the side of caution. you'll thank yourself later. last bit of advice--tie wraps and duct tape...i don't think elaborating on that one is necessary.
a tip of the hat again to everyone for your guidance and help on my first successful event.
Hey Mike, thanks for taking the time to report back. Sometimes the learning experience is worth more than the actual sales (although those are very nice too)
__________________ Daniel Slatkin, SBE Multi-Media, LLC Fulfilling Fulfillment with free web store included. SlightlySick University The polar opposite of Higher Education!!
I'd definitely vouch for the bungy straps - they are fantastic!
I had my first festival last month and was a bundle of nerves about my set up and how my designs would go. I did a run through in my garage (with my family as potential customers), and I'm glad I did it.
I got lots of good feedback, and am off in a couple of weeks to another festival.
One thing I did learn about the weather though is that if it's going to change quickly, you've got to be able to throw plastic over your stock in a matter of seconds. Or maybe that's just the type of storms we have here!
we are doing our first show Tukerton NJ duck and decoy show in September. Does any one else have ideas? Any help would be great. And we just got our online store up and running...should we include flyers in the bags?
Sundancerde
Last edited by Rodney; July 22nd, 2008 at 02:44 PM.
we are doing our first show Tukerton NJ duck and decoy show in September. Does any one else have ideas? Any help would be great. And we just got our online store up and running...should we include flyers in the bags?
Sundancerde
Absolutely include flyers, business cards, or whatever to get your name out there. Some people will find it annoying, others will keep it for later use.
Also, be prepared when using tents for how you will strap it to the ground to help hold it in wind. If I'm on dirt and the show organizers will let me I use dog tie out stakes, the kind that curl around and you auger them in the ground. Then I attach ratchet straps from the corner to the dog tie. If on concrete or they won't let me use the ties I have 4 five gallon buckets full of sand that I attach the ratchet straps to.
It's also helpful to keep the sides rolled up on the tent if it's looking rainy. That way all you have to do is drop them down if it rains.
Hope this helps!
Last edited by Rodney; July 22nd, 2008 at 02:44 PM.
If it rains those tents will leak and the wind will drive it right through to the other side. Tents with sides in the wind are real scary so cover your gear well and bungie down everything.
Agreed! Many EZup style tents are 'water-resistant' not 'water-proof' ... also, depending on the roof style, tend to 'pool up' with water. If you insert hoola hoops strategically in the roof frame, you can help prevent this.
We use a King Canopy style tent. Regardless of the weather predictions, whether one day or five, we start with ratcheting down all corners.
breakin' the festival cherry... 
Sandy JO
Daniel Slatkin, 
