Yesterday was the first time I've done a bazaar in a long time! My health problems have prevented me from signing up for any since the beginning of summer. Then, a few weeks ago, I received an invitation to participate in a bazaar sponsored by Dream Givers. I was really nervous, but I've been getting a little bit stronger, so after talking with my Mom, I signed up!
Mom and Her Display
The bazaar was from 9:30-5:00 at the Vancouver Ballroom in downtown Vancouver. It turns out that the ballroom is owned and managed by an old acquaintance of mine. I didn't get a chance to talk to him, but it was one of those "small world" moments!
The good news is that I'm not anywhere near as exhausted today as I thought I'd be! I am tired, and very sore, but I can sit here and work on things, and I was kinda worried that I'd be curled up on the couch! Or if not curled up on the couch, sitting here trying hard to breath, but I'm breathing just fine!
In another "small world" moment, there was a gal there who had been at the only other bazaar that Mom and I have done in the area!
My Main Table
Now the sad thing about the bazaar is that it was pretty much a flop. We had very little foot traffic, and Mom and I only had one sale each. Which means I didn't even make my booth fee back. The good news is that Mom and I had a lot of fun talking and we made some interesting connections! Plus...one of the ladies is interested in buying one of my bead woven necklaces ... so if that happens I'll be really excited!
Main Table - Center
I did spend quite a bit of time talking to two different ladies, Meg and Alison, and I'm hoping to connect more with them in the future! Meg is a fellow etsian, and you can find her work at www.megscreations.etsy.com. She specializes in gourmet soups, cookies, brownies, and dips, all in packages with easy to read directions! I was really tempted to buy one of her soups, and if the bazaar had been more successful (ie, if I had made more money) I would have bought the black bean soup!
Main Table - Left Side
The other lady I talked a lot with was named Alison. She's an Avon lady and you can find her avon at www.youravon.com/aeberhard . One thing that I'm really excited about is that she told us about a bazaar coming up next month that's at an apartment complex, and it's only $10! I'm really hoping to go to that one. It'll be a shorter day which I need. And at only $10, if it's a flop, I won't have lost much!
Main Table - Right
I did learn that I'm definitely not up to a 9-5 bazaar yet. It was just waaaay to much. I did pretty good right up until the end. But I was feeling really sick by the time we began tear down. My current plan is to look for shows that are shorter days (like the apartment show) and keep working on building up my stamina so that hopefully I'll be able to do the full day bazaars in a few months or so!
My Side Table
The good news is that I'm not anywhere near as exhausted today as I thought I'd be! I am tired, and very sore, but I can sit here and work on things, and I was kinda worried that I'd be curled up on the couch! Or if not curled up on the couch, sitting here trying hard to breath, but I'm breathing just fine! Mom's Display
So all in all, it wasn't a profitable day financially, but there are a lot of good things to take away from it. Some new friendships, the success of making it through the day in one piece, and some connections that may lead to great things in the future! Moving forward and moving on!
10 comments:
Sounds like you a had a good time :) Gaining experience, knowledge and friends is always a good thing!
Glad you had a good time even if the sales weren't there! Your set up looks great! I need to figure out how to display my jewelry for a show next month. I might be asking you about your earring display and where to get the necklace displays. Anyway, I am so happy to hear that you are feeling pretty good too! I was hoping to see a picture of you too! :D
This makes me a little nervous about a couple of shows that I have coming up. Hopefully for all of us, Sales will start to pick up in November toward the holidays!
Sorry to hear it was a flop! But glad to hear you still had a great time :)
I'm sorry the show didn't go well, but I must say that you have some very nice-looking displays!
It's good you can keep a positive attitude. Trust me, I've had shows like that, too. But hopefully, your networking will pay off in the future!
Sounds like you made excellent lemonade from your lemon of a bazaar. GOOD FOR YOU!
Happy for you that you felt the "good" in the "flop".
you sound like me...even with the flops - I still find something that made it worth going...plus - your displays look great!
Your table looks so pretty- and that sign is so eyecatching! Did you write that out? That's a shame that you didn't get to sell more, but hopefully you'll be able to get to the one next month. :)
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