Pop up events?

[new2woodwrk]

Background...- Sorry may be TLTR ?

We've been doing a weekly Farmers Market and Crafts Fair event every Saturday since 10/20. We've been very satisfied with the results and because of that we had to buy a trailer to accommodate our inventory and growth. The trailer is always very close to our setup (all are outdoors)  and helps to sell items on display as we work out of the trailer for inventory.

We've also now added 2 more days a month on every other Sunday which is also working out very well although a bit tiring. If it rains on Saturday, we can make up the sales on Sunday!

We're now considering adding 2 additional evening Farmers Markets and Crafts Fairs which they call "Pop ups" as they are not part of a regular schedule until it proves popular.

The "Pop ups" we're considering occur Friday and Saturday evenings from 5-9! The ones in question will be held 4/15/22 and 4/16/22!

The issue for us is:

At any of our current events, we do not have to unhook our trailer and it is parked right next to us or right behind us, which makes setting up, displaying and selling easy.

At the new venue we would have to unhook our trailer which requires our inventory to be very far away and not feasible to obtain stock to sell easily, meaning most likely less sales.

My question then is: Is anyone doing events with a scaled down inventory and/or set up and do they find them of value/profitable?

We're considering doing a scaled down display and not bring our trailer, we have 2 other vehicles we can use instead.

Instead of setting up a full display area, we would do a scaled down version which would be less tables, less displays and less on hand inventory.

Thoughts?

Thanks as always in advance for reading

[Joe W.]

Here's some questions that come to my mind . . . 

How many hours - total - would it involve to attend one of the "Pop Ups" and what are you currently doing with those hours? (for example: relaxation/yardwork/family activities, etc.)
How much (estimated) profit do you expect to make by adding one of the "Pop Ups"?
Put a value to each of those, compare, and decide.

That's a simplistic approach, but it has the effect of quantifying the subjective parts of what you are currently doing with your time (that makes no money) to the objective parts of the business that does.
To help maximize your time attending "Pop Up" events, you  may what to experiment with a different display that takes less time to move and set up. 
Less inventory to transport, containerized parts of the display (pre-loaded with inventory) that could be set up quickly.  Wheels on the display for easier moving from truck/trailer.
That's my 2 cents worth on my first cup of coffee. 
Good luck.        

[Dan]

If you enjoy doing the market then do it. If it ends up a bust, don't do anymore. Seems easy. 

[flarud]

Maybe have some kind of flyer with pics on your smaller set up that says something like,, come to our market on Saturday/Sunday to see our full inventory on display... if the POP UP committee will allow that. 

[new2woodwrk]

On 4/9/2022 at 7:03 AM, Joe W. said:

Here's some questions that come to my mind . . . 

How many hours - total - would it involve to attend one of the "Pop Ups" and what are you currently doing with those hours? (for example: relaxation/yardwork/family activities, etc.)
How much (estimated) profit do you expect to make by adding one of the "Pop Ups"?
Put a value to each of those, compare, and decide.

That's a simplistic approach, but it has the effect of quantifying the subjective parts of what you are currently doing with your time (that makes no money) to the objective parts of the business that does.
To help maximize your time attending "Pop Up" events, you  may what to experiment with a different display that takes less time to move and set up. 
Less inventory to transport, containerized parts of the display (pre-loaded with inventory) that could be set up quickly.  Wheels on the display for easier moving from truck/trailer.
That's my 2 cents worth on my first cup of coffee. 
Good luck.        

My time? I'm retired, so if I don't do the "pop up" I would be sleeping, eating, in the shop or watching tv!

Another vendor had an interesting take in these... "I'm making more than if I sat home" - which I would agree with.

On 4/9/2022 at 10:03 AM, Dan said:

If you enjoy doing the market then do it. If it ends up a bust, don't do anymore. Seems easy. 

Yeah, it is that easy in theory. I'm old and don't like to be tired

20 hours ago, flarud said:

Maybe have some kind of flyer with pics on your smaller set up that says something like,, come to our market on Saturday/Sunday to see our full inventory on display... if the POP UP committee will allow that. 

They pretty much allow us to do just about anything we want. We have become a desired commodity! We are being asked to set up so many places we just can't do them all. The charities are coming out of the wood work and our items are bringing in a pretty penny for them.

Thanks all for your thoughts. I'm hoping it will rain this Friday so I don't have to make a decision LOL

[Jim Finn]

I have been selling at street fairs and farmers markets for 14 years now.  I used to display 40-50 items,  but I lately have been selling at a new Farmers market  that only offers limited space.  I now display 24 items only and my sales are actually better.  Go figure.  

[John B]

On 4/13/2022 at 8:38 AM, new2woodwrk said:

They pretty much allow us to do just about anything we want. We have become a desired commodity! We are being asked to set up so many places we just can't do them all. The charities are coming out of the wood work and our items are bringing in a pretty penny for them.

Thanks all for your thoughts. I'm hoping it will rain this Friday so I don't have to make a decision LOL

I have often prayed for rain, the night before an early morning winter market so I have an excuse to stay warm and not go
When I used to have quite an extensive toy inventory, our stall was very popular and I'm sure would attract a lot of people to the markets. We got bombarded with invitations, but it was impossible to attend them all. I liked having a weekend at home every now and again.

[John B]

On 4/15/2022 at 3:58 AM, Jim Finn said:

I have been selling at street fairs and farmers markets for 14 years now.  I used to display 40-50 items,  but I lately have been selling at a new Farmers market  that only offers limited space.  I now display 24 items only and my sales are actually better.  Go figure.  

Jim, my stall would not be recognisable from the one I used to have years ago. I had portraits, Clocks, plaques, toys, dolls houses, kiddies tables and chairs etc etc, now I only have the stand up puzzles and portraits and like Polk Salad Annie, we do alright 

 

[Puzzleguy]

Your question about your trailer -is a common concern for alot of artists .

We use to have a full size van and a trailer - my concern of that time was running out of

inventory - its a dream most of us have -but after a while you realize I sell x number of items

 and typically i never sell more than 5-8 of any one thing -so you down size inventory

( yes most of us pack a bit extra -why, i can't answer that ) so at first I realized, for the few  great shows

it wasnt worth it -so i sold the trailer ( that was a big PITA - dont miss it -good ridance ) left me with the full size van.

I worked on getting down the weight -making displays that were both lighter and worked better -

figured out how to display my work better - so i made wooden boxes -so my stuff is always ready to go )

Then the real eye opener happened - I rented a Caravan Min van - left the big van home and took it -

it took a bit to get use to learning the best way to pack it and use it -- So the big Van was sold .

Cutting down on weight , size ,smaller vehicle - set numbers for each item - and it worked .

By the way it works great for bigger shows -i get in easier , faster and less headaches .

I figured if i really want to do this , i have to work smarter not harder !

Edited June 5, 2022 by Puzzleguy

[Jim Finn]

It has been suggested to me that I buy a trailer and store all my products in it at home and bring it to shows.  Here in West Texas, it gets so hot that my finished items stick to anything I store it in. To avoid this, finish ruining issue, I store all my product in an air conditioned, insulated, shed.  Works well but requires me to load, unload, reload and again unload every sales day.

[John B]

56 minutes ago, Jim Finn said:

It has been suggested to me that I buy a trailer and store all my products in it at home and bring it to shows.  Here in West Texas, it gets so hot that my finished items stick to anything I store it in. To avoid this, finish ruining issue, I store all my product in an air conditioned, insulated, shed.  Works well but requires me to load, unload, reload and again unload every sales day.

That is the reason I purchased a covered trailer, I could load up at the end of the markets and all would be stored and ready for the next one without having to unload and load once at home.

[new2woodwrk]

22 hours ago, Jim Finn said:

It has been suggested to me that I buy a trailer and store all my products in it at home and bring it to shows.  Here in West Texas, it gets so hot that my finished items stick to anything I store it in. To avoid this, finish ruining issue, I store all my product in an air conditioned, insulated, shed.  Works well but requires me to load, unload, reload and again unload every sales day.

I have not experienced any loss to heat or humidity with our trailer. Our inventory is kept out there all day and night all week - no issues.

[new2woodwrk]

21 hours ago, John B said:

That is the reason I purchased a covered trailer, I could load up at the end of the markets and all would be stored and ready for the next one without having to unload and load once at home.

Exactly why we bought our trailer! Works great for us - of course now that gas is over $4 a gallon, we only drive the new truck to and from markets  what a waste!

[new2woodwrk]

UPDATE:

We did a few evening events - they are not for us!

Out of the 3 events we did, we sold 2 items LOL - we figure our products are not conducive to people out for the evening having a good time

We have however, just added a new Sunday market. We got rained out this past weekend after 2 hours, however we did more business in that 2 hours than we did during our full 5 hour market the previous day.

So we're good - except we can't have our trailer close enough. That is quite the pain! I lost 2 sales because I couldn't get an item I have in inventory to the customer

Probably going to start buying 2 spaces - one just to unload and house ALL our inventory containers.

[John B]

1 hour ago, new2woodwrk said:

UPDATE:

We did a few evening events - they are not for us!

Out of the 3 events we did, we sold 2 items LOL - we figure our products are not conducive to people out for the evening having a good time

We have however, just added a new Sunday market. We got rained out this past weekend after 2 hours, however we did more business in that 2 hours than we did during our full 5 hour market the previous day.

So we're good - except we can't have our trailer close enough. That is quite the pain! I lost 2 sales because I couldn't get an item I have in inventory to the customer

Probably going to start buying 2 spaces - one just to unload and house ALL our inventory containers.

I've done a few night markets and have had the same experience. People are just attending for something to do, and not interested in buying. The food vans do a roaring trade.

[Jim Finn]

I have also done some evening events and had the same experience as mentioned here.  This is a collage town, and most attendees are there to see and be seen.  It is a good event for them, I approve,  but not a place to sell much.

 

[Puzzleguy]

Serious about trying to get down in size - most of us are not kids any more

but old farts - if i had to have a trailer and truck -id get out of this - you dont need them-

I say work smarter not harder -cut down on the weight , have your displays Ready to go -

pick them up put them in your vehicle - and go - even look at canopy choices - they must be light weight and strong -

easy to set up and take down -think about this - it should be fun not work !!

I even downsized my magliner dolley -strong, small and light weight ----

 

Pop up events are great -in and out that day -day off !

Edited June 15, 2022 by Puzzleguy

[new2woodwrk]

2 hours ago, Puzzleguy said:

Serious about trying to get down in size - most of us are not kids any more

but old farts - if i had to have a trailer and truck -id get out of this - you dont need them-

I say work smarter not harder -cut down on the weight , have your displays Ready to go -

pick them up put them in your vehicle - and go - even look at canopy choices - they must be light weight and strong -

easy to set up and take down -think about this - it should be fun not work !!

I even downsized my magliner dolley -strong, small and light weight ----

 

Pop up events are great -in and out that day -day off !

Agreed that at 65 this is getting harder all the time. However, one thing I have learned in selling my products is: If I don't have it readily available, I don't make a sale. Which is why we only do events where our trailer is within reach (usually within 10 feet).

If someone looks at my inventory and admires the Pitbull and asks "Do you have an American Bulldog?" and if I do (which I do), I will make the sale 90% of the time. If I don't, I will lose the sale 90% of the time.

My products are impulse items, no one comes looking for the items I sell. It's what sets me apart from other wood working vendors in the area and also has allowed to build a "we want you at our event" reputation.

As time goes on, and if it gets too much, I will either trim down and/or hire someone to help but right now, the business is providing a nice cushion to my SocSec.

 

[tomsteve]

On 4/14/2022 at 3:58 PM, Jim Finn said:

I have been selling at street fairs and farmers markets for 14 years now.  I used to display 40-50 items,  but I lately have been selling at a new Farmers market  that only offers limited space.  I now display 24 items only and my sales are actually better.  Go figure.  

i read a while ago that there is some psychology behind this. too many choices can overwhelm a customer causing them not make a purchase.

[Jim Finn]

5 hours ago, tomsteve said:

i read a while ago that there is some psychology behind this. too many choices can overwhelm a customer causing them not make a purchase.

 

  I have noticed this myself.  After 14 years of selling like this I see some patterns.

[dgman]

3 minutes ago, Jim Finn said:

 

  I have noticed this myself.  After 14 years of selling like this I see some patterns.

The same thing applies to price. I had an item that didn’t sell through two seasons. I raised the price from $30 to $45. I had four in stock, and all sold when I raised the price. Go figure.

[new2woodwrk]

On 6/16/2022 at 1:40 PM, tomsteve said:

i read a while ago that there is some psychology behind this. too many choices can overwhelm a customer causing them not make a purchase.

This is very true!

It's difficult sometimes not to tell potential customers everything we have, and sometimes I just say too much, Such is life!

 

[new2woodwrk]

2 examples at today's event...

Example 1

Mature woman admiring our puzzles, 'Unique - do you have a pekinese?" "Unfortunately no, it's not a very commonly requested item. I can however make one for you. Would you like to see what it would look like?" She does, she likes it and of course MUST show me her dearly departed Macho the Pekinese. At last, she did order a Pekinese and now we will have one in stock for the next request.

This happens at least once an event, sometimes 2 or 3 times!

Next example

A couple admiring our wall hangers. "Too bad, you don't have a Great Dane"... "Yes, we do would you like to see it?" "Yes". Shows the couple both the cropped and un-cropped versions. "We'll take the cropped"!

These examples are why we have the trailer and carry the amount of inventory we do.

edited politcal soapbox comments out about the economic recession and inflation!

 

[Puzzleguy]

i totally understand -it gets harder as you get older , and my goal has always been to make things easier 

if they dont get easier - i cant do this anymore plus savings on gas etc - 

getting rid of the trailer and the big van was my salvation , so was making boxes to display things -

I dont have to put things on shelves individually - im the last one to set up and the first one gone at events -

we were also involved in a bad storm a few years back -we had every thing in the car ready to go before it hit -

( even the canopy etc ) We actually helped a couple of people get their stuff put away -( becasue we had the time )

My goal is not to make selling things a job in itself.  I'm even working on step 2 of this ( got rid of the cashout was the start  )

 

Im not trying to convert anyone to my way of thinking -becasue actually theirs probably a better way than we do it-

lighter, faster , better looking display etc.    cant wait !!!

[new2woodwrk]

10 hours ago, Puzzleguy said:

i totally understand -it gets harder as you get older , and my goal has always been to make things easier 

if they dont get easier - i cant do this anymore plus savings on gas etc - 

getting rid of the trailer and the big van was my salvation , so was making boxes to display things -

I dont have to put things on shelves individually - im the last one to set up and the first one gone at events -

we were also involved in a bad storm a few years back -we had every thing in the car ready to go before it hit -

( even the canopy etc ) We actually helped a couple of people get their stuff put away -( becasue we had the time )

My goal is not to make selling things a job in itself.  I'm even working on step 2 of this ( got rid of the cashout was the start  )

 

Im not trying to convert anyone to my way of thinking -becasue actually theirs probably a better way than we do it-

lighter, faster , better looking display etc.    cant wait !!!

Do you have any pics of your setup now? Would love to see the boxes