Monday, September 11th, 2006
Craft Fair Bust
Yesterday was the Inver Grove Heights Days Craft Fair. After spending three days in the freezing cold at a garage sale, I was a little worried about how this outdoor event would go. Although, I tried to remain optimistic because the weather had warmed up the previous afternoon.
I woke Sunday morning to rain drizzles and a grumpy, cloudy sky. I was hoping it would clear up, but I put on my long underwear and two layers underneath my down vest anyway. The craft fair did NOT go well for many reasons: First, the weather was undoubetedly the biggest thing keeping people home yesterday. It rained and was cold. We probably saw 50 people all day. Secondly, this was the first Craft Fair Inver Grove Heights had during its IGH Days Festival. The man in charge of the whole festival came around and chatted with us. He mentioned that there was no one person dedicated to the craft fair and this explained why it got less attention than it deserved. Finally, while my target audience includes craft lovers, it is still not the best venue to showcase my products and work. My husband consoled me by saying that not a single person he saw at the fair looked like my target client. I have to agree.
Overall, it was very disappointing and naturally made me question my ideas and skills, but in my usual fashion, I slept on it and woke up with my head up and spinning with new ideas and energy to seek out new clients in other ways. I don’t know if it was worth the $35 entry fee (actually $17, I split it with my aunt, Joyce who also had a display), the $40 I spent on making the banner and who knows how much spent printing materials to distribute. I guess I can chalk it up to experience. Good thing I’ll be able to use the banner again. I have another craft fair in Novemeber. I think this one will be much better advertised - it’s a 3rd annual fair with lots of success in previous years, and takes place in a school with lots of soccer moms - one of my target markets.