Artegon, Orlando, FL. just opened this week, and I went by today to check it out.
for those of you unfamiliar with it, here is it in a nutshell. Old Mall that has been redone with a permanent art fair in the center. Extremely reasonable rates, but you have to do mall hours, 7 days a week.
http://www.artegonmarketplace.com/
My observations.....
Parking lot was full, good sized crowd for opening weekend. weather was dreary, so that might have something to do with it, the artegon mall is large and open, with a ropes course in the entryway.
While I saw some good press online, I didn't receive any emails even though I was on their email list about the opening. The did have a lot of street entertainers in there, along with an antique auto show.
Some stalls are still empty, and the flow of traffic is erratic. Good variety in the stalls, but did notice two "cell phone" outlets in there.
Bottom line, I want to try it. I am going to try to pair up with another artist to run a booth so that we don't have to have a huge time commitment. Hope to have another review for you all in a few months about the experience!
dean :)
Replies
How many artists are in there? Mall hours during seven days a week sounds a bit much even if you have a person to half it with. It doesn't leave much time for creating your work unless you can do it while you are there. How much are they charging artists for the space rental?
They say 165 artists currently, and are probably to expand in late 2015. It would be fine with me, as I can create there.
Costs - basically, it is $10 per square foot, depending on location inside. There is also an option of doing a 20% of monthly sales instead of a set fee. Electricity is a mandatory charge, and is $187 a month. upfront cost is your metal sign, $400. You are also required to have 1 million in insurance. Not sure if orange county has any special requirements for operating a business.
Yes, there is a lot of walking on concrete. and since the layout is not a grid pattern, it is easy to get lost or totally miss some booths. I do think that they need to have more benches around for easy resting.
There is a neat booth that rents out motorized animals to ride, enough room for an adult and small child. didn't see any scooters though. I think they might have a tough time going thru some of the booths with them.