This show is a two day show over Memorial Weekend. It is in the town of Decatur which is basically Atlanta. It is a very well run show and receives a lot of support from the community. My parents use to live in Sausalito and it was a big deal to be a volunteer at that show and I felt the same passion from the volunteers at the Decatur show. The show is right in downtown Decatur, which has a ton of resteraunts, boutiques and bars. There is also a square surrounded by more retail stores. Also it is a big Marta stop. Decatur is one of the few areas one could live with out having a car in the Atlanta area. Decatur has changed a lot over the years and has become a popular place to visit, but still many people in the metro Atlanta area have no idea Decatur is a destination. It is an interesting show because I find it draws a different group of people from the Atlanta market than I normally see at Atlanta shows. This year I only saw one past client from a show and none of the regulars that go to many of the art shows in Atlanta. It is Memorial Day weekend so that probably has something to do with it. Don't get me wrong this show always draws a big crowd. I have a great pic from 11am on Saturday morning and it was packed. I just haven't figured out how to post a pic in a blog from my iPad:). When I get to a lap top I will add it.
Set up is in the after noon on Friday. You check in at a church and wait until everyone gets the go ahead that the streets are closed. I have heard nightmare stories from other artists about getting to their booths but I think that was before they changed the layout from back to back booths. Now the booths are across from eachother. This makes it much easier to get in and out and also better for foot traffic flow during the show. Hopefully someone else can chime in a bit more on actually getting in and out of the show for set up and break down because my booth is always at the very end of the show and I can drive right up to my booth from another street and drop off everything. From the time I checked in to the time I was set up and driving home it was 1 hour. This is not the norm for most booth spots. I know there are plenty of volunteers to help and they are familiar with the different type tents so they are actually helpful if you need help. You are only given two feet behind your booth for storage. Nothing allowed on the sidewalks behind the tents.
Saturday morning at 10am people started showing up and by 11 am it was packed. Lots of buyers and no sticker shock. We made sales right out of the gate and it continued all day. everyone had big cars so we didn't need to deliver!!! The weather was perfect. Not too hot in my area, we had shade. In the full sun though that might have been tough for an artist to deal with all day but over all great weather and everyone was out enjoying it. They handed out water and there were lots of booth sitters if you needed it. I believe there was breakfast for the artists. Don't quote me on that. This is a home show for me so I wasn't interested. There is music and kids areas and all that type stuff but it is seperate from the art.
Sunday people were there and interested at the start of the show but not as seriously as they were on Saturday. There was a decent crowd but not heavy. Again the weather was close to perfect. I didn't sell on Sunday but Saturday was good enough to make this a good show, especially for it being a home show. Almost all of the artist I knew made at least one significant sale. I don't know of any one that had a killer show, although I am sure there were some, but most had a solid show.
Break down, bring your tent to the ground and wait for a pass. I was able to get the truck really close and dollied about 30 ft. The other booths around me were trying to do the same thing. Again I have no idea how difficult it was to get in and out if you couldn't dolly. Hopefully we can hear from someone else.
I hope to get in again next year. It is a fun area, the group is great to work with, sales are strong and if you are from out of town there is a hotel on site.
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