Name: Estes Park Labor Day Arts and Crafts Show
Location: Estes Park, CO
Dates: Friday September 2 to Monday September 5, 2022
Management: Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary
Fees: Jury $35, Booth $375
Application: Zapp, www.estesparkartdandcrafts.com, starting 12/1/2022 for 2023
My Medium: Plain and hand carved western lifestyle personal, equine and K-9 leather goods, gun belts and holsters. Price range: $5-$10K.
Estes Park is the gateway to the east side of Rocky Mountain National Park. There are many summer homes in the surrounding mountains and valleys, and it is a popular destination for metro Denver. The mix of contemporary and early 20th century homes reminds me of the Adirondacks. You encounter a broad spectrum of income levels, and foreign visitors. I have been doing this show continuously since 2010. I have also done the Memorial Day show in May during the same period. The show is produced by the Estes Valley Sunrise Rotary, Inc. The Labor Day crowd is usually large, and there is a constant flow of patrons through the show. The show hours were 9-5 Saturday and Sunday and 9-3 on Monday.
SET UP AND TAKE DOWN
One hundred four booths are set up around the perimeter of Bond Park and in the parking lot in front of the Town Hall and library. This includes three food trailers at the NW corner of the park. There were also Rotary tents for HQ, silent auction, Polio awareness, ShelterBox.com and a “Kids Art” tent. There was a live music stage and performances all day. Since no headliners were mentioned, I am assuming performers were locals. People with trailers were given an option of starting set up at 7:00 Friday morning and could drive to their sites. I was there at 8:00 and could unload at my spot. Later in the morning, artists parked in designated areas and Rotary volunteers dollied artists to their sites and helped with set up. Take down was Monday at 3:00 pm. Rotarians were available to dolly artists to their vehicles in designated parking areas. Later, artists could bring in vehicles to load up. You must have paid taxes before you got a loading permit. The Rotary volunteers are experienced and the best group of any show I attend.
Trailers park at the fairgrounds and there is a free shuttle back to the park. Artists park on streets or in paid lots away from the perimeter of Bond Park. Paid parking was initiated in 2021 and the rate is $2.00/hour, 10:00am-5:00pm. A free shuttle was available from an offsite parking structure. Electric charging stations are there.
ART, ARTISTS, AMENITIES, WEATHER
There is a broad spectrum of art and craft at this show to meet the interests of a broad spectrum of visitors to Estes Park. There were high end jewelers and photographers to handmade soaps and olive oils. Many of the artists have done this show for several years, but there is always a mix of new people. Ceramics, garments, glass, metal, wood, leather, edibles, and cosmetics were represented.
The Rotary had coffee and donuts for artists every morning. There were two silent auctions of donated art every day. Booth sitters were available. Clean, indoor, accessible restrooms are in the Town Hall. Sandwich boards with color brochures were at strategic locations around the park. The brochures have an aerial view of the park with booths shown on one side and a list of exhibiting artists and booth numbers on the opposite side.
Thunderstorms and wind are common at the Estes Park shows. This year, there were only scattered clouds on days in the 80’s.
SALES AND ANALYSIS
This was my last show for the summer after returning from a two-year COVID hiatus. The Memorial Day Estes Park Show and Carbondale, CO were the other two.
My sales over nine years have ranged from $2.7K to $4.9K with an average of $4.1K. This year’s sales were in the mid $3Ks and were within $100 of 2019 sales. Belts and holsters were my best sellers, but I also sold billfolds, checkbooks, suspenders, canteens, spur straps, credit card cases, and napkin rings. I only have one post-show special order for a belt.
This year I was happy to break $3K because the crowd was smaller and I noticed a lack of foreign visitors, based on various languages I hear spoken. Other artists commented on the smaller less affluent crowd than past years. There was a rollover accident on US 36 Saturday which closed the major access from Boulder/Denver area. Access to Rocky Mountain National Park is now by reservation.
Everything in Estes Park was more expensive this year: Booth fee up $50, cabin rental up 25% or $50/night, paid parking, $10 parking at Stanley Hotel and the usual food and fuel. Our grandson, 12, helped with this show so we spent a little more than usual for his Estes experience. Overall, our expenses this year were $1K higher than our other shows.
Although the show was profitable, sales did not meet my “rock bottom” criteria of $1200/day average to justify returning. We plan to alternate the Estes Labor Day show with a late August show that we can commute to in 2023 and going forward.
FUN STUFF
We rented our current favorite Knotty or Nice cabin which has a hot tub. Friday afternoon during set up two cow elk and their calves wandered thru the tents and into Bond Park to graze. Monday evening during take down a large bull Elk was herding them along and he was bugling. The fall rut has begun.
Every summer the Rotary has a raffle to support scholarships and other projects. This year the top prize is $10,000 and tickets are $100. Several years ago, I won $5000 with a $25 ticket. This year, 350 tickets will be sold for a $10K first prize and $2500 second prize. Those are pretty good odds.
TIP: If you plan to do an Estes Park show, or for that matter any Colorado mountain show, read up on “altitude sickness prevention”. Most mountain communities are at 7,000’ to 8,000’ elevation and you need at least one day to acclimatize to the altitude.
Photos: 1. Town Hall Parking lot booths
- Elk in the park
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