This past weekend my husband, our daughter and I had a booth at Vintage Market Days (VMD) in Brandon, MS, near Jackson. This was our first ever VMD event. I had applied to the one in southeast Louisiana but was wait listed due to my category being full.
VMD is a franchise based promoter that has been doing shows around 5 years. They started off in middle America, Oklahoma I think. Promoters buy a franchise or a given area to run a bi-annual show, spring and fall.
The show is Friday-Sunday. Friday and Saturday hours run 10-5 with Sunday running 10-4. The venue is some sort of equestrian and cattle facility. Don't let that fact scare you off. There was absolutely no animal smell of any kind nor were any cow (or horse) pies found on the grounds. We were all under cover in this arena style venue. There were two buildings used for booths and they were connected so if rain is an issue you can remain under cover to get from one building to the next.
In our building we have some live music played by one or two musicians at a time. Three different sets of musicians in all. It was more like background music than entertainment that was there to draw a crowd. Their stage took up a minor part of the venue.
We drove up on Thursday morning for a 2 PM check in and set up at the venue. All sellers were scheduled to prevent mayhem. I don't know how the morning was but when we arrived, we were early (about 1:00 PM) and were just going to walk around and scope things out. However there was no line at all for check in's. We were offered the opportunity to go with the promoter to find our booth and begin set up. Yay! Early check in!
We were able to drive our vehicle right up to our booth (10x10) and begin setting up. It was an uneventful set up, but different for us because we had more of my chalk painted goods and about 1/2 the normal coaster sets I bring. We are in a transition in our booth. We are slowly redoing it to give it a fresh look and to change with what we are not offering.
When we got through we drove to the hotel and got checked in. The promoter had arranged a special rate at the nearest La Quinta which is about 1.5 miles from the venue. It seemed clean, offered free breakfast with some hot items, all self service with an employee working the breakfast area each morning.
After getting settled in with our stuff we headed out to find some dinner. We had had a pretty big lunch at Cracker Barrel on the way up since we had time. We opted for something lighter. Chick fil a was in the area so we went there. John and I had the southwest salad ... first time we had it and we loved it. Will have that again. Dd got a sandwich combo.
We rested well that night and were ready to go the next morning. I had a few things that needed pricing. I don't know how that escaped me when setting up but it did. I had time though because we got there about an hour before the show opened. We always have a tweak or two in the morning.
People were lined up out front to enter at opening. There were plenty of people looking on Friday, not as many buyers. :( We sold a little but like most areas, many people work on Friday and not every one is at a point to buy extras like what is found at shows. I would say that Friday was a little less than typical for us on Friday. We were told though, by one of the ladies assisting the promoter pretty much to "Be ready! Saturday will be a killer." {ahem, clears throat} Every show is different, every locale is different. What happens at one VMD does not always translate to all the others.
Saturday we were all geared up for a gang buster day. In reality, not so much. We had our worst Saturday on record. Don't get me wrong, we had sales. However we went the longest of any Saturday before even having our first sale of the day ... hours! Talk about frustrated, angry, disappointed, and confused!!! I was in a bad state of mind by the end of the day, to say the least.
We did not know what to expect about Sunday. Sundays are usually a slow day, reminiscent of Friday. Sunday morning had more foot traffic than most Sundays I remember. Many people are sleeping in, going to church, running errands ... just life. We were pleasantly surprised at the early foot traffic. The people kept rolling in, not in thick heavy crowds but very steady streams of families and couples. I believe we ended up having our best Sunday ever.
Food was offered for sale in the form of food trucks. I believe there were four in all, each offering something different. They generally were unhappy with their location. They were in the second building, the one we were in. They were at the opposite end of where customers came into our building. They were very visible when people came in so it was not a problem for customers to find them.
We were very disappointed to find as much buy/sell there as we did. There was a guy selling some things that looked like window casings from church that had the glass popped out an metal decoration put in. He said his wife designed it and they had someone make it. I was suspicious of that but didn't want to automatically jump to judgment. In walking around that weekend, dh found 2 other booths selling the EXACT same thing. I wanted to feign shock and go tell the guy "Someone stole your wife's design, her intellectual property!!! Oh no!" Of course I didn't. This was not the only b/s we saw there, it abounded.
As much as I dislike doing shows with it so prolific, this helped me become more resolute in something. I am more determined to raise my skills in what I do and have a better than ever booth. Instead of concentrating on what others are not doing -- as far as having buy/sell and being deliberate cheaters -- I am going to concentrate on myself and make my art/craft better. It will be a struggle as I make this turn but I'll be much better off in the long run.
Tear down began at 4:00 PM. It was a routine tear down that was uneventful. When dh needed a hand with our Astroturf floor covering he got a helping hand from one of our neighbor's husband. Break down took about 1.5 hours, as usual. We found an Arby's for supper before heading home. We had rain, sometimes very heavy, all the way home.
I almost forgot that we were given a phone number to call if we needed help or someone to watch our booth for a short break. There was a hospitality room and bathroom just for the sellers. However it was difficult to get to. They offered bottled water that was on ice in ice chests, and individually wrapped snacks such as protein bars and granola bars. Friday evening there was a dinner (buffet) for all the sellers. It was well attended and a good meal ... fried chicken tenders, red beans and rice, mac and cheese, and plenty of other stuff that I cannot remember. Everyone went away well filled. There was no program or awards but were all thanked for being there that weekend. I was kind of relieved there was no program so we didn't have to stay longer than we wanted to.
Will I do it again? Not sure, still in the decision phase. If a show does 2 shows a year I usually like to do both before making a final decision. However for the Mississippi show I have something scheduled already. I may try the one in Amite, LA which is closer to home. I am not posting this review to Facebook in the event that I want to apply again. I posted a report on my personal blog but it was a "cleaned up" version.
For those who could still have any curiosity in VMD, just click here.
June 3 & 4
Expect:
September 22, 23, & 24
Deadline to apply is April 3
We try to do it all for you: booth sitters, reserved in-park artist parking - or across the street with shuttle whenever needed, overnight security, award dinner on Saturday evening, and $1,300 in awards. 3 professional artists serve as Judges and visit every artist. There is an Inspector to help insure the quality and esteem of the event.
