This is a grueling show to do. Friday hours until 10PM and then Saturday from 10 – 10 and Sunday from 10 – 5. It is worth it if the money is good. Unfortunately it wasn’t this year. There is ongoing entertainment which pulls potential buyers away from the booths. It didn’t seem much of a problem in 2009 but this year there were long stretches of time with no one in my booth and very few people walking around. Even counting the people crowding around the entertainment, the crowds seemed much smaller.
The person next to me seemed to do well with many small purchases but most people I talked to reported almost non-existent sales. I did less than half of what I did last year and just barely made expenses.
Aside from some issues regarding my booth space and layout in general the show seemed well organized. The weather was perfect, maybe just a tad warm but not the oppressive heat that Florida can deliver this time of year.
I am a little worried about my next two shows that are in the same general area.
Most likely I won’t be returning next year. I hope to be moving out of the area and this show is not worth traveling for.
Comments
Lisa
First off, you gotta wonder about how the show committee got so snowed by somebody's "Royal" opinion to expand the show to three days and run it until 10 pm at night. Whoo--eee! that was a real dinger. The trouble is, he or is it a she, is still out there telling shows how they oughta run themselves. Oh, by the way, this is a person who has never had to make a living as an artist on the circuit. Gee, I wonder who that person is? Artists do not need to be at shows for 12 hours, especially in Florida in October. Trouble with Maitland is that it is now up against a lot of competition for the same art dollat. Besides this show, you have Winter Park Autumn festival, Festival of Masters, Lake Mary-Heathrow, and don't forget about the Mt. Dora show too. Too many shows chasing too little dollars after parents just had to spend a lot of money putting little Johnny and Janie back to school. Maitland is nice, but it doesn't merit being a three-day show going to 10 pm in October. You have to be crazy to do this, or lucky like Steve Vaughn who always makes money wherever he goes. This is a show going nowhere.