Howard Alan is clearly targeting this show to be a new "flagship" show to replace his Naples 5th Avenue show, and from what I saw and experienced it just may do that in a few years. This was my strongest show of the year to date, and crowds were steady throughout the weekend. And except for the early morning hours each day, when it seemed customers forsook their morning coffee to get to the show on time, the folks were BUYING. The pottery artist next to me was wrapping purchases every time I looked up on Saturday. Although the first day wasn't a biggie for me, this is my third time doing this show, and it's always seemed to be a "Sunday show." This year followed suit, as I saw bags large and small in the grasp of patrons on Day 2, and I had folks 2- and 3-deep at the sales desk much of the afternoon.
Because the site venue is in front of the shopping center (NOT behind it or in a distant parking lot), the show was easy to see and to get to for patrons. For artists, it meant that a Friday setup was available. Mother Nature had other plans, though, and a cold front, accompanied by 30-40 mph winds, whipped through SW Florida on Friday between 2 and 4 PM. A couple of tents buckled during setup, and many of us chose to either wait until Saturday morning entirely, or to just erect the canopy tops, stash the booth supplies, and finish setup in the morning. Saturday was cool-to-cold and still breezy, but the sun came out by noon, and so did the crowds.
The only negative I saw was the teardown. No one could drive their vehicle into the show area until 6 PM (enforced by mall security, as far as I could tell). Most of us were well broken down by then, so the traffic jam when the gates parted was memorable for its chaos. Since I live nearby, I just finished breakdown and headed for dinner at Panera Bread until 7:30. Lots of folks were still packing up, but at least you could navigate the aisles.
The show roster was full, or nearly so, so many of you probably did this show too. Hopefully you'll post your impressions in response to mine: as I said, I didn't have a chance to get around, and your results may vary!
Comments
http://www.pinellasarts.org/florida_festival_guide.htm
My friend an oil painter did not have one sale all weekend and on Friday night her craft hut blew over and really damaged the frame and some of her artwork. I was thinking of doing the show next year but after seeing it as a patron this year I am not sure if I would try to enter it for next year. I thought the show was much better last year. The crowds of people were unbelieveable though even with the rough weather and it is an affluent area with alot of new homes.