Does anyone have experience with the Bele Cher show in Asheville, NC? Is it as crazy as it looks in the web site? Were sales satisfactory? Were there any glitches? Were the organizers helpful? Rick Shamel
Speaking of drunk fests, it reminds me of a story. A couple of days after Bele Chere I received a phone call from an angry man wondering why I charged his credit card. I went back and looked at my receipts and told him exactly what you had purchased from me. He then said "Oh that is where that came from, I was too drunk to remember much from that night".
Don't be afraid to sell to drunk people at Bele Chere, otherwise you'll be cutting your sales substantially. But it doesn't hurt to have good records, just in case a memory lapse.
Like John, we did it a few years ago and we were glad to be in the art section, electricity and all. Some artists said they liked it better in the street for the sales, but there were downsides. We did OK but others complained. It is definitely a frog worth kissing as long as you've already paid for it.
We did not hear anything about security problems in the art section. We were lucky to have parked within spitball distance of our booth. The parking attendant we ran into during setup was receptive to special arrangements. Good luck with that.
Hi guys. I've never been to Bele Chere, even though I live only 60 miles away. This will be my first year also (Arts Park booths 2-3).
What John said is consistent with other comments I've heard. Also many past exhibitors claimed it is simply a "drunk fest" and you have to be concerned about security at night. I've heard claims of booths being broken into, used as a rest room and even tents slashed. Surely the promoters and security forces have heard these reports and are now prepared to watch for it.
Hopefully together we can collect and share a lot of fresh information with the community here. Tell me where you are setting up or come by my booth to say hello. See you there.
I've done the show a couple of times. Both times in the Arts Park section. The pros of being in the Arts Park section is that you have electricity, so bring fans! It's usually hot! The people that come to that section are generally a little more interested in buying art than elsewhere at the festival. The downside is that you don't get as much traffic as the artists on the street.
Having said that, you get a decent amount of people in the "Arts Park" section. This is a huge party kind of a show, not one that will typically bring many big buyers. There are always exceptions though, but in general less expensive impulse items sell best.
I did good enough my first year that I tried it again. But in my second year sales were down and decided it just wasn't worth the long hours, long lines to the bathroom, and hassle of parking to continue doing it. May you have better luck, it's worth a try especially since you are already in it. I'd love to hear how you do.
Comments
Don't be afraid to sell to drunk people at Bele Chere, otherwise you'll be cutting your sales substantially. But it doesn't hurt to have good records, just in case a memory lapse.
We did not hear anything about security problems in the art section. We were lucky to have parked within spitball distance of our booth. The parking attendant we ran into during setup was receptive to special arrangements. Good luck with that.
What John said is consistent with other comments I've heard. Also many past exhibitors claimed it is simply a "drunk fest" and you have to be concerned about security at night. I've heard claims of booths being broken into, used as a rest room and even tents slashed. Surely the promoters and security forces have heard these reports and are now prepared to watch for it.
Hopefully together we can collect and share a lot of fresh information with the community here. Tell me where you are setting up or come by my booth to say hello. See you there.
Having said that, you get a decent amount of people in the "Arts Park" section. This is a huge party kind of a show, not one that will typically bring many big buyers. There are always exceptions though, but in general less expensive impulse items sell best.
I did good enough my first year that I tried it again. But in my second year sales were down and decided it just wasn't worth the long hours, long lines to the bathroom, and hassle of parking to continue doing it. May you have better luck, it's worth a try especially since you are already in it. I'd love to hear how you do.