Diary of a Trailblazer: Roncy Rocks!

This past Saturday I sold my wares at Roncy Rocks!, a street festival stretching all up and down Roncesvalles Avenue and onto a bunch of side streets.

I have cured my habit of standing with my hands behind my back.  Now my customers won't subconsciously fear being stabbed anymore!  Yay!

My designated area was right next to a stage that had musical acts and stuff all day.  I thought perhaps this would be a good thing because the performances would draw people in the direction of my table.  Turns out that while singing and dancing do attract people, those people just beeline for the stage to watch the festivities. They do not typically stop along the way to look at what the vendors are selling.  Also, I really need to be able to communicate with the people who stop by my booth - which I already knew, but which became even more obvious when I was trying to scream factoids about my art at people over the loud music. I did enjoy the performances themselves, but if I take part in Roncy Rocks! again - or in any other festival with music scattered around - I'll make sure I'm located a bit further away from the action!

I've also made a mental note to bring something next time to hold down the edges of the tablecloth so it doesn't flap all over the place in the wind.  I have some plain magnets that would probably work well for this - I can stick them to each other through the tablecloth so they weigh it down.  And OMFG I will never again try to lug all my merchandise to a venue in one big wheely-suitcase.  Those tiny plastic wheels are made for airport floors, not bumpy sidewalks and certainly not the steep stairs to The Boy's and my apartment.  I swear my arms are five inches longer today than they were last Friday.

And I think maybe my booth has too much for sale in it - cards and original art and necklaces and magnets and trinket boxes and postcards - and it might be overwhelming for people.  I'm considering paring things back a little bit in the future, maybe down to just cards, original art, and magnets.  What do you guys think?  Is a lot of variety a good thing or is it better to focus in on just a few choice items?  Please let me know in the comments!

Despite the slight setback of being located right next to the stage, I still managed to sell some stuff and to have some great little chats with people who really dug my work.  A few folks eagerly asked me if I sell my stuff anywhere else, so I got to plug my stall at the Arts Market, which is awesome!  I've been told by more experienced artsy friends that lots of people who don't buy something from you at a craft fair will buy something later, and indeed there does seem to be a pattern emerging of people asking about me at the Arts Market soon after I've been selling my stuff elsewhere.  Craft fairs are almost as much about advertising your stuff as they are about selling it - I think of it as leaving a trail of business card "bread crumbs" so people can find me later on when they're ready to buy. :D

I'll leave you with this photo The Boy took of a cute kitty who was slinking all around on Saturday morning, investigating everyone's tables while we set up for the festival.  The kitty refused to acknowledge our existence in any way, but took a liking to a random piece of string hanging off the underside of our table.

He reminds me of Birch...but pretty much every black and white cat reminds me of Birch.

p.s. Boy, if you're reading this, let me just tell you again how fucking spectacular you are.  I don't know where I'd be without your pep talks, your merchandising skills, your upper body strength, and your willingness to watch my table while I go to the bathroom.  Thank you.  <3<3<3