Another Season Starting Up

First show of the 2010-2011 season is around the corner with the Dade City Antique Faire scheduled for the end of this month. Looking back on our notes from previous years show that we've never been at this show without being partially rained out! - AND - it's consistently been a very good venue for us. Also, I have notes from other September Dade City shows that read "hot as h*ll!!!" and one year I was so uncomfortable that I had to retreat halfway through the day to the air conditioned iciness of our hotel room to gather my over heated self together.

Oh, boy - I can hardly wait!

I am trying out a revamped jewelry department to see how it impacts interest and sales. Usually I group items together by type, as other vendors do; earrings, necklaces, bracelets and bangles, and brooches. I decided to take a page from my jewelry mentor's book and try a different approach to merchandising, and so came up with several groupings according to color (one is white, purple, and deep blue). Another grouping is of higher quality, designer costume items that I've been able to add to the inventory. I have enough display props from our time in the antique store to be able to put coordinated items together in "stories." This is how my mentor displays her inventory in retail settings - she finds it can inspire her customers and she can mix inexpensive pieces in with higher end ones.

You do not see jewelry-only vendors at the outdoor shows display their items in this way. What you see are trays as I described above - by commodity. I am really hoping that this trial has some impact and draws the kind of attention that will make the effort I've put into the reorganization worth it.

Other than that, we'll be taking items to the show that we had otherwise tied up in the store inventory; it will be an overall new look, which is really what you want for venues that you sell at on a regular basis. Up until now we haven't had the opportunity to rotate our stock easily from show to show.