Quilt Market 2017

The decision to be a vendor at the largest quilting trade show was an easy one to make this year.  My Mini Mosaic Quilts have been so popular at quilt shows and quilt guild meetings, so I knew I had to share them with shop owners.  I had a feeling that the pros (exposure and orders) would outweigh the cons (travel and booth expenses).  

My plan was to keep my booth simple so that I wouldn't need a lot of decorative elements.  I felt my quilts would speak for themselves.  I was able to pack everything in 3 suitcases, each pushing the limit at 50 LBS, including a step stool and 4 foot table!

I loved the way my booth turned out including my interactive mosaic.

and my wall of the pattern covers:

There are several opportunities to share your wares.  I figure - in for a penny, in for a pound - so I try and do them all.  Schoolhouse is a series of presentations that occur the day before Market begins. There are multiple presentations taking place at once. I chose to do a 15 minute presentation and that flew by.  Thank goodness I had some helpers, including my buddy, Joyce Hughes.

I was excited to see this sign outside my room:

And here's a long view:

That night, I was a vendor at Sample Spree.  It's a crazy 2 hour frenzy where shop owners/teachers/designers can purchase items at wholesale prices. This used to be the only place where items can be purchased  individually, but that has changed.  I chose to sell 4 of my kits, so that shops would have easy access to create a sample for their shop.  (It also helps to defray the cost of my booth.) I sold out before it was over! That also gave me some time to shop.

The show starts the next day and I spent 3 days in my booth sharing and taking orders.  It was a whirlwind.  Shopowners, distributors, book and magazine publishers stopped by.  They come in waves and then there is a bit of time to catch your breath, but never enough time for lunch. 3 days flew by.

One morning before the show opened, I did a walking tour video of just a small part of the show.  The video is a bit long, but you will see a glimpse of what you will see in the quilt shops come spring.

Breakdown stakes a fraction of the time of set-up.  We were done in 30 minutes.  Kind of like the preparation that goes into a meal which disappears in no time, with the satisfaction of a job well done.

The next blog post, I'll share my view of Market trends.