Saturday, February 16, 2008

Sometimes things work out!


I had this show scheduled months ago. I was looking forward to it as it’s in my husband’s office building. Someone to bring me coffee in the mid-morning. Someone to help me break down in the afternoon!

But the day before, I get a call in the morning from the hubby:

“Hil, there’s another jewelry show here, right now.”

“Really? Anything like my stuff?”

“Yup.”

“How much are they asking?”

“$15 a set.”

“That’s not like mine. That sounds like the cheap stuff I saw in your building last year.”

“Yeah, it’s the cheap stuff they bring in from {name of country withheld for PC purposes}. And they’re selling purses too.”

“Well, I don’t make purses. Are they real or knock-offs?”

“They say they’re real, they say it’s illegal to sell knock-offs, but they’re only charging between $15 to $20.”

“Those are knock-offs.”

“I know. I’m upset this guy is here the day before you’re scheduled to show.”

“Doesn’t make me happy either. Are they getting a lot of interest?”

“Yeah, there are women all over their tables.”

“Oh well. That sucks. I really need to have a good show. Oh well …”

“If I were you, I wouldn’t even come tomorrow.”

“No, I said I’d be there. It’s been printed in the newsletter. If nothing else, I’ll be able to meet and talk with the women. They’ll know the difference between what’s there now and my stuff.”

“Well, I didn’t want to ruin your day, but I thought you needed to know.”

I love me husband! He was so indignant in my behalf. And I knew there was another jewelry designer just a week before me in the same building. But I felt compelled to honor my slot, so the next day I was up early and prepared for the show. I expected nothing to happen for me that day, other than hand out a ton of business cards for “future reference.”

I got there early to set up. First woman who stopped by actually bought something!! More women came and looked. I heard from quite a few that there was a jewelry seller the day before … but nothing like this(!). Women came, looked, some purchased, some promised, and while I still handed out a ton of business cards, I also had the best day at an office lobby ever!

So to all the wonderful, beautiful ladies that work in the same building as my husband, you made my day!! I’m looking forward to visiting you in a couple of months and I’ll be bringing along some wonderfully new, fresh and pretty things.

I received a compliment regarding my display. I know most itinerant sellers use simple draped table set-up; many just pile their wares in baskets or lay them out on the table. But I want to bring to boutique to the office lobby. It’s my way of honoring the hard-working woman who has just a few precious moments carved out of their workday for pampering in whatever form it takes. It’s more work on my part, a lot of work, but I think every single one of my customers is worth it!





Now, if only I could find table cloths that won’t show their creases!

7 comments:

MarysMadness said...

Your display is beautiful! Try to fold all of your tablecloths at once to cut down on creases! I do this with clothes when I pack my suitcases!

Anonymous said...

Your set up is so cute!!! I love it. I didn't even notice the wrinkles. I think we are much worse critics on ourselves than others :)
Jen
FunkyChicBoutique.etsy.com

Annette Piper said...

What a beautiful display! I am a big one too on presentation to show your professionalism. Yes, I have the same problem with my damask tablecloths! When I use my "show" table though, I had poly-cotton tablecloths made especially for it and they seem to fall out of the creases a bit easier/quicker than the 100% cotton.
I am so glad that your customers could tell the difference in quality between you and the previous vendor - if anything such a contrast so close together probably made your wares so much more attractive.
Keep up the great work!

Unknown said...

Yet another person to compliment you: your display looks so inviting and definitely a notch (or three) above the rest!
Welcome to Etsy Dallas, too.

Kathy Keith as in www.kathydkeith.etsy.com

Sandy said...

I had a similar experience, only the 2nd seller was set up right next to me. She crabbed and moaned (to put it in nice words) all day because there were 2 jewelry sellers! What a fun day that was!!!!
I use a thin synthetic crushed velvet type material when I do not want creases showing. You can practically wad it into a ball without making it wrinkle.

Pretty Things said...

First off, if you can find creaseless table cloths, clue me in!

Second, displays are the packaging that makes the people screech on the brakes to look even closer -- it really DOES make a HUGE diff! And your display is great!

And most importantly -- quality shows. If you can get them to stop (and with that display, you can, and did), it will immediately become obvious that YOU made this, YOU are invested in it, YOU love it, and no sweatshop kids were harmed in the making of YOUR products!

Anonymous said...

Wow... what a beautiful display... it would inspire me to buy.