Last night around 4 a.m. I woke up with a start, what was
that noise? Oh, rain. Oh, thunder. Oh, tomorrow is a show day. Oh, heck.
Here’s the thing with outdoor craft shows, they are rain or
shine meaning that they go on regardless of thunderstorms, tornadoes or extreme
heat waves. You just have to be prepared.
So here are some tips on surviving an outdoor craft show.
You absolutely must have a tent. And it has to be a good
tent. You must weatherproof your tent.
Now you must weatherproof yourself for rain. Craft shows are
not the time to be worried about the fashion statement you are making. Yes, we
want to look good especially if we’re selling wearables. At the same time, if
you are uncomfortable or cold you are not going to be happy. And happiness is
the best sales tool you can have. More important than being fashionable is
being comfortable.
Let’s start with your feet. If it looks like rain, wear
rubber rain boots. Cold, wet feet for a 12 hour day are silly. I leave my rain boots
in my booth bin. Along with a pair of socks (who wants blisters?) If it’s not
raining running shoes are the best. In the heat, a good pair of sandals with
lots of support are critical. Make sure they are shoes that can be easily
washed, parks are full of mud or dust.
Before you go to a show check out the weather report and
dress appropriately. Take an extra sweater or jacket and layer up. It is very
different to be standing around for 10 hours than to be walking around for 2
hours. One of my neighbours today was wearing a super cute sundress and bare
legs, by noon she was freezing and miserable. Because she was so cold she was
shivering and all scrunched up. It’s not good body language. We want to look
positive in all aspects of our presentation.
Pack a decent rain coat, a nice long one. Umbrellas are
great but they require a hand to hold them. It’s better to have a really good
rain coat with a hood just in case you happen to be standing in the rain. Again,
I leave a dedicated rain coat in my booth bin so I’m never without.
Extra tarps. You just never know when you’ll need a tarp to
throw quickly over a pile of something. You can pick up cheap ones at a dollar
store, do yourself a favour and put 4 of them in your booth bin. You might also
want to put in a couple of clamps to hold the tarps in place.
A bag of rags. Paper towels are great for windexing mirrors
or dusting small objects but if you get caught in rain you might have to do
some serious clean up. Go with a couple of small towels or something else
absorbent.
Wet wipes. Should you get caught in rain in a park life can
get very muddy. Wet wipes will help, they’re also useful in a very hot and
dusty park.
Treats for you and extra to share. Sitting in a tent in the
rain isn’t high on the fun list, in fact it can be downright crappy. It’s
amazing how much a treat can make you feel just a little bit better, it’s very
Pavolvian, but hey, it works. Make friends with your neighbours too and try to
make light of it, you’re in it together.
My day in the rain today? Well to be honest it was really
brutal in the morning. The thunderstorm was extremely strong and almost 2 dozen
tents were destroyed (not mine). I had a huge amount of mud all over my display
that took an hour to wash off. Fortunately I had great neighbours, and we were
all doing the same thing. Someone went on a coffee run, someone produced
chocolate cake. Even in the crappy rain customers came out. By noon it was just
a steady drizzle and yet more customers came out. At the end of the day when I
added my sales up I was pleasantly surprised, I sold as much in the rain as I
normally do. Yes it was harder, but my neighbours and I had some laughs, we
made good friends and I made money.
Rain or shine. The show goes on.
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