Expectations

It's very hard to gauge the outcome of certain things... for instance, one might think that a Baby and Tween show geared directly at consumers that fit your target audience perfectly, would be a veritable sales bonanza. But this show I just did, pretty much tanked. I would have been concerned if I was the only one with low sales but every grumpy exhibitor who shelled out $1,400-$5,000 for a booth was extremely disappointed. Their complaints ranged from lack of traffic in general to lack of quality of the shopper. I had one customer, pushing a little kid in a stroller, stop by my booth and complain that there was no free food...

No free food?! Well I guess I can't expect her to fork over $29 for baby clothes if she wasn't even planning to pay for a cheese burger.

So you sign up for these things, these shows, based on guesses you make about consumer spending and buying habits. What you can't rely on is the quality and quantity of the shopper. That is just hit and miss. Some shows are hits. Some aren't. Why? Don't ask me. I'm still trying to figure that one out.

But the booth next to me had a cool concept. They are a website that features one product a day at 50-80% off retail. So every day you can receive an e-mail alert to check the site in the morning. If you like or need the item, grab it because they sell out of almost everything before the end of the day. It's a brilliant idea. Check it out!

BabySteals.com

Baby Tween Celebration LA

Here's where I will be this weekend, as an exhibitor. It promises to be tons of fun so if you are in the Southern California area, please consider coming. And visit us at booth # 313! I can send you a free pass if you want one.

Ok, That is Just Pathetic!

Almost an entire month has passed with no new post.

I swear time stood still there for me. Spring break was in there somewhere.

Here's a tip: If you own your own business and run it by yourself, are the mother of two young kids and handle all the bills and taxes and stuff for your company, your husbands company, and your house, don't also volunteer to be the Historian for your local PTA, that wants their year end report on Monday! Not when you are designing next season, dealing with customs for incoming goods, filling orders, getting a million receipts tallied to send to your tax guy, visiting grandma and grandpa for spring break, who live 7 hours away, and prepping for a show in a couple weeks... CALGON TAKE ME AWAY!

Honestly. I don't think I usually get myself into this kind of ridiculous batch of commitments all at once and I vow not to do it again. It's no fun when you are only being half as good as you could be at anything, because you are spread way too thin.

Here's to learning from your mistakes and vowing not to repeat them.