Having an event stall - what worked for me
- flowry28
- Jun 6, 2023
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 7, 2023
I recently had the pleasure of being part of the Little Dunning Market, at Rollo Park, Dunning, Perthshire. This year, had a whopping 72 stalls offering various products.
An annual event held on the first Saturday in June, this year, the weather gods were shining on us in all their glory. It was swelteringly hot at 22degrees, which is positively balmy for Scotland!
This is the first outdoor event I have been part of and I have to say, I loved it. It was lovely to have so much space to move around rather than being in the tight constraints of a hall.
The plot I had was 4m square so in planning the stall, I had quite a bit of space to fill. Here's what worked for me:
A colourful banner with clear information about who I am and what I offer
A picture frame specifically on the awards that my books have won. This caught many people's attention and brought them closer. It was definitely a great selling point - so don't be shy about telling people
A picture frame with the book cover of my next release
Business cards that are easily accessible
A simple table that was not too cluttered. The colours of the books and t-shirts certainly caught the attention of passersby
Engaging with people and starting a gentle, friendly conversation whilst they browse
The huge 5 foot teddy bear (Joe) was a talking point and even if some people didn't stop to purchase, they talked about Joe on the way past and will remember him (I was asked a couple of times whether he was for sale and my children would not have been happy if I had. Although it would have made much more space in a bedroom! Haha)
A selection of merchandise related to my books. From pencils & pens to bookmarks & t-shirts, the merchandise was a huge success in conjunction with my books
The investment of a card reader. Most purchases were still made in cash, though the card reader was a great alternative
What didn't work for me:
The picnic table and 'make your own bookmarks'. I hoped that this would bring children closer to seeing the bear and entice parents to purchase, whilst the children doodled. The bear definitely worked, however, only a couple of children sat and drew - which was lovely to see and engage with them. The table looked a little out of place though, so I won't use it again.
Another solution for attaching the bottom of my table banner in place as the wind caught it a couple of times
If there are any things that work or don't work for you at similar events, please feel free to share them in the comments. It is a massive help to anyone setting up a similar event.
In a couple of weeks (17th June) I have another outdoor stall at Davidson's Mains Children's Gala. Joe will be with me, I'm sure, sitting in his comfortable chair, and we are both very excited to be a part of this event. It should be incredible and please check out the website below for further details.
We look forward to seeing you all there.
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