goosebay_1999 Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 Well, it was another semi-disappointing spring show. The weather in MN was beautiful for this time of year. I did ok for the crowd and of course you never have what the customer wants. If I would have had tons of spring and florals I would have been in great shape but no...did I have all of my works in progress...nope! Plus there were 2 other soy candle vendors as well. I would never diss a fellow candle make but this particular vendor was the type to give us all a bad name. During conversations I asked how long she had been doing this and she said 2 years and had made money both years! OK we all know this business can suck your wallet dry in no time. So then I proceeded to ask her about how frustrating the testing process was. She replied .."We tested one wick, jar, and oil and when it worked we made all of the others the same." I just about died. AT least I can sleep at night since I have tested each and every one of my products. Just had to share and sorry so long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brenda Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 I'm sorry to hear of your frustrating selling experience today. I think that gauging what the public wants is a roll of the dice. And to top it off, your had to listen to a competitor brag? All your hard work testing and she thinks one test covers everything? Arghhh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fire and Ice Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 Yup! When the weather is nice, the crowds stay home to do early spring yard and house work. That's the way it was last weekend at my show!:undecided Don't ya just want to thottle those people who test just one scent and produce 50 in a week? But not to worry because the lack of testing will tell on HER and she'll be history by the next show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mnhorsemom Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 Goose, sorry to hear it was only a so so show. You just never know what these darn Minnesotians will buy! Where was the show? I wonder if my sister went :undecided Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goosebay_1999 Posted March 19, 2006 Author Share Posted March 19, 2006 There were 2 other soy candle vendors there and they were selling the huge quart canning jars for anywhere between $9 and $11. I had to lower my price slightly to compete. I did have awesome comments about my booth and how my product looked. Peeps that did buy from usually bought 3 jars at a time because they could not choose one scent. btw it was in Albertville. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 sucks doesn't it...my show in Oct. i believe was a bomb, and it wasn't the product...it was the advertising and lack of good vendors. peeps would walk in the doorway and see a half filled gym, with 75% being crappy jewelry ,lol....the other candle/B&B maker was by the door, so she made it her top priority to bad talk my products before the customers even got to my booth. that broad was over the night before while i set up, complimenting everything and questioning everything...the day of the show she was telling me how important it was for us candlemakers to network our sources....yeah right! she even gave the speech about how she was a single mom of 2 trying to make a living and all i could think of was my husband was laid off, i have 3 children and while i am trying to make money, you are telling potential customers i sell evil products....one thing i did not do was lower my prices and you know...i sold more and made more that she did. all she did was put me and my stuff down, then constantly came over or sent her mom to spy and ask how much i made so far or what my best sellers were...sorry, not telling! the nerve of some people! ...next show i plan to have the pros of both waxes and the myths & misconceptions of both waxes....so the customer can draw their own conclusion instead of believing the hype from someone that just wants to beat down the competition with half truths and lies...one thing that i think did happen is peeps thought she was tacky for saying what she did and ended up buying from me anyway...i have to admit the weather was great yesterday and i even opted to not go to shows.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wildscreek Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 I am sorry that your show wasnt what you wanted it to be. I know that I do the same show each month (first weekend) and so far this year has been a little above last year. I just dont understand why other vendors want to bad talk each other! This is the way I look at it, my product will speak for itself. Keep your head up and shoulders rolled back things will get better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dixylight Posted March 19, 2006 Share Posted March 19, 2006 sucks doesn't it...my show in Oct. i believe was a bomb, and it wasn't the product...it was the advertising and lack of good vendors. peeps would walk in the doorway and see a half filled gym, with 75% being crappy jewelry ,lol....the other candle/B&B maker was by the door, so she made it her top priority to bad talk my products before the customers even got to my booth. that broad was over the night before while i set up, complimenting everything and questioning everything...the day of the show she was telling me how important it was for us candlemakers to network our sources....yeah right! she even gave the speech about how she was a single mom of 2 trying to make a living and all i could think of was my husband was laid off, i have 3 children and while i am trying to make money, you are telling potential customers i sell evil products....one thing i did not do was lower my prices and you know...i sold more and made more that she did. all she did was put me and my stuff down, then constantly came over or sent her mom to spy and ask how much i made so far or what my best sellers were...sorry, not telling! the nerve of some people! ...next show i plan to have the pros of both waxes and the myths & misconceptions of both waxes....so the customer can draw their own conclusion instead of believing the hype from someone that just wants to beat down the competition with half truths and lies...one thing that i think did happen is peeps thought she was tacky for saying what she did and ended up buying from me anyway...i have to admit the weather was great yesterday and i even opted to not go to shows....Ya...it sounds like she shot herself in the foot...bad talking other sellers is a sure fire turn-off to customers IMO. I never buy from anyone who bad talks other competitors...it tells me that they are not confident enough about their products to let them sell themselves. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.