Hello, everyone, it is nice to find a forum like this where I can get ideas from other craft minded individuals.  I have been making organic snacks and holistic remedies for many years now, and with that has certainly come a great deal of time in the fair and festival business.  I have gotten pretty lucky in my experience thus far, and have really experienced few problems with permits and the like.  I guess my reason for posting was to share a bit of my experience as well as to get some of your opinions on where you have the best luck.  With fall creeping up far too quickly, I have been thinking about fall shows.  Where do you have the best luck in the fall?

Living in New England, I think I get lucky, because we get so many travelers coming to see the foliage.  It’s also the last time many people really like to go out to shows, as winter is typically not very busy here. Many people here also travel south for winter, and I certainly understand the inclination.

Here, I seem to find that the best early fall shows are state and county fairs.  The fairs make their circuit through the area in August and September here, and I am always surprised how well the shows turn out.  Even in places where the fair offers dozens of greased soaked options for food, I find that I do more than my fair share in sales, perhaps to people feeling guilty about stuffing themselves with standard fair food.  When October and November come around, the area tends to be filled with craft fairs and the like, held everywhere from campgrounds to fairgrounds, and we all set to work trying to do the best we can to sell all we have until winter.  I love it here, though, as the people are friendly and most places are certainly on top of the holistic and organic foods and supplements movement.

I am curious where the rest of the users here prefer to set up in the fall.  Are there any hidden gems or arts and craft fairs I don’t yet know about?  Even if you aren’t from New England, I would love to get your opinion.

Hello Holisticandhealthy,

It sounds like you have some great products! It also sounds like you have some lovely festivals and shows to attend. I have always wanted to travel to New England. I can just imagine that the foliage there during the fall is just lovely.

I was wondering, how far are you willing to travel? Here in the south, we have some fantastic fairs and festivals during the fall months. Many people associate the south with spring festivals, and vendors often forget the autumn events. In my opinion, the fall fairs and craft shows are untapped by a large majority of vendors.

Plus, with your specialty niche, I believe you would get a great deal of attention. The holistic and organic market is largely unknown here in rural Georgia. It seems like you could have the monopoly on the market at many of the fair events.

I know that, here in Georgia, there are quite a few craft festivals that take place in October and early November. In addition, the fairs hit up all the small towns through the end of October. Most of the towns around here include craft show listings online for their city along with surrounding areas if you are looking.

Hope this helps!

Hello CraftyGirl!

It is nice to hear from a fellow crafter.  I am certainly willing to travel, though I must admit I would have to do so in October, as my September schedule is pretty well booked by those expecting me to be at the local festivals, and who am I to disappoint my fans, hehe.  I have traveled to Georgia on many occasions for leisure travel and absolutely adore the area, particularly Savannah and many of the rural areas.  I have visited some of the fruit stands and farmer’s markets, as well as the flea markets, but haven’t been lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time to catch any of the craft fairs. 

I would love to attend some of the arts and craft fairs in the area, do you happen to know of any in the region surrounding Savannah?  I would love to have a reason to visit the area again, and if it was for work, I could hardly deny myself the opportunity to do that, right? : )

I do think you may be right about finding myself with little competition, as holistic and organic products are certainly niche items, but most people find that the snacks are delicious and the products work well without the effects of standard medicines, so I would think they would do quite nicely.  I often find that simply putting out a few samples of my organic jams and snacks and letting people use the skin care products is enough to show almost anyone how great earth friendly products can be.

To answer your question, I would certainly love to visit some of the fairs and festivals in your neck of the woods.  Likewise, if you should ever want to visit New England during foliage season, the abundance of fairs in the area would give you a great reason to convince yourself it was “just for work reasons”. 

Thanks for your suggestion, I just might have to put it to good use!

I absolutely love Savannah!  In fact, we visit the city quite often. The squares and parks are gorgeous.

I know that they have quite a few craft fairs in the downtown area throughout the year. I am not sure exactly which fairs and festivals happen during the fall, but that city never slows down. I am sure that they have a number of arts and crafts shows going on at any time. In addition, they have that wonderful city market fair that lasts all year long. It is especially for vendors selling food items.

Savannah would be a wonderful market, I am sure. My favorites, though, are the fun little local craft fairs in the rural towns all across the state. They are a great way to get your products noticed and to see many different places.

Good luck this fall. I am sure that you will do well!

I would think Georgia would be a nice escape from New England in the fall.  There’s actually a ton of October events in the state.  Some sound pretty interesting too, like the Shrimp & Grits festival.  If I’m not careful, I could be searching events all day… http://www.fairsandfestivals.net/events/search/

Hi Everyone! Here in New England we tend to get out and about all year long, but few can resist the crisp air and beautiful scenery in the autumn months. I actually begin working the arts and crafts fairs during this time and my all-time favorite is the Essex Fall Craft and Fine Art Show in Essex Junction, Vermont.

Not only can you get ahold of a ton of ideas from the many other friendly craft vendors participating, but you can also find some of the most delicious foods in the area as well. Full information is at http://69.94.25.69/interiornav.php/pid/2/sid/5.

My specialty is making helpful and handy objects from recycled materials, and one of my biggest sellers is shopping bags crocheted from old plastic shopping bags that people get at the grocery store. They only sound weird, but they are one of the most incredibly sturdy and long-lived ways of toting even the heaviest amounts of groceries possible! What is so interesting is that even at the “artsy” shows people gobble up my bags.

I also strongly agree with holisticandhealthy that the local arts and crafts festivals and fairs are a great market for crafts vendors too. Many New England states have all kinds of harvest, apple, pumpkin and autumn festivals that are incredibly affordable for vendors to participate in. Don’t forget the larger flea markets too. In upstate New York there is the Stormville Airport Antique Show and Flea Market that has over seven hundred stalls and packs people in regardless of the weather.

Hi Folks!

I’m actually from Georgia as well, but rarely ever get as far south as Savannah; I’m up in rural northeast Georgia. I sell hand carved walking sticks and other wooden implements and have found that spring, and fall in particular, seem to bring out the wanderlust in people. Fall fairs are some of the best times for me to sell my products, as you might imagine!

I rarely do the larger craft fairs, mostly because there aren’t that many “large” ones out here in the middle of nowhere, but I do enjoy going to the small town Fall Festival fairs every year. It seems like every small town has a festival celebrating autumn; they deck out the town square in red and gold, and the food vendors start hawking their wares. Nothing beats the smell of fresh funnel cakes on a crisp fall morning, I say!

Anyway, I try to hit as many of these little “festivals” as possible; after a few trips, everyone starts to treat you like family and some folks even start asking if you’ll be coming back next year. I’ve even had quite a few people ask for a phone number or an email address so they could order custom work throughout the year.

HolisticandHealthy, you might consider doing something of the same, particularly if you want a break from the larger fairs and festivals. I realize that the number of patrons might be smaller, but nothing quite matches the feeling of being among friends and family :) I would imagine that the New England area is pretty rife with small town fairs from late September onward?

WdCrvrEd

Hi again folks,

I just wanted to pop over and give you guys links to a couple of articles I found while browsing this website. They don’t pertain EXACTLY to the discussion that was going on, but they do offer some helpful insight. One of them is about finding the best fairs and festivals in New England, which I thought would of use (obviously!). The other one is a bit more general, but it’s about the general outlook for craft fairs and other festivals in 2009 and how the attendance is up for FREE ADMITTANCE fairs (versus those with an entrance fee).

Here are the links, btw:

This one is for the New England fairs: http://www.fairsandfestivals.net/articles/view/finding_the_best_craft_shows_in_the_new_england_region/112

This is the one about “what to expect” - it’s short, but offers good information, in my opinion: http://www.fairsandfestivals.net/articles/view/2009_outlook_and_preparing_yourself_and_your_arts_crafts_business_for_uncer/104

WdCrvrEd

Hi Again Everybody!

I just thought I would pop back in and give a shout out for the upper mid-west. lolol… Michigan is a Great place for crafts, fairs, events, and festivals… plus, they always seem to love the mix of music and great food with the arts and crafts scene.

I’ve never been to the east coast, I have always wanted to get there but never seem to be able to get that trip in order. I almost moved to Georgia, though, about 14 years ago. It was Hot and Beautiful… I went to Stone Mountain while I was there.

Anyhow, I think that, with the revolution toward rebuilding the independent business frontier, just about any state in America has its own strengths and charms when it comes to what we do. I’d love to go out on tour!

Have a great day all.

I do love the smaller fairs and festivals.  We have many of them in the area, especially in the fall, as churches, schools, and other groups gear up to raise money for the upcoming year.  Many times I rent spaces at these fairs, and the owners are always pretty accommodating. 

I definitely agree with the posting about attendance at smaller and free craft shows.  Attendance is definitely up, and I think at least in part it is due to the idea of being able to attend something so unqiue without having to pay money.  With the economy the way it is, many people have such limited budgets that even the admission price to larger fair events takes away a big portion of the money these customers could be spending on merchandise and wares.  I have always been a big fan of no admission price style shows, as I think they are just more inviting.  For venues with a large overhead, I understand that this is how they make their costs and profits, but there is nothing better to me than a community art show or craft show.

As far as going on tour with our wares, I think every vendor could benefit from that.  I know I need to do it.  I love New England, but what better way to explore the whole country, see new things, people, and places, and learn new ideas than to travel? I always make excuses not to take much needed vacations, but seeing as how I find crafts fairs to be a sort of relaxation for me, I think traveling the show circuit in a broader way would be a good chance to mix my love of crafts with my desire to really experience the country.  When I was younger, I always enjoyed a good road trip, and I think it would be exciting to see the country again in a new time and see how much it has changed.

Hi everyone!  I’ve enjoyed reading your experiences thus far.  I’m fairly new to the world of crafts but do enjoy going out and getting involved in the local craft fairs.  I thought I’d tell you about some of the craft show listings I’ve actually been to see and look forward to seeing again this year.  I live in Texas but my cousin lives in Louisiana, we sometimes travel between the two states.  But I much prefer the Texas-themed fair events because of the down-home style.

West Texas Fair and Rodeo.  This happens again in September.  Any southerner would like this arts and crafts show, which includes events like assorted livestock and horse shows, rodeos, tractor pulls and agricultural and horticultural exhibits.  Kids also seem to like the parade and the carnival.  A must-see show for Texans!

September Fest.  This happens in Midland, Texas.  There are at least 100 artists all gather together around the Museum of the Southwest and showcase their jewelry and canvases.  This one is almost a selfish trip for us, since I just love the Ay Chihuahua Parade (and yes, it’s what you think it is!).  Lots of stuff for kids too like a petting zoo and slow pony ride.

Last but not least, there’s the Peddler Show at College Station.  What can I say, I’m a Texas girl!  Lots of horticulture here, as well as arts and crafts.  But like Holistic and Healthy said, I do like seeking out the smaller fairs and festivals.  Sometimes, that’s where the real bargains are found.  Hey, since we’re the ones with the real bargains, we should be scouting these places out!  LOL

I can’t wait for the fall season to arrive!