Going to Have a Small Comic book Show. Looking for ideas/thoughts 3 3

[thehumantorch]

I'd also like to suggest you think about synergy with the mall.  If there are restaurants  in the mall perhaps you could have their menus posted where people come in, etc.  

[MattTheDuck]

On 12/7/2021 at 8:09 PM, fastballspecial said:

Here is option B. Much longer space over 100 feet at least, but lighting the last 20 feet is bad I think.
Unless they can improve lighting which I doubt. I think 75 feet is use able easily. Those shadows look worse
then what they are the skylights give pretty good light just not as good as other area. And both have outlets
in the floor for power. 

I can't see this from the pictures, but is there any electric service to these areas?  Do the Dealers need that?  If it exists, it would allow you to solve the lighting problem in the larger space.

[fastballspecial]

On 12/7/2021 at 10:12 PM, thehumantorch said:

B all day.  Looks perfect.  If you're worried about bad light in one area you can always give dealers a discount if they set up in that area.  Structure  your costs so you at least break even on the well lit area.

It is much larger skylights allow light just a little darker at very end. I think as long we dont have an overcast day
there should not be a problem. It really depends on how many dealers I get to pay up front and lock in. That will 
let me know which side will work better. So alot still to work out as I start advertising soon.

 

[fastballspecial]

On 12/7/2021 at 10:16 PM, thehumantorch said:

I'd also like to suggest you think about synergy with the mall.  If there are restaurants  in the mall perhaps you could have their menus posted where people come in, etc.  

There is only a bar and a pizza shop in the mall currently. I have spoken with the Noble Roman's I eat there every couple of weeks so the owner and I know each other. He just asked that I give him the date so he can staff it better. Dealers wont
have to worry about that as I plan to order pizza for them and have some donuts and water bottles in the morning. (At least that is my plan so far.)

Its a good idea all see if I can get him to give me some b/w of his menu I can put out on the front tables.

 

 

Edited December 8, 2021 by fastballspecial

[fastballspecial]

On 12/7/2021 at 10:31 PM, MattTheDuck said:

On 12/7/2021 at 10:09 PM, fastballspecial said:

Here is option B. Much longer space over 100 feet at least, but lighting the last 20 feet is bad I think.
Unless they can improve lighting which I doubt. I think 75 feet is use able easily. Those shadows look worse
then what they are the skylights give pretty good light just not as good as other area. And both have outlets
in the floor for power. 

Expand  

I can't see this from the pictures, but is there any electric service to these areas?  Do the Dealers need that?  If it exists, it would allow you to solve the lighting problem in the larger space.

They are plugs in the floor that I haven't checked if they work yet.
Occasionally some dealers will like to have power for their laptops and or cell phones. I have one that even runs videos sometimes so
I will have to take a plug in there and see if it works or if I talk with the manager first. All probably grab a surge protector or two from 
my house just in case. 

 

 

[fastballspecial]

On 12/7/2021 at 10:12 PM, thehumantorch said:

B all day.  Looks perfect.  If you're worried about bad light in one area you can always give dealers a discount if they set up in that area.  Structure  your costs so you at least break even on the well lit area.

Yeah costs are the biggest issue. I am keeping a spreadsheet on costs so I have a pretty good idea. 
I want to be upfront with dealers about cost as well since I am not looking at making a profit, but providing
a good venue for everyone. (Hopefully that means everyone makes some money too.) So I will be 
selective some dealers from other shows have shown me how they act and I would like to avoid potential
headaches as I have little patience for that type of ignorance/poor service etc....

 

 

 

[fastballspecial]

Well I put down the deposit and have officially been granted the day for the 
show as May 14th. Which is how I feel right now. 

[fastballspecial]

I go over this weekend to measure for booths in both locations to see how many dealers I can get. I have 38 tables
which will allow me to easily have each dealer with 2 8 foot tables each. After that we will have to see how many dealers
I get to see if I can give out a 3rd table yet or not. Power does work as well which should be nice plus for cell phones
laptops etc....   Once I complete all this I will be adding the rest on the FB group I have set up. I wont really begin heavy advertising for a bit until I nail down my floor designs. I am taking some fliers to comic books shops south of me 2 hours
tomorrow as I only visit them twice a year. 

I think I am nuts for attempting this. 

 

Edited December 10, 2021 by fastballspecial

[MattTheDuck]

Think about "staff."  Especially if you're going to be busy selling your own books, you want to have someone else other vendors or the Mall can go to with questions or "needs" on the day of the show, and to circulate around keeping an eye on things.  Would probably help if it's a "comics" person, but anyone with some business saavy/common sense who knows what's happening and what's supposed to be happening would work fine.

[fastballspecial]

On 12/9/2021 at 7:04 PM, MattTheDuck said:

Think about "staff."  Especially if you're going to be busy selling your own books, you want to have someone else other vendors or the Mall can go to with questions or "needs" on the day of the show, and to circulate around keeping an eye on things.  Would probably help if it's a "comics" person, but anyone with some business saavy/common sense who knows what's happening and what's supposed to be happening would work fine.

I have another dealer with me that is doing some leg work as well. Probably add 2 friends to help as we get closer. Honestly early on I am looking to pilfer some books and not even open until maybe an hour into the show. I prefer to make sure the dealers have everything they need. Then I can open up I will have my stuff ready so all need to do is just open the lids and put stuff on my rack shouldn't take 10 minutes. Since its not a con it should be pretty informal. The difficult part will be the layout which I am working on Saturday with another dealer to decide to go square route or an open plan with dealers against the walls and customers just walking straight thru the middle. By fire codes I must have 4 feet on each side
there some limitation there. 

 

Edited December 10, 2021 by fastballspecial

[MattTheDuck]

You've got a good plan.  The only other thing I can think of right now is whether you want to have a sign-up sheet for future "comic shows."  If this is a wild success, you don't want to have to recreate the marketing wheel if you want to do it again, and if you don't use emails/cell phone information gathered except as promised, you could build quite a little "organization."  

[musicmeta]

I find all this process for setting up some kind of comic book sell venue highly informative and insightful.  I'm sure with all the planning you are doing, it will be a success.

[fastballspecial]

On 12/9/2021 at 8:18 PM, MattTheDuck said:

You've got a good plan.  The only other thing I can think of right now is whether you want to have a sign-up sheet for future "comic shows."  If this is a wild success, you don't want to have to recreate the marketing wheel if you want to do it again, and if you don't use emails/cell phone information gathered except as promised, you could build quite a little "organization."  

Thats something I need to work on. Right now I am more focused on the design plan so I figure out how many dealers
I can squeeze in and then advertise with that number. Once that is complete then I can push on to other stuff. Some of
the dealers are already advertising.

 

 

[fastballspecial]

On 12/9/2021 at 10:21 PM, musicmeta said:

I find all this process for setting up some kind of comic book sell venue highly informative and insightful.  I'm sure with all the planning you are doing, it will be a success.

That was kinda my plan to give blueprint to help others follow. I am done with big conventions for the most part that only offer 15% of the convention for me. I prefer a show more catered to what I want. If this doesn't work then it tells me you actually have to go that route. The only difference is I am not looking to make a profit, if I break even great. I can make money from my comics. Going forward that might change, but for now I think its the right way to approach it since I am selling as well.

I went to 3 stores in Padauch, KY today and handing out about 100 fliers and will do in other cities and mail some off to 
boardies who asked for their cities as well.

 

Edited December 11, 2021 by fastballspecial

[fastballspecial]

Took measurements today. Marked off the areas for dealer booths.

[fastballspecial]

Preliminary Floor Plans for both areas. We put 4 feet of space between both dealers. I can now take 
18 dealer and maybe 19 total. Right now I have 5 slots taken already.

[aardvark88]

Recommendations:

1. Depending on what Covid rules are in your state by May 2022:

Have staff or family scan Covid vax QR codes with a tablet to prove attendee has had at least 2 vaccination shots for this indoor public event.

2. If there is a P.A. (speaker) system, have hourly prize draws (of graphic novels or $25 gift certificates) after lunch hour so fans stay at your mall con longer.

3. Advertise on Facebook at least twice 2-3 weeks ahead of time to target market (e.g. key words = comicon, collectible comics, Marvel/DC/Image comics, Batman, Spider-man, X-men, Star Wars, Mandalorian, Dr. Strange, Hawkeye, TMNT, toys, MacFarlane/action figures, Star Trek) in zip codes that u choose.

4. Offer a big Costco-sized jug of hand sanitizer at each main entrance for collector-fans to use as they enter/leave your con.

5. Charge more for an end/corner table location, as vendor can bring their own 4' or 6' x 30 inch side table to maximize an L-shaped vending area.

[fastballspecial]

On 12/11/2021 at 11:01 PM, aardvark88 said:

Recommendations:

1. Depending on what Covid rules are in your state by May 2022:

Have staff or family scan Covid vax QR codes with a tablet to prove attendee has had at least 2 vaccination shots for this indoor public event.

2. If there is a P.A. (speaker) system, have hourly prize draws (of graphic novels or $25 gift certificates) after lunch hour so fans stay at your mall con longer.

3. Advertise on Facebook at least twice 2-3 weeks ahead of time to target market (e.g. key words = comicon, collectible comics, Marvel/DC/Image comics, Batman, Spider-man, X-men, Star Wars, Mandalorian, Dr. Strange, Hawkeye, TMNT, toys, MacFarlane/action figures, Star Trek) in zip codes that u choose.

4. Offer a big Costco-sized jug of hand sanitizer at each main entrance for collector-fans to use as they enter/leave your con.

5. Charge more for an end/corner table location, as vendor can bring their own 4' or 6' x 30 inch side table to maximize an L-shaped vending area.

Good stuff.

The Covid problem is the biggest issue. Right now there is no requirements currently as I live in a conservative state. I plan to have sanitizers and
masks available at the entrance. The open venue is a plus instead of being inside a 30x40 room instead. 

I plan to have a separate FB group for vendors to discuss issues like this. Ive got 6 dealers already so I am almost half way and I haven't
advertised at all yet. 

I don't have the desire for the PA system yet. That might be a mistake, but currently that is not in the works. I think a door prize drawing might
be an option though as I have thought about that already. Some of the dealers are already actively advertising as well as much as I am 
currently.

 

[sckao]

Hi,

You need to leave room behind the table for a rack of sorts. The footprint for an A-Frame type rack can vary and a rack may need anywhere from about 2' to 2.5' generally to be stable. (You also need to leave room for the person standing in front of the rack and room for chairs, etc. between their racks and the table.)

The end tables (A and E, etc.) need to become corner units to stop people from going behind the dealer. It will also give the dealer more room and allow you to charge higher prices for those booths.

Generally, Layout B is preferable as dealers will generally not want anyone to be able to go behind their racks if possible. (Layout A will not allow racks behind the tables with enough clearance it seems.)

(If you think part-time dealers/collectors won't have their own racks, you'd be surprised. I had probably 3-4 styles of racks over the years with multiples of each to span double-booths.).

 

Edited December 13, 2021 by sckao

[thehumantorch]

On 12/12/2021 at 9:14 PM, sckao said:

Hi,

You need to leave room behind the table for a rack of sorts. The footprint for an A-Frame type rack can vary and a rack may need anywhere from about 2' to 2.5' generally to be stable. (You also need to leave room for the person standing in front of the rack and room for chairs, etc. between their racks and the table.)

The end tables (A and E, etc.) need to become corner units to stop people from going behind the dealer. It will also give the dealer more room and allow you to charge higher prices for those booths.

Generally, Layout B is preferable as dealers will generally not want anyone to be able to go behind their racks if possible. (Layout A will not allow racks behind the tables with enough clearance it seems.)

(If you think part-time dealers/collectors won't have their own racks, you'd be surprised. I had probably 3-4 styles of racks over the years with multiples of each to span double-booths.).

 

Agree to all.  We pretty well need a booth 8 feet deep to set up our rack and have room for a table in front and for us to stand between.  If we're challenged for room sometimes we do an alternate setup where we set up our rack above our tables but that took us a while to perfect and most dealers won't have this ability.

If you can't give all the dealers a 'deep' booth there's nothing stopping you from charging different rates for different depth and/or square footage booths.  We set up at one show that has a narrow dealer aisle and a wider dealer aisle and the promoter naturally charges more for the wider dealer aisle.  That allows dealers who have racks and dealers who require more room to pay a little more for the space.

I know you want to break even on this first show but I would strongly suggest you build in a small profit margin in case you have unexpected expenses let alone reward you for the work.

Lastly, promote promote promote.  Nothing is more important to dealers than a strong attendance of buyers.  I really hope you do well as you've made a great start and your heart is in the right place.