This was first published on my Medium here: Autumnfest in Princeton WV: A Retailing Saga Thought it would be good to share with y’all over here too!
The first year we were here in West Virginia we played tourists in our town for Autumnfest 2024. The shop had not officially opened yet, so we were completely unprepared to set up for the event even if we wanted to. But, 2025 was a different story. We had been open for almost a year and seemed like setting up outside would be a good idea as we noticed in 2024 people weren’t exactly going into the shops on the street, although many were open, which I made note of to remember if we ever decided to participate in the future.
Being our first time I think we did a good job of picking what to put outside with us and what to leave inside the shop. My favorite part of these is getting to see familiar faces and getting to see brand new ones. I always have some great conversations; which is why I love being at the shop on the days we are open.
For our first time I think we did really well as far as sales. It was our biggest one-day total the entire year. Our fees for the booths, (we had two, bike tent and a mercantile tent), were covered as well as any overhead. Bonus we made some money too! One thing we did choose to do was not have the shop open to save on personnel. At the time it seemed like the best thing to do, as I had noted earlier, that I remembered people not really going into the open shops in 2024.
Getting rid of some inventory. Big plans for 2027
At the Mercer Street Fair this year (for context there are two street fairs and one huge 4 day event, Culturefest, that happen on the street. Along with smaller events that happen at businesses and in the streets town square) we had two booths out front and also had the shop open. It ended up being our biggest one-day total in a year and a half. What we learned is people will go in the store if it is open and you are directing traffic from your booth inside by letting them know there is “more inside”. That strategy worked really well and each time we do one of these we learn something new. Which not only helps with the next event, but also with inventory choices inside the shop, an added bonus.
Autumnfest happens tomorrow and like the Mercer Street Fair we will have two booths out front with the shop open. I am going to use what we have learned along the way to see if we can outdo our sales from the Street Fair. Time will tell!
The economy is still shit, gas prices are still insane, and people are making different choices. But, I think people still leave room for a bit of whimsy and weird which is exactly what we deliver. Plus, we do our best to sell as much as we can from other Appalachian businesses and makers. Admittedly we are not 100% there, but working on it. There are still things we simply can not find that are manufactured in the United States. In those cases I do my best to find the closest Appalachian wholesaler, but even doing that is not always feasible. Let’s say that I am doing what I can.
Super excited to see everyone tomorrow! Even if we don’t crack through to a new sales record, that alone will be a win for me.
Note: Culturefest doesn’t have a street fair component, but we were up almost 40% in sales for the 4-day event vs. the typical sales for those same 4 days. Our ad in the program was better this year and my strategy of having something out front to draw people to the door is still working!
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