Wholesale Marketing: Trade Shows

Fish Face booth at the Minneapolis Gift Show

The selling season is in full swing here in the Midwest. We’ve already gone through the Chicago Market Show, along with Beckman’s Handcrafted Show  and Style Max. Next on the schedule is the Minneapolis Gift Show.

It seems that the “gift show” is still the most effective way to market a small line of graphic t-shirts to stores, boutiques, catalogs and online retailers. In theory it makes sense to invite all the store owners from a region to come to one location to shop from a variety of venders. Sounds good enough, but here are a few things to consider.

Know Your Target Market

Before signing up for a trade show first investigate whether the show’s target buyers aline with your target market. Call the promoter and have them send you a list of last years attendees and ask the promoter questions about their  list of registries.  What types of stores attend.  Are they antique, boutique, sport stores, chain stores, or distributors?  What are their annual sales? What did they buy? How often do they attend? Where did they come from (which states or geographical areas?)

Word of Mouth

Do you know someone who does the show? If not, maybe a colleague of yours know someone who has done the show. Ask that colleague for the name of that person and give them a call.  Ask if it is a good show, and how long they have done it. It it ‘s over many years, then it must be working for them.

Go to the Show

Next, if you have the time, I would strongly recommend visiting the show (either as a manufacture, or buyer). If you can go on what you might think is a busy day, and an “off” day. Check out your competition and watch them for a while. Are they busy? Don’t be shy, go into their booth. Once you enter the booth they are going to want to see your badge. Strike up a conversation. Let  them know you produce a similar product, but also that you carry other lines on your online store (polite white lie). Tell them you may be displaying your own products next year at this show. They may or may not be open to a few of your questions about the show, if they aren’t, move on, don’t push it because reps, owners, and creatives get territorial about their lines, and rightly so.

Up Next: Planning for the Show

O.K. you’ve decided to sign up and display your products at a wholesale gift show.