Shopping at Holiday gift shows and bazaars

You may have met Koffee Kompanions at a gift show in Alaska, Colorado, North Carolina, Missouri, Texas, Kansas, or Oklahoma a few years ago. It took 8-9 hours for two people to set up the booth. We packed the booth after the closing of the last show day. My favorite part of the gift shows or events was meeting people.

The following suggestions for shoppers will make booth owner’s experiences as much fun as your shopping experiences!

Don’t ask for discounts or try to make deals. You don’t do that in department stores so please don’t do it at gift shows. The owner will have signs displayed for bargains and discounts.

Booth owners cringe when they hear someone say to a friend, “That’s easy to do. I could make those.” While your statements may be true (but often aren’t), it’s not polite to point it out in front of the booth owner who has worked long hours to fill their booth. You would be surprised at how well we hear conversations!

The booths are for selling retail. They aren’t phone booths. Please go to the sitting or food area to use your cell phone. If your phone conversation is about a retail item in the booth, cell phones are welcome!

Taking a photo of an item so you can copy it may be in violation of copyright laws. And it’s very rude.

Most booths are only 10’ X 10’ so don’t fill it with a stroller. The booth owner and other shoppers will thank you if you park your stroller to one side of the booth in the aisle. Take turns shopping in the booth with a friend. Try very hard not to hit other shoppers while pushing the stroller.

This was a fund raiser by the Colorado Springs Police Department. I had a table and only two pieces of grid bar to hang items. Being able to adapt to new environments is necessary. After the event was over, a very strong policeman offered to carry my things to my van!

Have fun shopping with friends and family!