Ladies, Puffin is taken. I'm sorry you had to find out like this. Hey Puffin! Congrats to both of you for running a successful booth! I'm sad to hear the end profits come to about nothing, but if it's subsidizing a convention visit, then it sounds like it's filling a solid role for you. In the past when I've imagined running a booth, that intrusive thought was met with dread, rejection, and vitriol. I am... not a people person. Not naturally, at least. It can be quite draining for me to engage with people, especially assertively in order to make sales (I would suck as a salesman). I fear I would go bonkers and start biting customers.
@youtubeuniversity3638
Жыл бұрын
Gentlemen too, and all others.
@KyloXsogi
Жыл бұрын
Ah dang it…
@dracos24
Жыл бұрын
Breaking even twice is, like Puffin said, actually a net positive. Assuming they (she) intends to keep on doing this, starting out and figuring out what works and what doesnt, and subsidizing your conventionvacations without actually taking a loss is a win/win.
@AnthonyNogales
Жыл бұрын
Guess it's time to take down that Helga Pataki-like shrine of Puffin I keep hidden in the closet. :P
@micahphilson
7 ай бұрын
I once covered for a friend of my uncle's at a convention. It turns out... if you have no people skills, you really just don't bring any people in to begin with. They just kinda go past your booth, and the few who stop and look just move on if you don't know how to carry a conversation.
@craigh5236
Жыл бұрын
All this was just Puffin flexing that he has a girlfriend.
@thebirds4588
Жыл бұрын
MY PRAYERS FOR A PUFFIN FOREST VIDEO HAVE BEEN ANSWERED! HALLELUJAH!
@drakox9603
Жыл бұрын
Tell me why
@paulhammons7077
Жыл бұрын
Um.. to what god?... What did it cost 😅
@thebirds4588
Жыл бұрын
@@drakox9603 Ain't nothing but a heartache.
@thebirds4588
Жыл бұрын
@@paulhammons7077 It cost my first born hatchling, but he'll be fine. Probably.
@rubymeaddle
Жыл бұрын
@@paulhammons7077like 6 Jiwari scuttlers
@l0stndamned
Жыл бұрын
On the issue of end-of-event discounts, I wonder if the fact that most folks will be running low on money by that time is having an affect too.
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
Also, the crowd is probably diminishing at that point. If it’s, say, Fri-Sun, on Sunday afternoon, the majority of people are already on their way home.
@TheOlsonOutfit
Жыл бұрын
There may also be the psychological issue of it looking like you are trying to dump product before the end of the con. Then the items become less valuable in the eyes of a potential buyer.
@DucklynStark
Жыл бұрын
As a con goer, I often wait until Sunday to spend all of my "con money" for said discounts. However, the fatigue is therez and it's much harder to buy things because by Sunday, I am often emotionally, physically, and mentally drained. So it is a toss up, really. Also, if you keep in mind that all of those vendors don't want to pack up the remaining items and take it back, because they too are exhausted, then those items don't lose value.
@DrSloth78
Жыл бұрын
Yeah, it sort of evens out. That "Cool Thing" that was just out of your price point (or was on your "if it's still there on Sunday" list) is now half price, but your wallet is also a lot lighter, and you and your group have been discussing dinner for the last hour.
@XthorgoldX
Жыл бұрын
I think two critical issues you didn't comment on are 1) Fan awareness and 2) Market analysis Now, this is a blind spot for me because I don't follow Puffin on other platforms, but did your or your GF's followers *know you had a booth?* A lot of artists I've followed very explicitly and publicly advertise what cons they'll be at and where they'll be. While it's a doubt that anyone's going to travel to the con just for the artist, considering the overlap in communities, odds are that even for an artist with a moderate following there will be a handful of people at that con who know of you (heck, in this very comment section someone said they could've gone!). Those folks will come - and they will be WHALES compared to casual shoppers, and they'll be more likely to pick up the artist-specific stuff that doesn't have as much broad appeal. Market analysis was kinda touched on in the "No one got the MTG reference" issue: who's AT the convention, and what do they like? Especially for a booth with limited space, there has to be consideration of what content is most likely to draw eyes and sales for the given market. Sure, there might be a lot of MTG fans at AX, but you're already taking a handicap because MTG isn't the least common denominator at AX - anime is. So, all else being equal, it's more efficient to bring the anime fanart to Anime Expo but bring more Star Wars art to Comicon.
@ianflowforever
Жыл бұрын
I will say as someone who's been watching out for new Puffin videos, I went "oh, huh, they tried doing artist alley booths??" and I watched out of curiosity because I've wondered how indie creators do. I know I've more than likely had various friends, and I could ask creators I've met who do them (I think I'll look to sometime now), but.. I havent done that, so I watched the video And yeah, the merch item... if they were tokens for say, a Trading Card Game fandom, that allows custom merch, or say Card Sleeves... yeah they'd have sold more than likely
@masterloard
Жыл бұрын
Legit though, I would absolutely pay for, effectively, memes related to PF's content. Like maybe something like that one where he's describing the conversation with the DM about Abserd's classes, and he goes "Oh, what classes are you giving him" "... ALL OF THEM!", or maybe some an action scene with some of his characters fighting off some entirely too adorable monstrosities like the Aboleth, the White Dragon from the start of the "Detective Clancy" video when he was explaining why he doesn't like playing rogues, etc
@MakeSureYouCleanUp
Жыл бұрын
@masterloard As cute as those would be, remember it's her booth, not his. So she's selling products based on her interest and hobbies and he was helping her. 😅
@ianflowforever
Жыл бұрын
@@MakeSureYouCleanUp that's true! they basically said, more or less that this is also them having fun with attending a con. they're not in it for the money. just because we can see how it could've been done more profitably doesnt mean it should've been done that way
@nobinary2296
Жыл бұрын
Bro says they are doing it for fun. I don't think they were there to make bank.
@CrownePrince
Жыл бұрын
No, the thing you say about prices is absolutely true. It is so hard to drill this into artists' heads too. People don't buy art like they buy other things - they're not going to flock to your booth or your commission book just because you set a price way lower than everyone else's.
@-o-dq7nd
2 ай бұрын
This is true, if I see a drawing of my favorite thing and it is $20 and next to it is a drawing of something I don't like but it's $5. I'm still not going to buy the $5 art for the simple fact I don't like it. The thing I like however I'll spend the $20 cause I like it and want it.
@JamesThatcher
Жыл бұрын
Ben, an idea might be to set up a specific red bubble store front just for the con, and have a QR code for people to order their shirts direct. That way you don't have to carry a bunch around...
@Falcodrin
Жыл бұрын
Just have one of each design printed do they can feel the material and see when it would look like
@travisshallenberger9486
Жыл бұрын
I can see that going both ways, though. It would be way easier to do the shirts that way, yet at the same time part of the appeal of the con is the instant gratification; the ability to put the physical item into a pile and look at the haul you got.
@Dillon-117
Жыл бұрын
That's interesting, and digital items do sell well for some things. Shirts, probably not so much. But, games and books tend to be fine; if they are discounted for being digital only.
@adtopkek4826
Жыл бұрын
Like I am going to scan random QR codes. Tempt me with product or gtfo i can just buy online.
@MrFlame-zk5cy
Жыл бұрын
WOW just thinking about it i never considered how difficult it must be picking what to sell for the spacing purposes that angle never crossed my mind next time im at a con im gonna have to look at the booths and imagine them packing their suitcases and determining how much space they have to actually sell things and whats space efficient
@twinzzlers
Жыл бұрын
Damn Ben, congrats on the girlfriend.
@muzunomi
Жыл бұрын
I recommend selling mousepads that are the same size as a playmat, then you can have 1 product that appeals to two different markets!
@margibso
Жыл бұрын
5:25 This is a good explanation for the differences between competing on 'margin' and competing on 'uniqueness.' Art is clearly in the second category, and the competition is over who has the most evocative and interesting art for a particular customer. Price is not as big of a factor.
@Shatterverse
Жыл бұрын
If she doesn't already have one, I'd recommend an online merch - or at least an Etsy - store for her merch. That way you can print up flyers or business cards to hand out at cons too, and stick a plug at the end of your YouTub vids for it so interested parties who don't/can't/won't go to LA or cons in general can still opt to get merch they like.
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
Etsy is a rip-off though. The site is flooded with drop-shipped cheap Chinese bs. It will be impossible to find you. They hoard the keywords. Stay away from Etsy.
@tcr7
Жыл бұрын
@@ArDeeMee Can confirm. My most recent purchase was for an adult toy. It arrived and had a different company's name on the toy. Literally the etsy seller just ordered it from the chinese seller and had it shipped directly to me. Even though I got something like 40% off the etsy store price, I paid about 3 times as much as just buying it from the chinese seller directly.
@AdamCPrice
11 ай бұрын
My wife makes a steady $300-$500 a month on Etsy selling art prints. It’s a legitimately viable option for the product shared in this video.
@Potatomuffin
Жыл бұрын
Is there an etsy or something to link? I liked those designs and also play MtG.
@REDMDavyd
Жыл бұрын
As someone who has a significant other who is about to run their first booth at a con, this is both timely and informative! Thanks!
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
Another important thing is to bring more product than you hope to sell. You don’t want your booth to only have miscellaneous leftovers, you want it to look pretty and well stocked.
@Gray_Falcon
Жыл бұрын
Wife and I do con booths every year along with several smaller shows. We opt for the crafter booths that cost less at our local ones. This year was our 8th year attending and we love doing it. In the last couple of years we have expanded from a singe to a double table space. She does crochet Hats, plush and lots of other things and I do wood working. Between us she defiantly makes up nearly all the sales. I make wood deck boxes, D&D/Warhammer terrain, coasters jewelry and other knickknacks. Nearly every year our sales increase and we never know what is going to end up being the hot item. Sometimes we have things sit out in inventory for years and all of a sudden it will disappear. This year she made a hat that has historically only sold online and this year it blew up this year on both online and show site. My stuff, especially the knickknacks and jewelry sell better at smaller shows and my more expensive woodworking product such as deck boxes sell better online. A lot of it simply has to do with the expectations of customers at the even your going to. For instance I expect my woodworking would sell significantly better at something like Gen Con or Origins but those shows don't offer crafter tables you have to pay the same price as a vendor. Since none of our stuff can be mass produced. its harder to justify a space that can cost 2x as much if we don't expect 1.5-2x the sales. We also hit a limit on product because its all handmade as well. Since we both have regular day jobs, we can only produce so much product. My wife currently has tennis elbow from all the crocheting and currently has a ton of orders that need made that she is currently working on getting some local help to get them all out on time. The worst part of all of it is what it costs to produce. She made a dragon that probably took her 20 hours to make. We once had a person look at the price, make a discussed sound and throw it on the table. I "gently" explained to the person how much time it took and all the effort that went into making the product and that she didn't even make minimum wage to produce the item she just rudely threw onto the table. There are also people that understand the difficulty and time that go into the craft and are happy to spend up. We regularly sell to celebrities who are walking by in the early morning or after a show closes. Its also where I proposed to my wife during Geek Prom. Overall the experience is great but it is defiantly like have a second job that we use to support our love of cons, yarn, wood and gaming. Anyway if anyone wants to know more just let me know and I will be happy to chat about it. I just deleted half of this because Its already way longer than most people will read at this length.
@spiffycows
11 ай бұрын
I appreciate you sharing your experiences. I attend and work with a lot of craft-focused events and encourage you both not to get worked-up over people who don't like your prices, they are simply not your target audience. The absolute best customers, your dream customer, is the one that loves handmade goods and saves up to pay for them. They are also the most likely to come back and buy from you again. Building a business is slow work, but I hope you both continue to do it and grow every year! Thank you!
@MTGeomancer
Жыл бұрын
Oh man, this reminds me of me and my wife. She makes crocheted and knitted stuffed animals, which are big and bulky haha, so we can only do things in driving range. We've been considering doing the large multi-day craft fairs but the cost has always thrown us off because at the smaller local fairs they never work out all that well. She makes back the booth fee, but not much more. My wife gets really discouraged that quite a lot of people actually do stop and look, and they gush about how cute something is, say they'll come back around, but then rarely do. We've always been curious if the foot traffic in the large well known ones would offset the hundreds of dollars to get in. Plus there is the consideration that if you make those kind of sales, it gets reported to the tax man who will want their cut as well. Was interesting to hear your take, I can really see the advantages of art especially the prints. For the stuffed animals my wife makes, they take ~10 hours of labor to make each and sell for only $30. To make a duplicate, it's another 10 hours. It never could be considered profitable if labor was considered. I've been trying to convince her to instead create a book of patterns for her custom designs.
@Randompersonnumber3
Жыл бұрын
My husband sells pottery at events and we have the exact same experience. It gets disheartening and there is one area we just won't go because of how bad it was to sell there
@tsifirakiehl4250
Жыл бұрын
Is your girlfriend Courtney the same Courtney who played Asiago and Gouda Thyme?
@alexissjc409
Жыл бұрын
Cute hobby sales time!!!❤
@finchhawthorne1302
Жыл бұрын
The only thing I’d add from my and friend’s experiences is: sort your taxes! Know what’s a business expense, and even if you’re not earning much what you are earning and how that connects to your income. It’s boring and probably more confusing than it should be, but it’s kinda the last thing you want to forget or do wrong.
@MrDegan2
Жыл бұрын
The mtg colour symbols look fantastic. Does she only sell them as stickers or could they be done as coasters?
@nocturne_imp2014
Жыл бұрын
Honestly was always curious about how running a booth would work, you gotta be smart with what you're doing as a small business and hope that your products are desirable! ngl I thought everything shown here was just really cute and adorable, wish I could have been there to buy stuff from your guy's booth!
@Sauce_Doc
Жыл бұрын
Yay! You’re still alive! More Puffin Forest videos! I want ‘em now!!!
@MafiaCow01
Жыл бұрын
My friends and I have been doing this for a few years now, and we agree, while we usually only break even it's still a lot of fun. Going off the story you said about mid-con print runs though... For one, relatable. For two, not relatable anymore, as we found that any print store that has that quick a turnaround (in our case, Officeworks in Aus) doesn't have good product. For me, GSM and print quality are almost as important as the design itself. I just find it disappointing to buy a print I love the look of, only to be handed it and it just flops in my hands because of how thin the paper is.
@ZephyreSyx
Жыл бұрын
Now that you said size issues when selling tshirts and prints are more popular, it sounds logical to sell just iron-on prints. 🤔
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
Those don’t last particularly long, though.
@konradfaessler9316
Жыл бұрын
I would’ve totally bought all of those mana stickers. They are adorable.
@Rambletripe1
Жыл бұрын
I am reminded of the old Turtlewax pricing. When it launched it was for a dollar and no-one bought it. So because they lost tons of money they were trying to get make it back they put it on sale for double the price $2. It flew off the shelves. Perceived value also played a part. (The money amounts are illustrative this was from a long time ago.)
@FiddleForge
Жыл бұрын
Huzzah! Hope everything is going well for you, sir! Your videos have really entertained me endlessly.
@gloriousgoo7087
Жыл бұрын
MTG products (commander especially) would probably make go back to a table several times over the course of a weekend. Not sure how much deck boxes and custom card sleeves cost to produce, but stuff like that always gets me.
@SerialElfYT
Жыл бұрын
the main issue is again bulk, a decks worth of sleeves takes 2+ decks worth of space, and boxes? that's 4+ decks of space unless it's a build your own, and even then it's far bulkier than prints or stickers for similar profits
@FortifiedOrangeJuice
Жыл бұрын
There's the issue of where they're selling. At another con they would probably have seen higher sales of Magic stuff, but at Anime Expo specifically, there might be more people who've played Yu-gi-oh than Magic, which reduces the potential market.
@Will-fl3hj
Жыл бұрын
@@FortifiedOrangeJuice Yeah, somewhere like GenCon seems like it would have a significantly larger market for Magic merch than Anime Expo
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
Puffin: „My girlfriend has been going to the anime expo for the past ten years.“ The girlfriend: „DON‘T SAY THAT OUT LOUD!“ 😱
@maltedmilkball2985
Жыл бұрын
For next anime expo it might be a better idea to have like a pretty binder with designs you can order T-shirts of, and then like 1 of each size of shirt as an example of sizing. That way you can take individual orders and have them made once the sale is confirmed, just mail it off in flat-rate packaging at the post office! Make sure to get addresses for your orders though.
@grindergears
Жыл бұрын
Puffin I can't believe I missed you at anime expo TWO YEARS IN A ROW I kind of hope you bring your selves back to AX if you can announce your table at the convention it might help along with AX might just not be your convention (but the perks of being a artist alley artist are very sweet the over crowding is a big issue) magic is a little hard to sell to weebs but I'm surprised because well nerds dnd merch like CR and TAZ or classes charms/pins/stickers seems like a good bet most of the time with anime conventions also your right about prints and specially at anime expo prints are a big seller as someone who has jokingly poked fun to not con crunch after another artist who turned around one night and made a print and had it ready for the convention the next day prints are very handy and great for quick turn around
@jeluenhayo2410
Жыл бұрын
What is this? A Puffin video? A PUFFIN VIDEO NOT DIRECTLY RELATED TO GAMES?! Woah, last time we had close to it thematically like that 3 years ago, when he was chatting with Zee about anything and everything. And don't get me wrong - I love dnd, mtg and other system/story-related videos. I'm basically here for them. But this streak of fresh air was so unexpected that it got me pleasantly surprised! Please don't shy away from making such life-stories, Puffin! And keep up the good work!
@bofurlong8944
Жыл бұрын
The fact those MTG references were not understood is criminal. They were so good!
@spritemon98
Жыл бұрын
Your alive!!!!!
@reedsmith8975
Жыл бұрын
His alive what?
@pablo-yx2st
Жыл бұрын
Woo-hoo he's alive
@asideofsalt.6645
Жыл бұрын
Congrats on the gf
@thomasbecker9676
Жыл бұрын
At Retro Con in Philly a few weeks ago, I believe one of the vendors was printing shirts on demand, so you'd pick your image and shirt size, and *boom* fresh print.
@Riftrender
Жыл бұрын
I went to Anime Boston twice. The first year was fun but the second year the novelty had worn off and I only stayed one year.
@ryanadams0922
Жыл бұрын
As someone who went to Anime Boston Multiple times I sadly have to agree with this like for me 2011 was my first time and it was fantastic. Than I went back like 2014 and a few other times after that and it started getting boring. And I hate to say it but I hope other cons are not like this.
@masterloard
Жыл бұрын
@@ryanadams0922I went to AB 2009, 2010, and 2011, but have never had the time or money to go back since. That being said, as much as I wish I could recapture the feeling of being in my late teens/early 20's going to a con, I don't think it would be nearly as enjoyable now that I'm in my 30's
@CRANTIME
Жыл бұрын
super informative, actually Been considering tabling for a while now but I didn't know if it was worth it
@ericness9660
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for being so open with numbers and impressions! This video was very interesting giving some insights to running a booth that I never would have thought about otherwise.
@WetDreamer7
Жыл бұрын
Yes! Your back!!!!
@Name-sg9ii
Жыл бұрын
As a person who owns a magic the gathering store. I recommend if your gonna run a booth you run it at a magic con. Bring items that will sell in big quantities like shocks and fetches then bring some nesh things that will sell. Example is like boarderless expensive cards
@briansturm4343
Жыл бұрын
That was really helpful. I have these D&D spell cards that reduce the paragraphs to bullet points, organize the info, beautiful art that shows you inventive ways to use the spell, great for young adventures and for just staying in character (*cough* Critical Cards *cough*), and... it has been a huge, NOT profitable business venture. They're great. People love them. But do I sink even more money into going to Cons and paying for a booth?? Do I pay for a famous KZitemr to mention them for 1000-3000 dollars?! Truly, truly helpful. Thank you so much!
@keichishoshuko
Жыл бұрын
Well dang, I would have gone if I knew you were at AX!
@Deveyus
Жыл бұрын
I hate to say it, but the items you sell for $15? Sell them for $19. People balk on Big Round Numbers, so you're literally leaving money on the table by not charging right up to that line. Humans are stupid, and as much as it can sometimes feel gross af, you need to take advantage of it. You're working around that price point a lot, Something is worth $5? Sell it for $4 and now it's a "Trivial Item" not a "Notable Purchase" and people buy it all day. This means that your costs now have to fit within these brackets that exist in people's minds, and I know it's stupid, but it's how humans be. The other big thing, is your stall needs to stand out from 50' away. Even if in a con you don't HAVE 50' of line of sight, act like you do. It makes you feel more legit to shoppers and it helps you stand out, you can't make a sale if they never look at your booth, give them an excuse to do so. The word FREE gets people's attention, even if it's "FREE (the old crap we can't sell)" Source: I spent about 8 years doing flea markets and selling in this kind of 'stall' environment.
@flamesword3397
Жыл бұрын
I love your 7 min stealth ad! Do you guys have an online store link? I love your girl friends cute art!
@StealthMarmot_
Жыл бұрын
Aw we finally get to see Puffin's girl. Actually I had no idea he had a girl. Well either way she's adorbs.
@AnimeNut07
Жыл бұрын
As someone whom has sold at conventions before...I can confirm there are ALOT of factors when it comes to making sales. I've vendored at a local 2 day con for the last couple years. I typically bring a variety of items, mostly anime figs, and try to bring what I hope are the popular characters. This is hard to do because what you think is popular might not actually BE popular. That's just one factor. Another factor is the other vendors. In my case, some had the same item as me, but their price was WAY higher. I mean over double for a figure out if the box...while the one I had was in the box. I can understand them wanting to make a profit with all their expenses but...come now. So yeah the price of what you're selling plays a big part too. Especially for similar items. These are just two factors I've noticed. There are more of course, but don't let these dissuade you from attempting to vendor at a con. If you're an artist, have some creative merch like puffin's gf does, it never hurts to give it a try. Just keep in mind..it's not easy..but...can be very rewarding.
@bannelore449
Жыл бұрын
Does she/do you sell the Magic the Gathering stickers online anywhere, like through etsy? There's totally a market for those.
@kartavianmacrath7219
Жыл бұрын
Okay, I need that Dim Sum Seals print... why you no offer this to us, your adoring fan base? Seriously though, I totally want merch now... this is where your t-shirt market can take off...
@NiSE_Rafter
Жыл бұрын
Wait a minute! Puffin is dating Gouda?!?!?! Or maybe he knows more than one Courtney. I like the first option more though.
@dragoneye6229
Жыл бұрын
Retitling this "Puffin Learned Capitalism". Seriously though good on you guys for running a successful booth.
@jesternario
Жыл бұрын
I worked in Anime Weekend Atlanta's Artist Alley. Didn't make a dime. The guy that sold the anime/video game booby teeshirts sucked the sales from everyone around him. Should've made him go to the merch area where he belonged.
@drpeeperpoppins9585
Жыл бұрын
All praise the mighty and legendary puffin forest, I skipped my daughters birth waiting for the next upload, my extended family hasn’t seen me in years waiting for uploads.
@darkfalcon7856
Жыл бұрын
OMG Puffin! I went to AX, and if I knew you were selling stuff (and I paid attention to the Artists Alley), then I would have eagerly bought a t-shirt and a keychain (and asked to sign my DnD book). I'm gonna pay attention to the Artists Alley next AX.
@KyloXsogi
Жыл бұрын
He returns! Try selling Chadwick Strongpants and Abserd plushies!
@twinzzlers
Жыл бұрын
An Abserd plush would sell like hotcakes
@tsifirakiehl4250
Жыл бұрын
Whimsy plushies!!!
@danielhelwig9015
Жыл бұрын
@@twinzzlersyes, very much yes.
@zombie_snax
Жыл бұрын
Puffin has a girlfriend ? We shouldn't be surprised , he constantly rolls a 20 on charisma.. 😊
@FriendlyKitten
Жыл бұрын
Now I need to know... where I can get the GF's cute stuff! Plix giefs linx for shop, please?
@TheJakk5
Жыл бұрын
Hey does your girlfriend do proxies for magic the gathering cards? Also a link to where I could buy online her stuff?
@canceledlogic7656
Жыл бұрын
5:35 fans are by definition brand sensitive. And con goers, by self selection, are price insensitive. Sales can work with fomo and other goods, but this was a bad place for sales.
@marshallgorski5108
Жыл бұрын
Use to do this type of stuff years ago. The is how I feel about it. If you only do it a few con's a year it is mostly about make the money back for the booth. The other perks make it worth the work. If you are doing it for 25 con's a year then the profit is much more important.
@KenanVonKaiser
2 ай бұрын
Girlfriend Talk About A Fantasy!
@emissarygw2264
Жыл бұрын
I understand now why booths sell what they do, but honestly the only merch I ever look for is mouse pads and t shirts because they're things I'd actually use every day and not just put on a shelf for a few years then throw in the trash.
@JudgeMagisterSnow
Жыл бұрын
Did...you just say "...one size fists all?" I'm using that for a Russian mobster themed Half-Orc Monk.
@micahphilson
7 ай бұрын
This is useful for all of us as well to better know how to support creators at conventions!
@lunacron
Жыл бұрын
Instead of t-shirts how about sell iron on patches, that way size is not an issue and they could put it on a t-shirt or a coat, backpack or whatever they wanted.
@Someguyonline7732
Жыл бұрын
Wait is Courtney the Gouda Thyme player because that’s amazing
@josephcompton5602
Жыл бұрын
I thought about running a booth a while back, I was gearing things up, booking tables, getting a vendor license (which is needed in Texas), doing all the mental math and looking up pricing. I had two slated, one in May the other in July, I had 5 months before the May one and figured I use all that time to make designs and then spend the 4th month getting the bulk of it printed. However, this was at the start of 2020....Needless to say how that went down. Since then I still haven't tabled at a con. Though it is something I really should look back into doing.
@moukidelmar
Жыл бұрын
The major issue with prints is fan art sells WAY better than anything else. BUT all fan art is technically copyright infringement and if the owners want to they can slap you with a seise and dissist or just TAKE your profits or even sue you if they want to. And I know, tons of artists at cons do exactly this without issue every year, but remember, the original owners can crack down any time they choose and be legally in the right
@andythepanhead
Жыл бұрын
I would buy her custom MTG symbols as drink coasters.
@raventhorX
Жыл бұрын
Only person who I've heard outright say working on their vacation was fun...
@ServerQu
Жыл бұрын
Etsy for her shop??? Or link if on a different site? I want the mana stickers so bad
@janisi9262
Жыл бұрын
Everyone's different, but if I'm at a con for the weekend and something I like but don't love is on sale on Sunday, I'm more likely to buy it. If the info is at all useful, I mostly buy prints. (This is due to space concerns in my own home and the fact that I hate dusting and clutter.)
@tonyp8125
Жыл бұрын
Puffin has a girlfriend? I am so happy for you, Buddy!
@DomyTheMad420
Жыл бұрын
5:40 by the end of the day, we tend to run out of cash :p the most devious booth i ever saw offered 30% discounts if you just liked their facebook group & showed you did so. (free discount to everyone for minimal effort) a LOT of people took them up on that "way too good offer" and spent money they wouldn't have otherwise.
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
Business savvy!
@TheRealAlpha2
Жыл бұрын
Before I watch the video: As someone who used to artist alleys.... *shiver* I'm just glad I had people to share the costs with. After watching the video: Largely the same experience. Except I _did_ see a slight uptick on final con days, because a lot of people are buying things from official sources or bigger names and want to save their money on "fan content" so they'll see something at an AA table and file it in the back of their mind to pick up later, knowing that people tend to discount on the last day. So something above a certain range will sell easier at the end while something inexpensive usually sold then and there, the lower the price the better, especially if it's so cheap kids can buy it with their own money.
@quetzalcoatl974
Жыл бұрын
Whenever I see con sellers I feel bad for not having enough to buy at least something from their shops.
@josephb6825
Жыл бұрын
I came for a puffin D&D video. Got an Econ and resources lesson and can see that it still fits. Good luck on the next venture!
@egsauce2911
Жыл бұрын
Ok but I want those Mana symbol stickers!! Why aren’t there links to an online store to buy the back stock 🥲
@lilbunny1634
Жыл бұрын
This was very informative. As someone who enjoys hitting up the artist alley every time it's cool to see all the moving numbers. I'll try to pick up more bulky stuff to insensitive diversity
@ArDeeMee
Жыл бұрын
*incentivize Sorry, it took me a moment to understand your sentence. ^^
@PeanutButterfly92
Жыл бұрын
Okay, the dim sum seals picture is super cute! No wonder it sold so well.
@fr0z3nskull
Жыл бұрын
Is that the same Courtney from Curse of Strahd?
@aronaxel752
Жыл бұрын
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
@timmyb2507
Жыл бұрын
Any mtg stickers left over?
@troncat4604
9 ай бұрын
Hey! great video, I'll keep an eye out for you next year! I don't know if you've been doing this or not but I would suggest for next year to make an announcement video that you'll be there on your channel, even if its just a short. you have a large subscriber base, so even if only a really small amount see it, and even fewer are going to the con, at least people can come and stop by and as you may have gathered, that can boost sales. also, as you saw, sales don't really work, but quantity discounts are always a good way to entice customers to buy a bit more ( I know they get me every year). Some other things that might be good is to label what fandom each piece of art is aimed at, so there is no confusion on what is what and everyone who likes MTG or pokemon will actually look at the booth fully. that extra second of a glance can help a lot with sales. I agree the best thing to sell is prints, second best thing in my opinion is pins, though I'm unsure how costly they are, I know they are really popular and you can bring a large amount anywhere you go. I know you didn't ask for advice, but I hope you'll at least consider what I've said. either way, no hard feelings, hope to see you next year!
@ralph-im-a-star-wars-wiggum
Жыл бұрын
Next time bring puffin prints, shirts, and dice :) I love your wabbly headed characters. Also I'd absolutely buy a plushie of: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!CHADWICK STRONGPANTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@Erhannis
Жыл бұрын
Neat; thanks for the transparency. Interesting to know how this kind of thing works out in practice.
@kennethstefanov9219
Жыл бұрын
This made me wonder if there is Puffin Forest merch... Is there?? I know you said t-shirts are a pain, but would love a puffin forest related t-shirt!
@drscifi
11 ай бұрын
That was a great feedback story. I recently had my first vendor experience. Only a $125 fee so less to recoup. It was launching my D&D tile system which I was scrambling to make as much product as I could before the event. I also did a 20% off QR code pointing to my online store that was only good for the event and following day. Kind of a "If you're not sure on this purchase now you can buy online tomorrow and save my stock here" Which did generate a few sales. All in all covered the event fee and production costs on the tiles. So broke even. Thanks again for this engaging story. Hope to cross paths one day at AX.
@Olanius_Pius666
Жыл бұрын
Zalkin is coming for you.
@brycevo
Жыл бұрын
Oooo Convention video
@leedunning1825
Жыл бұрын
I really enjoyed this look behind the scenes. It turns out it was pretty much what I expected profit-wise, but the perks were something I did not know. I'm glad it works for you, and I hope eventually it becomes profitable as well.
@AlewsDaviz
Жыл бұрын
@Krensharpaw
Жыл бұрын
You should sell some of this stuff as merch cause if I was there, I would've gotten some of that stuff. Seems cool. You should also sell playmats of the prints.
@TheOlsonOutfit
Жыл бұрын
re: mouse pads. This is where you could point folks to a website for on demand printing sales.
@alexisgrace9973
Жыл бұрын
Hello!
@RottenRogerDM
Жыл бұрын
Decades ago I was talking to a tailor who earn her money making robes and mantles for Catholic Churches. She also had a side business on her sewing. We were talking about honest pricing hand crafts and she had this formula. 1. Price of Raw material * 10 percent 2. 10 percent tool replacement cost. So that leather stamp you use to punch “A” into the belt is 25 cents. 3. Your expect hourly wage * hours to make the product. 4. Total price of tools used and tossed. This would be like sponges, needles, dye, etc. 5. Total of 1 to 4. 6. Multiply 5 by 2. End of Formula. Tshirts are a gripe item for vendors. Either everyone is selling them. Or the size problem you mentioned. But if you going to do this as business. The total price to, at, and from the con is a business expense. Good luck.
@ElmarBischof
6 ай бұрын
Product Idea, that I'd buy. Sell D&D one shot adventure, a5, nice cover, as signed with "Puffin", and a QR code to the KZitem Channel, to a video that explains how to run it.
@aaaro88
Жыл бұрын
I wish more booths would realize that a massive portion of people that attend these Conventions who actually HAVE MONEY won't fit into a 2x... My boyfriend has a closet full of print shirts while i have maybe 4 total shirts with cool prints.. How hard would it be to offer prints at higher sizes like 3X , 4X, even 5X ... if you took orders during the Convention ...and shipped them out later once you know exactly how many to print? With a system like that I'd actually walk out of conventions with a much emptier wallet rather than going 4 days to PAX, etc.. and coming out realizing I spent less than $50 for the 4 days worth of merch
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