Our first expo booth in eight years appeared in Milwaukee . . . nice 'n close to home. Karen and I loaded our cars to the brim and drove to the show, caravan style. It was there that we learned a lot about how we wanted to present our product at future shows. We had so many ideas during Saturday night's dinner that Karen had to run out to her car for a notebook and pen!
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| Post-show dinner brainstorming session. |
*The ALSB workshop we offered in Milwaukee sold out!
We ordered up the grid wall and display boards right away, and Karen literally set up the booth right in the warehouse.
In May, we hooked up a big U-Haul trailer to my truck and Scott drove me 'n Jac the full nine hours to the Detroit area for the Great Lakes Mega Meet. It's a big, three-day show, and we had a blast!
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| The U-Haul was a little bigger than the truck. |
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| This is the part where I was SO glad Scott was driving! |
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| Friends reunite in Michigan . . . Jacqueline and Lori. :) |
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| Just loving the new booth setup! |
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| Scott created an appetizer tray for us one night after the show . . . complete with his own custom computer graphic. |
*Three ALSB workshops we offered in Michigan sold out!
In July, Brenda, Karen and I rented a slightly smaller U-Haul trailer, and I drove it clear across Wisconsin to the Minneapolis State Fair Grounds. Turns out I had a bit of a hard time backing up the trailer after we'd unloaded, so we just unhitched it and carried it into the parking spot ourselves. (An advantage to having a small trailer.) Girl power.
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| Post-show routine . . . head back to the room for a beverage and snacks. |
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| It's a long day on your feet . . . Brenda takes a load off. |
*Both ALSB workshops in MN sold out!
Finally, Brenda, Terri Zwicker and I drove together to the Chicago area for our final expo of the season.
*Both ALSB workshops in Chicago sold out!
Some of our favorite things about going to the expos:
1. Meeting up with current members . . . some who had joined CS back in the "old" expo days and have been members ever since!
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| Long-time member Mary Willert in Minneapolis. |
2. Seeing people get excited about our method of scrapbooking and about the uniqueness/beauty of our collections.
3. Welcoming brand new members to the club or back into the fold after a hiatus.
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| Brand new members! Yay! |
We will soon be booking our show locations for 2014. Our plan is to offer several ALSB workshops each day and to add a few more locations to our list. We want to stick with shows within driving distance whenever possible. For now, our staff will certainly be enjoying a few weekends at home. The laundry is out of control.
See you on the road!
Tricia
What a wonderful recap! Thanks for the behind the scenes look at your expo adventures.
ReplyDeleteHere's to many more years of success out on the road :)
Yes, a super nice story line of your summer expo season. I'm so HAPPY it went well for CS. I too, hope it's the start of a bright future for this endeavor!
ReplyDeletepat-czap
Mega Meet was such a great time, though I'll admit this ole gal was pretty tired when she pulled into the driveway at home afterward. I'm so glad you've declared the season a success and so look forward to the "next round" too!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the recap!!! Looks like the 3 listed here were a great success, too. Don't you love going to the first one and then getting inspiration from it on how you want to set up the next one. Love it!!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure it was "exhausting", but you all seemed to enjoy it tremendously. Wish I could have been up there. BTW - that bottom pic of you.....the colors in your shirt would make a great page/kit....:)
ReplyDeletesounds like fun. I wish there was an Expo or something a bit closer to home
ReplyDeleteWow - great update and so glad that it went so well for you. wish New York was within driving distance. There is never anything here, but New Jersey has them sometimes........ hint, hint! (I know not quite driving distance)
ReplyDeleteFun update! I love seeing you guys on the road and visiting your booth at the expos! How wonderful to hear all of your ALSB Workshops have sold out at all four shows! Woohoo!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad that folks are discovering and re-discovering the fun and creativity that CS offers! Long live CS!!!
ReplyDeleteWish I lived closer to go. Looks like fun but still hard work
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