Nearly everyone at one time or another has attended a carnival, street fair, county fair, or other event at which sellers exhibited their wares for sale. As a side attraction to most events, little attention is usually paid to the rows of booths lining the perimeters beyond a quick gift for the girl or boyfriend or purchase to appease a child. In fact, these  sellers are the foundation on which events succeed, relying on payments made far in advance to lease space, exhibits, performers, promotion, and everything else a show needs to be a success.

Having sold at varied events for over twenty years, ranging from flea markets, renaissance faires, wine festivals, conventions, and private gatherings, we can assuringly say this business method is a viable, oftentimes lucrative money making option if one is willing to research, organize, maintain stock and vehicles, drive distances, acquire people skills, and to exert the physical strength necessary to set up and tear down a booth within a limited amount of time. Yes, to say it's hard work is an understatement, but the almost guaranteed fast flow of cash makes it all worthwhile. Selling on the road requires preparation months or years in advance but the result is well worth the effort.

The very first step to success is in acquiring a state business reseller's tax license. This is free and allows selling at all shows. Make sure to have a chart of the percentage the show's city or county charges and add this cost to each item for sale, deducting the percentage from the total earnings at the end of the show when tallies are totaled. Depending on the promoter or if the show is out of state, taxes may be collected at the end of the event, however one is still required to acknowledge taxes paid for each show.

The second item that may be necessary is insurance specifically per event. Not all shows require this but most do today. Insurance covers any liability towards the promoter or event itself and coverage required may vary. Information on the insurance amount required is included in the seller packet received beforehand and should be purchased as soon as possible so one can focus on production and not paperwork.
If one intends to sell at events professionally on a regular basis, insurance is available on yearly terms that is adjustable. Discuss it with your insurance broker for more details. We recommend duplicating these papers for your records and keeping them in a safe handy file, taking the copies or original, if required by the promoter, to each show.

A very handy item to have and that may make or break a sale is a portable credit card machine that is able to run on location. If you have one, post signs acknowleding the acceptance of credit cards and process them when purchases are made. Be wary of accepting checks.

Lists of shows may be acquired online, through city chambers of commerce, market publications, other vendors, suppliers, newspapers, or by word of mouth. Get a calendar book, do your research, note planning, and show dates.

Shows that are juried beforehand require a number of clear photographs of your products and booth set up. There's a jury fee, normally $25.00 in addition to the booth fee, which is unfortunately in most cases, non-refundable but tax deductible. Make sure you receive a receipt. The jury fee and photographs are sent in with the event's application and depending on whether you're accepted or not the photographs are normally returned with the seller packet or are available for pick up when checking in at the promoter's table the morning of the show. It's a wise move to reserve a space for the promoter's next event if the show was successful before leaving. Occasionally the promoter will hold your photos as a form of calling card, so either make copies or take a camera to the show and photograph your booth, both empty and filled with buyers.

If one wants to break into this market, the first event to sell at is an organized flea market to get the feel of how a show runs. For years we've sold at Pasadena's Rose Bowl monthly flea market, but don't recommend it for beginning sellers. Most sellers at the larger flea markets are professionals who've been doing it for years (as we have), arriving around midnight to wait for admittance to set their booths up at four a.m. and having to stay til the market closed at 6 p.m. We recommend starting at smaller events: the local flea market
that opens to buyers around 6 a.m., a school or church fair, or similar.

Preparation is the key to success, as mentioned. Hire someone reliable to assist at the show
a few weeks ahead of time. Make sure your vehicle is well maintained including fluids, tires and spare. Have your stock priced and organized for easy unloading and repacking, packaging materials, booth set up complete and in good working order, chairs, tables, table covers, trash bags and cleaning supplies, a broom if outdoors, a dolly or hand truck, food and drink, cash and coin, receipt book and calculator, tax chart, insurance form if required, seller packet, a warm jacket and seasonal clothing, comfortable footwear, even a rug for long standing hours.
Map out the drive, exact location of your booth, eateries for after the show, and make necessary hotel/motel arrangements beforehand. Gas up your vehicle and pack it the day before if you can and if there's an alarm on the vehicle, engage it.

The booth and display set up is as important as your product line. Never underestimate this. With customer mentality in mind, buyers attend events for diversion from the everyday world, and unless you're selling sunglasses or reading palms, keep your selling area interesting, clean, and simple to navigate. There is nothing more irritating to buyers than a dirty, over-loaded booth that confuses the mind and eye.
Most purchases made are spur of the moment, but if a buyer is like me, they will have perused all the sellers and return to make purchases at their convenience later.

All items should be clean, clearly priced, and organized. Just like in a department store, your booth and customer relations should make purchasing easy and pleasurable. Don't be the seller that immediately "jumps" on the potential buyer, over eager to make a sale, but also don't be the seller that growls, moans, or ignores the buyer because you can't put down your book. Speaking of taking books to shows- do it if you must (after years of selling on the road, you'll consider it), but only read after the booth has been cleaned, restocked, and no one is around.

Keep storage boxes, cleaning supplies, personal items like handbags, etc. concealed. Cash for making change should also be kept in an area away from buyers as many sellers have had their cash boxes stolen. A hip pouch is ideal and may be obtained from army surplus, sports or bicycling stores.

Speaking of security, this is an issue with nearly every vendor. Set your booth up so people cannot walk through it to another booth or aisle. Panels are available that velcro onto booth poles and provide privacy. Get to know your neighboring sellers and watch out for each other. (This is also a good way to make friends and learn more about shows and selling.)

Meet the security team on their rounds and have them stop to chat. This in itself deters some would-be thieves but not all. If problems arise, try to detain the person and have your helper or neighbor get security. Do not make a large issue of it as it does happen. To keep it from happening in the first place, keep your small expensive items in cases buyers cannot reach into and only take one item out at a time, regardless of the number of buyers waiting for service.

Sincere buyers will understand and wait. Make eye contact, keep a conversation going with them about the product, and watch their hands and movements. Having a booth that's set up in a reverse U shape facing outward gives the seller more control over the complete stock. More secure display options are cases and hanging objects on racks that require a reaching up movement to remove.

After years of selling at events, our observations on what is profitable vary. We sold handcrafted jewelry, which is almost always lucrative but have seen the market flooded with imported mass produced jewelry, and most buyers in the 15 to 40 year old range (our market) choose the mass produced items for their lower price.

Product success varies though according to event. Higher ticket items do well at specialty shows: wine events, art and photography shows, and most juried shows. Unique, handcrafted items sell well depending on season and event location. Service related: face painting, crafts making, and similar do very well at shows aimed at children but require forethought in safety and health issues and may require higher insurance costs.

Always keep your product line geared towards the event, expected buyer base, the economy, and season. (No hand knit mittens in summer or collapsible book lights at a handcraft show.) Food and drink vendors nearly always do very well, outselling all other vendors, but selling those items require special (expensive) licensing and insurance, mandated storage and preparation areas, are subject to inspection akin to restaurants, etc., which is a whole other discussion. If interested in that aspect, contact the state board for current information.

A final note: sometimes, regardless of how well the same show was the previous year, events flop for whatever reason. Take it in stride, knowing the next show will be better. Improve your product line, booth set up, seller skills, and whatever else may be necessary to succeed in this business. There's absolutely nothing like returning home after a long weekend of selling with handfuls of cash.
Best of luck selling on the road!