10 things I learned as an exhibitor at the Sewing & Craft Festival 2023 and some tips for those of you thinking about participating.

In this post I will break down what I learned from attending the Sewing & Craft Festival for the first time. Some pros and cons and a summary of the three days and finally some tips for those of you who are thinking about attending a fair.

It's already been a week since the festival took place at the Stockholm International Fairs in Älvsjö, 24-26 February. I have to admit that I was pretty exhausted after three days of the fair and quite a few days of preparation beforehand. There's a lot to think about beforehand because you're renting an empty floor space with white walls, which you're not allowed to tamper with. So you can't put anything up directly on the wall, you have to think of smart solutions for everything. Now that's not a problem for a solution-oriented creative fool like me, but it also has to be done, not just thought about. With hindsight, we solved most of it and I've learned that I should always have a ladder in the car.

These days I've gotten better at asking for help, so before and during the fair I had no less than four people helping with shipping all the stuff, furnishing the stand, problem solving, sales and anything else that came up during the time. My heroes: Anders Wideland, Tess Tenelius, Anna Söderström and - as always - my mother Ingalill Lewerth who does everything and then some. THANK YOU to you for not only believing in me but also helping me make my dream come true!

The three days of the fair went by quickly and it was fun to meet a lot of happy people (read women) where many see this as the event of the year and know exactly what they are looking for. The fair has a large and varied selection and you can buy yarn, fabrics, patterns, ready-made sewing kits, spaceship sewing machines, sewing accessories you didn't know existed, fine silver jewelry and even some trinkets. Many exhibitors are extremely experienced and seem to do almost nothing but go around to different fairs. They have ready-made kits that they use to create their stands and they DO NOT forget the ladders at home.

When the fair opened, hundreds of fairly radio-controlled visitors poured in, all with their sights set on the fair's offerings. You have to pull on your smile a little because it actually looks quite funny when all these beautiful women of different ages and shapes fill every corner of the fair hall!

It didn't take long before we realized that most people were there to find a bargain in one way or another and that my fabrics and products didn't really fall within that. On a few occasions we took turns walking around and looking at everything and you soon saw that some exhibitors were packed with visitors all the time while others were much quieter, like us. A winning concept seemed to be selling ready-made kits, with, for example, yarn and patterns for a sweater in a nice bag at a reasonable price.

We had many visitors who stopped and looked, oohed and aahed (which is not the worst thing!), squeezed, felt, wondered who designed it, where the fabric comes from and then took a business card with them. I am very happy about that and not least it feels very nice to have confirmation that many people like my patterns and colors and that you can see and feel that there is high quality in what I do. It is well worth mentioning that the first thing we sold was my own fabric bag, sewn in Ella green , and quite well used at this point. One woman was so fond of it that she didn't care that it was used, she thought it just made it better, softer and more comfortable!

Unfortunately, sales were less than I had hoped for and didn't even cover the cost of the booth. It was honestly disappointing, and even though it was my first time and I'm still new to the industry, there is a reality of overheads, expenses, and bills to pay. With that said, I'll try to list some pros and cons from my perspective:

Plus

• Exposure, of course. The fact that over 10,000 visitors have seen MWD is 10,000 more than before.
• Many nice reviews that strengthen my own feeling for what I do
• Meeting people. For me, who works and lives alone, it was great fun to talk to others, chat a little and laugh.
• Educational. Regardless of the outcome, I've gotten to experience a trade fair from the inside, how everything works and what to expect.
• Inspiration. During the time we have been standing at the booth (and also seeing other people's crafts), countless ideas have been hatched and the inspiration to do new and different things has flourished.
• The trade fair organizer Numera Fairs. Nice, professional, ambitious, helpful.

Minus

• The cost. It is a considerable cost to hold a trade fair. Not only is the stand itself a big expense, there are quite a few other things that you may not think about or even know about beforehand. Just something like the fact that as an exhibitor parking was free during move-in but during the days of the trade fair full price, i.e. 170 SEK/day. There should also be signs, logo, interior design, business cards, packaging, etc. Many small streams…
• Not the right trade fair for MWD. ​​The interior and design would have been better.
• Bad sales. With hindsight.
• Logistics at the Stockholm International Fairs. Especially after closing on Sunday when everyone was packing up and unloading. A lot of lorries and a very messy car situation.

So how do I summarize this?

Yes, I have now had a week to settle down a bit and think about what I think after this my first fair. As you can guess from the plus and minus list above, I have come to the conclusion that this was not quite the right fair for MWD. ​​At the moment it would have probably worked better with an interior design/design fair. Even though I lowered the prices considerably on the last day (below purchasing/production costs), few people took action even though they liked the fabrics. You are simply there to find a great deal.

I had hoped and believed that the fair would bring a boost, but it didn't, at least not then and there. Hopefully, many people have opened their eyes to MDW and will return later.

The upside is that I and those of us who worked in the booth were inspired to think new and forward, despite the somewhat meager distribution. Being in the right element among fabrics and crafts is fantastic!

I probably won't be at the Sewing & Craft Festival again, at least not as it feels right now. But you should never say never, maybe things will look different in the future.

Now I'm looking ahead and working on changing the business model from keeping stock to producing to order. This is partly to keep my costs down and partly to be considerate of the environment. But ALSO to be able to offer more patterns and fabrics and thus have room to be as creative as I am. I haven't jumped off the squirrel wheel to sit and administer all day...

My best tips for those of you who are thinking about participating in a trade fair:

• Find out what type of fair it is, what is the focus? Is it interior design or handicrafts for do-it-yourselfers? If you are there to sell and do not have large margins, you want to be fairly sure that it is the right match with the visitors.
• Gather as much information as you can about what is and is not included in the cost of the stand, but also for what you need around it, such as parking, food, etc.
• Ask someone who has been there several times what advice they have.
• Be prepared for a lot of work, both before, during and after the fair. Get help and make sure there are several of you at the booth who can take turns eating and using the bathroom.
• Put some effort into creating a nice and appealing stand. It makes a big difference to the overall impression and you can feel proud of your brand.

Do you want to stay up to date with what MWD is doing - news in the shop , what's coming up and get access to offers and promotions a little before the rest of the world? Then you should subscribe to our newsletter. You can do so here: madeleine wideland.com

or send an email to info@madeleinewideland.com

or send a dm on instagram or messenger

All the best!
Madeleine