sive bumper sticker, keychain and USB dive with tunes package. You’re creative. Get
some ideas going.
Here’s a word to the wise. Maybe it’s because I’m a cynical old guy who has no faith
in humankind, or it might be the places lived. People steal stuff. Yeah, I know it’s hard to
believe, but true nonetheless. At some point, hopefully not several, somebody is going to
try their best to lift some merch from you. To avoid this faux pas, have your merchandise
on display on the table or on boards behind it, but keep the real saleable stuff either under
the table or behind it. In other word, keep the bulk of your merchandise where nobody is
going to get a five-finger discount at your expense.
Bean Counting
To see if you’re really making money or not, you’ll need a system in place. It can be a
simple paper ledger, but a spreadsheet is better. Your spreadsheet should have each prod-
uct listed, it’s price, the venue name, number of units sold, cash or credit card sale, sizes,
colors, etc. and, of course, total amount sold at the event. Over time, you’ll learn what
sells best and what doesn’t. It can take some time to set the spreadsheet up, but it’s well
worth the effort. It will give you the information you need to tighten up your product of-
ferings or ordering, in terms of the type of product, colors, sizes, etc. Having a laptop or
tablet at the table will make this a snap. A snap, that is, as long as the people manning the
table remember to enter the information.
After each show, or at least each month, look over your numbers. Make product ad-
justments as needed. Buy more of what sells and dump the dogs. It’s just plain econom-
ics. Give the people what they want. When you do, they’ll come back for more and tell