Vending at comic conventions and art fairs can be a great way to diversify your artist income. It also allows you to meet your fans and customers face to face, interact with them and make a personal connection. You can get your work off the internet and in front of a whole new live audience.

Shows come in all different shapes and sizes. There are toy shows, comic conventions, pet shows, craft fairs, book fairs, holiday markets, anime conventions, art fairs, outdoor art shows and more. You really have to do your research to figure out which will work for you and your product.  Attend some as a spectator and get a feel for what kind of vendors are there. Consider your target customer and whether they will attend.

I find that my Geeky Pet, pop culture parody cat art does best at comic conventions. I went through a lot of trial and error to get there.

After some really disappointing craft fairs and pet shows I dropped them completely and focused on what worked. I also swore off outdoor shows because I couldn’t deal with the added stress of being at the whim of the weather. I was really surprised to discover that my work didn’t sell at pet shows. You would think it would be my ideal market since I sell cat and dog art and pet portraits. However, I found that people were there to buy for their pets, not for themselves.

Hauling all your work, long days and knowing exactly how to prepare can present some challenges. I’ve been vending at comic conventions for 20 years and I’ve been tweaking and improving things every time I go. I want to share these tips with you to help you jump past all the trial and error and make your vending experience much more smooth and enjoyable.

I’ve put together a FREE Comic Con and Art Fair SURVIVAL GUIDE complete with a quick view packing list. Click the link to grab it!