Grace Bunk of Grace Consulting Company highlights the importance of attending a trade show, and offers her top tips on preparing for your visit.
Let’s be real. It’s been a tough few years, so we should keep things simple.
1. Not be drunk on champs & snacks before lunch.
2. Only to buy what makes sense based on your prep checklist.
3. Don’t forget to bring your checklist.
Now that I made you chuckle, it’s time to get down to business.
Preparing for your next trade show is more than jotting down a few notes about what brides seem to be liking and trends you think you are seeing. Think back to every bad dress buy that you have made in the past 2 years. What if you could eliminate the wasted money and free up space on your rack? What if you could avoid just even half of the “bad buys” you have made?
That magical time of year where bridal entrepreneurs from all over the world gather to preview all things bridal for the next season. Every imaginable lace pattern, crepe of all weights, more glitter than your heart could ever desire, free flowing champagne and a room full of people that you can relate too. Some may call it bliss, we call it, Bridal Market.
The reality is that the bridal landscape has changed and so have markets! Markets used to be a place to preview gowns, scope out competitors and get away from the store for a weekend. Theoretically, you could just book trunk shows and save yourself the trip, but markets offer so much more now than just the chance to place orders. Markets offer the opportunity to learn from consultants (like myself), listen in on new trend forecasts in bridal and business, connect with fellow bridal Instagram friends, sit down one-on-one with your design partners and discuss how you can grow your business together, and of course, find some inspiration.
It’s important to capitalise on every connection to be made, every solution-focused conversation to be had and every moment available.
Here are some top tips on how to prepare for your trip:
This isn’t the perfect system, but the general rule of thumb is up to 10% of previous year annual sales as your annual new inventory budget. Ex: If last year your store did £500,000 in total sales, you would have 10% available for this year’s new inventory. 10% of £500,000 is £50,000 available for new product for the entire year.
We encourage you to take it one step further & estimate how much money you are allocating to each designer.
Ex: 6 gowns from ABC Designer with an average wholesale price of £1,000 means that £6,000 of your budget will most likely go to this designer.
We cannot stress this enough. DIVE DEEP! Do a sales to inventory analysis for every category you can come up with. Compare sizing, style, neckline, designer, price point, etc. If you need help with this, we offer a whole done-for-you system and we know from experience that there are few UK shops who can’t live without it.
Like we said, there are so many opportunities to grow your business at your next trade show. Make yourself a schedule for all current designer appointments, educational opportunities you want to make sure to dedicate time to, chances to connect with fellow store owners and designers, etc.
Of course, you can take it one step further. We have our team put together a list of all the best local coffee shops (with walking time from market and from our hotel) as well as restaurants we are dying to hit! When we want to grab a drink at a trendy place, it’s easy for us to refer to our spreadsheet of goodness and snag a reservation for a night out with bridal friends.
Every item on your market itinerary should have a plan to go with it. I know, it’s a lot, but this only happens 2x/year. What do you want to get out of your design partner meetings? What questions do you want to ask your designers about their business, your business, specific gowns, marketing, etc? What questions do you want answered from your educational seminars? Who do you want to connect with and why?
Your favourite pens, a few highlighters and a notebook to keep track of notes in. I also recommend plastic folders to store documents in as you pick them up throughout the day. The plastic folders will protect them in your bag from the water, champagne and snacks you’ll encounter.
1. Everything above. Don’t forget your analysis!
2. Backpack. You can bring a purse or a work-bag, but we prefer to always be hands free!
3. Walking shoes! Save the heels that hurt for dinner & drinks.
4. Purse snacks (AKA backpack snacks) .Trade shows are long days and you never know when you need a little pick me up.
5. Something for self-care. Markets are amazing, but can be long days. Our secret is to bring eye masks and throw them in our hotel fridge for the mornings. There is no better way to start your day off than feeling refreshed.
To wrap things up, soak in every minute of market, take way too many photos, and of course, enjoy your champagne.
Click here to view our free handout on how to find your next cult brand.
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