Shepton Mallet

With no Goodwood fairs this year and a need to do fairs that have customers who are actually interested in buying rather than just having a day out with a cup of tea and slice of cake, I am looking a bit further afield. What is the general opinion on the shepton 1 day fleamarket, indoors or outdoors pitch ? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Also, should I do the new 2 day fair at Newbury showground -IACF- or should I wait until later in the year when customer nos. might be better ?

Hi PP

What's your poison when it comes to stuff to sell. I've done Shepton a few times but never the flee. I can suggest a few good fairs in the south of England if your looking for a place to stall out. Newbury on the other hand I have been tempted to look at also but I can't see how the costs will stack up when it's not that well known to the general public.

I did Newbury a while ago but wasn't very successful for me, though others have done quite well there. IACF are moving to the showground and making it a 2 day fair instead - by the M4 junc. When I drove that way the other week a large pavillion was being built. I think someone else may be putting on a 1 day fair at the racecourse but I am not sure. IACF do the 3 day fair at Shepton but they are not cheap and with overnight costs it makes it difficult to know if it will be worthwhile.
Mordeep - what are your suggestions ? I know it depends on what you sell, what regulars you have etc. I sell first and foremost Poole pottery but also have glass and plenty of other 'stuff'. I have started to do Peterborough which went very well for me - helped by having a sister nearby so no overnight costs.

does anyone here stand at the Shepton Mallet fairs?

Hi guys.

When it comes to fairs the old saying "familiarity breeds contempt" comes to mind, none of them are good if its on to often. This year my father and I have been a bid more cunning in our advance booking and dropped the two slowest Ardingly fairs (Jan & July). To be honest nearly all of Jan can be dropped fair wise and July is holiday season. Better to pay £10 to do car boot than £200 to do an IACF fair.

But back to your question PP. I have found that once you get as far as Newark peoples tastes have changed and the art pottery I have around me that has a more southern slant is simply ignored. That's why after two years of trying to make it work this year we won't be doing any Newark fairs. I would guess Poole even as popular as it is would see a similar reaction.  
So in terms of fairs I would recommend. Shepton antique fair is great for me but pick your dates, if it is just after the flea or the high summer one then forget it, no customers. Peterborough you already do. I have had some really great results at Alexander palace in the last year since IACF have taken over so that one if the travel is not to bad could be good for you. I have heard very good things about Builth Wells, a kind of twice a year welsh Peterborough but never done it. Finally we have Ardingly but it can be hit or miss so pick your dates well, spring or autumn. Forget winter and summer.

Be interesting to hear anyone else ideas?

dantheman wrote:does anyone here stand at the Shepton Mallet fairs?

Yes me. About twice a year as the stall is close to £300 and hotels in the area are bloody expensive (Glastonbury travel lodge is the cheapest). I'm into it about £500 before I see the first eager bargain hunter.

Depends what you have to sell.

Unless you have a range of cheap stuff for trade, the weekday "trade" fairs are
probably best avoided.

Multi-day fairs (like Builth) are expensive, with the attendant costs.
Fairs with a big outdoor element, can be very quiet until the weather
picks up in the spring. Always book at the last minute when you have
a good weather forecast.

some very valuable tips there guys,thanks for sharing them

As someone who hasn't stood at a fair for decades but on occasions goes to buy, it is interesting to have an idea of the stallholders costs these days.

Thanks for the various inputs. I don't do this for a living - I regard it as a hobby that overall doesn't cost me anything. My wife still works so she can't take too many thursdays and fridays off to help out. I avoid summer fairs as I also assume that too many people are on holiday. I'll definately try Shepton, as to other venues there is never any guarantee of success but one has to keep trying

And of course be prepared to put to put up with an increasingly arrogant public,
armed with smartphones, giving instant access to on-line "prices", surely the death-
knell of the trade as we have always known it.

Weather looks like it should be fine for the weekend so looking forward to having a good day at Shepton. I always like to start the day being confident of lots of sales with a cheery positive attitude. I just have to hope it continues through the day. I'll be outside somewhere so say hello if you are going - I'll have good mix albeit mainly Poole.

Had a very good day at Shepton, weather was favourable. Good to have a completely new set of ( potential ) customers.

Glad to hear it.

Its Shepton time again this weekend

Starts on Friday 6th at mid day and ends on Sunday 8th

Due to a change in Jobs this will be the last weekend fair for an age for me (new job covers the weekends). I intend to put out a mountain of Barnstable pottery, not because its a best seller but simply because it looks great together for those not visiting this fine fair in what has been reported to be a heatwave. I will try and post pics after so you can all see what you've missed
I will avoid any pictures of me in shorts with an ice lolly and stick to huggable ceramics

Shepton Mallet fleamarket tomorrow ( sunday ) will be outside somewhere. Hope it goes as well as my last time. Weather expected to be ok so am hoping for lots of buyers. If you come across a stall with mainly Poole please say hello.

Good luck PP

I have never seen so many sellers ( then again I've only done it once before ) which I think was too many for the buyers available - even though there were a lot of buyers many of them were what I term 'moochers'. Consequently a slow day as buyers were overwhelmed for choice.

I have heard the Flea can be hit and miss. My friend did the antique fair at Shepton a couple of weeks back and reported grimly. He said loads of space between stalls, big gaps and most sellers failing to cover stall costs. He worked hard and did ok. His friend on the other hand paid for two nights in a hotel for two people, paid petrol money and spent £300 on the stall. His reward was £20 in takings and a broken expensive vase.

It's why part from Kempton I skip all fairs during July/Aug. People go to car boots or they don't bother. It's a waste of time and money to try and push against what people want to do.

I turned over £450 but margins were very low on some pieces so it wasn't a bad day but I had hoped for something a lot better ( which was my undoing ) I was also doing it on my own which makes the day seem a lot longer plus you've got to pack it all away again after. Apologies if it makes me sound like a grumpy old wotsit, I'm not really.

We all get a bit grumpy when you have to pack 90% of it all back up again. My only issue with these fairs poorer fairs is you end up selling items for less than you should to get some turnover going. Still many a fair that I have bought my way out by taking advantage of low prices to stock up so it is never all bad.

I learnt a while ago that it is usually best to accept even a ( very ) low offer on something especially if you've had it for well over a year and it may be the only business you do. It is not worth stubbornly holding out for what you think something is worth, rather at least know your costs are covered.

see you at the next fair