Setting Up My Booth at an Art Market

Read on to see how one person can put together all of this in just under two hours.  

Making money as a professional artist can be challenging. Much of building an art career is sowing seeds and waiting for growth, which can take years. Most of us, though, have bills that need to be paid now. One way artists can earn money quickly is at pop-up art markets or craft fairs. There’s a lot to consider, though:  

Many of the answers will depend on your geographic area and the kind of art you make. The main thing to keep in mind is that every artist is different, and all of us learn by practicing.  

Dover, New Hampshire

Saturday, October 4, open 9:00-4:00   

Tip: Make sure you read the organizer’s instructions closely. They’ll usually contain important information like setup arrival time, where to enter the event space, and your spot number on a map. It may even have things like public restrooms and food vendors.

Once I arrive at the event around 7:20, I take everything out of my vehicle and unload it into my space. I set all but my tent and weights on the sidewalk behind my space. This is so it isn’t in the way of opening my tent, which is the next step.  

What’s there to unload? Here’s my packing list:

• 10’x10’ Pop-up tent with side walls (4) and roof 
• Tent weights (4) 30+ lbs. and roof straps (4)  
• 2’x6’ grid wall panels (6)  
• 2’x4’ table and 2’x6’ table 
• Checkout area table
• Folding director chair (optional: bring an extra chair for a friend)
• Bed risers for table legs (8)
• Folding print display bin
• Tabletop spinning card racks (2)
• DIY folding pegboard display 
• Additional clear plastic bins and displays
• Bag of tablecloths, bunting, etc.
• Camping cart (Did not need at this event, but I always bring in case of emergency)
• Framed prints and original artwork (2-3 boxes)
• Unframed art prints (1 box)
• Plastic storage containers with cards, extra stickers, magnets, and eraser prints*
• Miscellaneous and emergency supply bag (first aid, duct tape, zip ties, etc.) 
• Personal items (backpack, purse, cooler)
• Folding step stool
• Shopping bags
• Decorative patio rug

*If this is your first time to my site, eraser prints are tiny handmade relief prints made by carving and stamping erasers. 

At these events, there are lots of other vendors around to keep an eye on things while I move my car. However, I always keep my purse and my cash box (inside a backpack) with me. These are more obviously valuable to sticky fingers and easy for me to carry back on foot.  

It’s polite to move cars away as quickly as possible, so other vendors have space to get by or unload (plus, if parking is limited, I’ve got a better chance of finding a space by moving quickly.)  

Sometimes, if it’s raining, I want to open my tent quickly to protect the products, but still move the car as soon as possible afterward.  

My products are all vulnerable to wind: prints, cards, stickers, and even framed art pieces are easily caught by a swift breeze. Unless the wind is very strong, side walls (or even a back wall) can usually keep a gust from causing problems inside my tent. A very strong wind turns walls into kites, so I take the walls down if this happens.  

Today was very calm and I probably could have done without the walls, but when I’m very close to other vendors, a neutral background helps keep shoppers’ focus inside my booth. The open back lets a pleasant, but not disruptive, breeze pass through. 

This tent is by ABCCanopy and I like the fact that it’s extra tall (so tall shoppers don’t have to duck to enter) and does well at sealing out water when it’s raining.  

I arrange my gridwall panels as mapped in the diagram below.

At the front corners of the tent, I weave bungee cords from the top corner, through the gridwall, and connect to the weight at the bottom. Adjacent gridwalls are zip-tied together. Other bungee cords attach the gridwalls to bars across the top, inside the tent. I use black or white colored cords that won’t distract from the display.   

Tip: If you have a hard time reaching the top of your tent, use a folding step stool.

There's a common merchandising saying: Eye level is buy level, and it applies here, too. I only use the top half of the gridwalls and set things on high tables in front. If my primary audience included children, I would keep the tables (and products) lower.  

Note: While adding height will make shopping easier for most people, it will make it harder for others. Children, short adults, and people using wheelchairs have a harder time reaching products up high. Consider this when deciding whether to raise tables, and find ways to help shoppers who need extra assistance. 

I use spandex tablecloths rather than regular cloth. They hide back stock and unsightly table legs well because they don’t blow in the wind. This also keeps them from blowing and touching a shopper, which is unexpected and sometimes unpleasant for them.

Neither of these items is functionally necessary. They help create an atmosphere of a regular storefront or even a boutique. This sets my booth apart visually from the many others at the event, attracts buyers, and even shows an increase in average order value, especially with the rug. 

If I know the weather is going to be wet, I leave the rug at home. I don’t want to have to transport or wash a wet, muddy rug, and turnout at rainy events is usually poor enough that it doesn’t make a big difference.  

The standing print bin and pegboard display will block a bit of gridwall, so they need to go up first. The folding pegboard display opens and has eraser prints and stickers already arranged inside, making setup a lot faster. The display stays inside it during transport. 

Over the back table, I hang an “Art Prints” sign and the framed art prints. These framed examples are for sale, but they also show the customer that the unframed art prints will look great on their walls (after they frame the prints themselves.) I need to use the step stool to reach high up and across the tables, but this is still easier than hanging the art first and guessing where the table will be.  

On the remaining gridwalls, I hang original artwork. These don’t sell often, but they catch attention and lead shoppers into my booth. The print bin is a good place to put an extra few framed prints or originals- enough to look fully stocked but not cluttered.  

My curtain is a thrifted white shower curtain clipped to the gridwalls. Shoppers barely notice it, but it hides my behind-the-counter area and distractions on the sidewalk. It makes the display look cleaner and matches the walls well. 

I put all my New Hampshire shaped prints together, then everything else wherever they fit, splitting them roughly in half between the two bins. Most of my unframed prints are offered in two sizes: 5”x7” and 8”x10”. I’ve noticed since offering two sizes that customers choose between sizes rather than choosing between purchasing or not. The size, price, and information about the artwork are on the back of each print, and each is packaged with a sturdy backing board.  

At pop-up events, it’s so valuable to build a long-term relationship with customers, rather than get a one-time sale. Email newsletters are a very effective marketing strategy, and a business card helps a customer to connect with me online, shop my webstore, or find me/my products at other locations. If I can maximize the lifespan of today’s new connections, I’ll make money from this event far beyond the day it takes place.  

I usually have more prints than I have space to display in frames, and that’s okay! Some customers need fewer choices to avoid decision fatigue: a type of overwhelm that often leads to no decision and no sale. For those that enjoy lots of choices, the print bin is fun to pick through. I put my best sellers on the main display and the rest in here.  

I use mystery packs to move old inventory: prints that haven’t sold, cards I no longer feel excited about selling, and stickers I won’t be restocking. I bundle a variety of these things inside an envelope and mark it at a deep discount. These can be great for the shopper that “loves everything but just can’t decide”, and especially if they’ve expressed a budget concern. The decision is taken out of their hands, they have an activity to look forward to (opening and discovering what they get), and they feel like they’ve gotten a great deal. Mystery packs go in the back of the bin.  

My best-selling and most seasonally appropriate cards go in the spinning card racks. I arrange them roughly by subject or color: New Hampshire shapes together, chickens together, yellow together, etc. This catches the eye and invites people to spin the display and see the rest of the cards. Once their hands are on your display or product, they feel more attached to the item they’re considering. 

The off-season or ready-to-retire cards go in the overflow bin. 

Tip: Put a clean rock in the center of your spinning card rack to bring down its center of gravity and prevent it tipping over. Want people not to notice the rock is there? Paint it white- it'll blend right in with the cards.

10. Set remaining product on table. Use additional plastic display pieces.  

In front of the pegboard display, I put horizontal eraser prints on a staircase display. I set framed examples of those in front, along with tiny original paintings and overflow stickers. To the right of that, there is a small box of magnets. Eraser print sticker sheets and print scrap bookmarks go on a standing display, and eraser print kits lay in front of that. Finally, to the right of that and just behind the cards, I have a bin of assorted pins.  

This table is the weakest part of my current display. It’s cluttered, confusing, and doesn’t utilize vertical space well. Market setup is a skill that allows continual growth, and this is my next area of focus for improvement.  

11. Tie buntings to tent.  

Tent roofs usually have some kind of hook to tie signage to, as shown above. I have handmade bunting with my business name as a sign, which I tie to the front as shown. Inside, a rainbow bunting runs from the midpoint of one side to the other, crossing the middle bar ¾ of the way to the back. Visually, this divides the sales area from your behind-the-scenes space.  

Signage is important- it signals a booth as a real business. Depending partly on the business name, it can tell customers what products to expect inside, something about the owner, or something about the kind of people that like that business.