[Jewelry making - Article 00244] - Re: [Orchid] Experience with the Rosen show

[Lisa Bialac-Jehle]

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    The Rosen show is a juried wholesale crafts show, it is run like a
    business for other businesses. Note: It is not a crafts fair. Rosen's
    contention is: if you are good enough to get juried in, then why the
    heck shouldn't your customers, (meaning stores, galleries, boutiques
    etc..), be able to find you there next year? If you don't make
    jewelry for a hobby, this is a very helpful set up in planning your
    projected income. If you do make jewelry for a hobby, no offense, but
    why should you be taking up the space of an artist who's only
    business is filling repeat orders and consistently doing repeat
    business with their customers at a professional wholesale show?
    There are other venues for very new artists. 

    Jewelry is my only source of income. Because I am not a manufacturer,
    (some of a kind mostly), and I loathe retail, I rely on certain shows
    for a steady income. Rosen is one of those shows. The Rosen show IS,
    "based on the quality of the artist's work". They figure if your work
    is good enough to get in once, unless your work alters radically for
    the worse, you have earned your spot. If your work does decline, or
    ceases to meet their standards, then they will notify you that
    something has to change. If nothing changes for the better by the
    next show, then adios. 

    As far as the summer show, it is not as good, but then no summer
    wholesale show is all that successful. You scratch their back, they
    will scratch yours. In other words, you need to support their shows.
    They are very supportive of their artists, and they make it a very
    easy show to do. They stay open late on set up days, and are very
    helpful in other ways. One very hot summer found Wendy Rosen driving
    around on a cart passing out beers during a very late running set up
    night. 

    From what I have seen, preferred booths and show spaces at Rosen are
    awarded on quality, volume and tenure. I have been on the front wall
    for many years near the entrance, even though I do not do great
    volume. Because of a mix up this year when they changed staff, and I
    changed to the Premier section, I ended up in the middle of the pack
    again. However, I am hoping that my new work in gold, will make me
    stand out enough to have a good show. I will let you know. 

    If Rosen didn't run a good show, then there would be plenty of space
    for everyone, as people would be dropping out all of the time, but
    they don't. Some do drop out for many different reasons each year,
    and then there are always new faces to take their place. 

    I also do the ACC shows. I have done Baltimore wholesale for many
    years as well. Although I have to say that the ACC show is much more
    beautiful, both in overall look of the show, booths and in the
    quality of work in general,than Rosen, it is not run for anyone who
    has a serious business. There is no guarantee that you will be in
    next year, regardless of tenure or quality of work. This poses loads
    of scheduling and ordering problems for both stores and artists. 

    One year, a jeweler pal's husband walked around at the ACC Baltimore
    show one year, asking questions of jewelers. He basically took an
    informal poll. Turned out that by his reckoning, 70 % of the jewelers
    at ACC were either supported by a spouse, or jewelry was not their
    main source of income. That very well known jeweler does not bother
    to do any ACC shows anymore. That is not to say that the work that
    those artist did wasn't beautiful and technically awesome in some
    cases, but who the heck can compete with someone who is being
    subsidized? Also, many stores don't like to deal with amateurs no
    matter how spectacular their work as, their orders sometimes don't
    get filled, and it takes up the space of a professional jeweler who
    will send them the goods. As for me, if the ACC wholesale does not
    change for the better, then I will be skipping their show in the
    future. I do less than half there of what I do at Rosen. At this
    point, I mostly go to spend time with my sister and her family who
    lives just outside of Baltimore. 

    If you are a new face, you of course get swamped the first show out
    no matter where it is. I have not been at Rosen where anyone was
    buying "hand over fist", for some time, but then I haven't been at
    any show like that for some time. In fact, this last summer Rosen
    show was the worst show I have done there ever. A combination of
    space change and dreadful placement, (only booth at the end of an
    aisle, next to the drink cart). I looked like the Great and Powerful
    OZ, all by myself, and no one would come up to the booth. We won't
    be doing that again. 

    Oh...there are also "alternative" shows for both Rosen and ACC. The
    one in Baltimore is run by Olga Ganoudis, and is really good, but
    really long hours.

    Lisa, (had the clothes dryer fixed today. Its in the workshop. Turned
    out mouse nests had jammed something inside. When the workman took
    the dryer apart and pulled out the nests, all kinds of missing stones
    fell out.....those theiving little mousie bastards..lol...lol...lol!
    Mouse "home decorating".) Topanga, CA USA

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