Dear Friends and Vendors,
First things First......It’s Showtime!!!
Cherry Lime Boutique (CLB) is excited to invite you to be a part of our very first show, “Cherry Lime Boutique Presents Christmas In July”. This event will be held on Saturday, July 23rd from 9am - 4pm at the Hilton Ballroom located in Ft. Collins on Prospect Drive. This is a huge stepping stone for us and we are very excited about the opportunities it will create for everyone.
Since launching our products this past fall 2010, CLB has been very blessed with the opportunity to attend many crafts shows at a variety of levels. In doing so we have also learned a lot about the vendor world. One thing that remains consistent with our experience is the frustration we have felt with the large and some times very expensive booth fees associated with these shows. From a business perspective we understand that event coordinators have to be able to cover the cost of the facility as well as marketing and advertising fees. However, this is where CLB has thought long and hard about how we can change this approach. Our vision is to provide a quality venue at a reasonable price, where each vendor participating does NOT feel like they just worked all day to break even with their booth fee and possibly even leave without making a profit. The majority of the vendors we have encountered are much like us, stay at home moms trying to make a little extra money for their family, have fun crafting and meeting great people along the way.
For this reason, we have worked very hard to find a location that is not only professional looking but secured at a reasonable rate so that we may pass along the savings to you. We were able to find all of this in the Hilton. The only draw back with a hotel as a location is that it is not visible to people driving by, as maybe a store front would be. Although, there are upsides to using a location such as this. Clearly the guests staying at the hotel would make great customers and other events taking place there at the same time could draw more foot traffic our way as well. However, this is where you come into play and even more savings can be taken advantage of. It needs to be made clear that we will NOT be advertising in the newspaper since rates are just crazy and of course radio advertising is outrageous.
So in order to provide a very reasonable rate for our vendors, it will be required that each of you take some of the advertising responsibility on yourselves. We will provide you with a flyer that you will need to mass distribute. We believe that through social media and the use of Facebook, Twitter, Craig’s List, MOMS groups, Community Message Boards, etc. we can truly take advantage of tons of FREE advertising. Not to mention, that simple word of mouth is huge! Each person is encouraged to create a Facebook event and invite all their friends. Remember to repeatedly post the event to your page and any other online forum you have access to. We also ask that you distribute hard copies to any of your churches, day cares, preschools, hair salons, moms groups, doctor’s offices, or other locations that you frequent.
Vendor info.....
So what is the vendor fee you ask? CLB would like to offer you a table space at our show for $35 or a 10x10 space for $45. Please note: You are required to bring your own table, which should be no longer than 6-8 feet. The Hilton is willing to provide tables, but for an extra fee that we do not feel is worth it. Therefore we are NOT using their tables. Again we are trying to really look at all costs and pass on as much savings to you as possible.
Because the time will be here before we know it, we are asking that you please contact us as soon as possible if you are interested in vending. We will NOT have duplicate vendors. We anticipate spaces to fill up quickly! We currently have 32 spaces to fill and if the response is great, have the opportunity to double that. As soon as we know that we have our vendors in order, we will create a flyer for distribution.
Please know that we truly appreciate what you do and have the utmost respect for our fellow stay at home moms that still want to work and have a life outside of dirty diapers! :) We have every intention of giving you a quality show, will provide you with excellent communication and hopefully some great customers. We would like to spruce up the already beautiful ballroom with some holiday decor and welcome you to really think outside the box for your table/booth as well.
And there’s more.....
In addition to this exciting show, CLB is extremely happy to announce the expansion from our home loft into a retail space! Yep, that’s right A STORE FRONT!!! What does this mean for you? Well in addition to showcasing our handmade hair accessories, we are opening our Boutique to other crafters and vendors such as yourself. We would like to market your product in our store for you on a consignment basis. How does this work? You pay a small monthly space fee and we keep a % of your sales. We merchandise, advertise, and sell your products and you get a monthly check in the mail. Of course you are encouraged to routinely be checking in and updating your products as well. You should also advertise on your own social media sites where your products can be found. Vendors typically have their own following, therefore if someone knows where they can get your products, they are more likely to shop where your merchandise is carried rather than wait months for you to attend another show.
Our passion.....
As I mentioned earlier, we feel that the prices associated with most venues are pretty steep, not to mention few and far between. Many shows are limited to the holidays and certain times of the summer. For this reason, we are very passionate about giving crafters the opportunity to showcase their products all year long. Consider how much you spend on one show and multiply that by the number of shows you may do throughout a year. If you take a small portion of that, spend it each month to merchandise your product in a Boutique and let someone else sell it for you, think of the possible revenue you could make all year long.
More about the store.....
The retail space is located on virtually the busiest street in Loveland at 402 East Eisenhower (also known as Highway 34), just one block east of Highway 287. It sits one block East of Dairy Queen, Walgreens, Taco Bell, KFC, Carl’s Jr. and directly across from Mountain Rentals. It is just 2 blocks West of Monroe Elementary, Sam’s Club, JAX and Gold’s Gym. It is a large older building with a green metal siding roof. There is currently a Boost Mobile company occupying a small portion of the building. We would occupy the middle portion which is approximately 1100 sq ft. This space has been recently renovated, offers a very pleasant shopping experience and plenty of parking. Parking is located in the back of the building which will also serve as the main entrance since there is no parking on Highway 34 and it is so busy. The store will be decorated with an eclectic and Shabby Chic feel. Please note, this will not be a flea market feel. We have worked long and hard to find furniture and displays that will enhance the overall appearance of the shop and highlight your products. You are also welcome to bring in any type of display or furniture that you feel would work best for your items. There will be a kid friendly area for young children to wait while moms shop. As a stay at home mom myself, my children may even be present on any given day. We want this to be a fun, welcoming and very family oriented atmosphere.
Our goal is to begin setting up the shop the beginning of June with a soft opening during this time. We would then have a grand opening the weekend following the 4th of July. A couple weeks later on July 23rd would be our Christmas in July event at the
Hilton.
So with ALL that said.....
If you, or anyone you know who sells a quality product, would like to be a part of our show at the Hilton or find out more information on selling your merchandise at our Boutique, please contact me at soon as you can. I would love to chat with you further about this wonderful opportunity I feel we can all benefit from not to mention will be tons of fun! If it’s not fun, it’s not worth it!
Remember we don’t have many spaces to fill for our holiday show in July and would love to hear from you sooner than later to guarantee your space. Please feel free to email me directly at heathandalyssa@comcast.net or call me at (970) 227-2071.
I truly look forward to hearing from you!
Sincerely,
Alyssa Morby
Cherry Lime Boutique, LLC
