And VBOS lost their venue and some members, too, including the folks who
used to run things. My understanding is that the old guard simply rode off
into the sunshine without so much as a Howdy Ma'am, and left the new people
without needed resources. They are rebounding nicely, and we hope that
continues. When one society in an area is strong, we are all stronger for
it.

Diana

"Kenni Judd" wrote in message
...
Diana, your show is very fortunate to have that facility, my vote (if I
have one) is that you should hang on to it forever. Moving a successful
show is always costly, for both the sponsor and the growers, and sometimes
fatal. Some of your neighbors have been less fortunate -- Hurricanes
Frances and Jeanne did away with the Civic Center that FPOS used to use,
TOS lost its twice-yearly venue to a Lexus dealer ...

Most malls are nightmares, period. Besides all the problems that Diana
mentions, the hours are hellish. Booths have to be staffed the whole time
the mall is open (average 13 hours/day, around here), and setup has to be
done while the mall is closed (breakdown, too, but that's usually a
smaller problem because most malls have shorter hours on Sundays) -- as in
after 10 pm the night before the show. If displays are involved, then
that's an all-nighter.

It's also not uncommon to contract with a mall, months in advance, and
then walk in at setup time to find a car, or some other special display,
occupying the space that was planned for the raffle table, or one of the
vendor's booths or exhibits, or whatever --even though the person in
charge checked in with the mall the week or two, or even the day or two,
before to make sure of the final arrangements. And there's no recourse
(read the fine print in one of those contracts).

Good growing to all, Kenni



"Diana Kulaga" wrote in message
...
We have our shows at the city Community Center. Right now, it's the only
venue large enough to accomodate us and the parking is pretty good. The
building has an electronic sign that advertises the show for a week in
advance, which is a nice supplement to our paid ads. And, like you, some
folks do find us by accident, though most intend to come.

Scripps Newspapers now has a function called www.yourhub.com. I don't
know if it is available everywhere, but we have made good use of it, and
it's free. Free is good, LOL!

As far as the mall shows go, you'd have to ask a Vendor how they do at
them, but I know that they are a nightmare for the judges. I have heard
from a few Vendors who have lost plants during shows like that; it has to
be tough to monitor all sides at once, and malls are Mecca to
shoplifters. Of course, people can steal at any venue, and I know of
instances where it has happened to individuals. Still, the displays are
really unprotected in malls, subject to everything from thieves to little
kids. Just to add some more to the mix, at a well run show, it shouldn't
matter where a Vendor's booth is, but in a mall someone really could be
left out in the cold, at the end of the line, for example. Shoppers get
weary in malls, and start thinking about walking all the way back to the
entrance nearest their cars. Maybe it's just me. I guess I'm a traitor to
the female cause, because I *really* don't like shopping, especially for
clothes for myself. Yuck.

The problem with Botanical Gardens, as I see it, is weather. On a good
day it's great. If it rains, everyone is screwed.

Diana