To Buy or Not To Buy (That Is the Question)
Tall Ship Elissa...an iron-hulled, three-masted sailing ship built in Aberdeen, Scotland in 1877.
We traveled all this way (Galveston, Texas isn't exactly in our backyard) and still have no idea if this will work, our little dream of a company. Will anyone even buy our materials? Exhibits/vendors for TASSSP don't start until the afternoon, so we decide to make the most of our nervous energy and see what historic downtown Galveston has to offer. Our hotel, The Tremont House, is located in the wharfside historic district called "The Strand" (which according to our travel guidebook contains the nation's largest collection of restored Victorian-era commercial buildings). This district is block after block of amazingly well-preserved, multi-story brick buildings now housing shops and restaurants. Just blocks away from our hotel is Pier 21 where we snapped some photos of the 1877 tall ship Elissa docked at the Texas Seaport Museum. We also watched the 30-minute documentary film The Great Storm at the Pier 21 Theater. If you are unfamiliar with the history of Galveston, this short film is a must-see to fully appreciate the disastrous and deadly hurricane that killed 6,000 island residents on September 8, 1900. Some of the true accounts (retold from the perspective of survivors) are truly shocking and disturbing. We walked out of that dark tiny theater into the bright Texas sunshine feeling stunned and far more appreciative of our historic Galveston surroundings. Plus, that level of drama helped put our uncertain situation with the company into better perspective: whether we succeed or fail, this isn't life or death we're dealing with here; we still have our families, friends, health, and happiness (so much happiness!). No matter what happens, at least we tried. Time to stop stressing and get on with it.
But first, lunch. We grab a Gulf shrimp basket (what else?) for grub and excitedly chat about what we'll do if we actually sell something. During our distracted convo, none other than Mary Kate Snow (SWASAP President and fellow Arkansas TRIO colleague) walks up to our table. Her response to seeing us went a little something like this: "Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat are you girls doing here in Texas?" And that's the first time a TRIO colleague (in the whole wide world of TRIO) found out what we've been up to with DreamCatcher. It felt rather liberating to finally let this feathered cat out of the bag, but even better is Mary Kate's happy reaction to the news of our company. She seems genuinely proud of us, and that validation is just what we need. We are so thrilled that neither of us remember finishing our shrimp basket. It's show time!
“A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.”
As we gather our packets of college prep materials and make way to the exhibit hall at TASSSP, an out-of-body sort of feeling starts to sink in, like, is this really happening? Who do we think we are? Are we crazy?! Our former jobs in Talent Search TRIO were fun, rewarding, and so very comfortable. But did you ever have a feeling that there's something "more" out there waiting? That by staying put, you are missing opportunities to grow and challenge yourself? Sometimes you just have to let go of what is safe and go for it. This is our chance.
We roll our little green wagon of materials into that exhibit hall like a boss. Technically we are our own bosses, so that seems appropriate. But seriously, we roll up to our designated table and start putting the burlap and vintage crate decor together like we've done it a thousand times. Before we can even get the packets into the crates, a few other vendors are scoping out our stuff. They pick up a packet or two and practically ooh and ahhh about the design and content. They effusively compliment our booth decor (we do stand out, to say the least). Over the next few days we learn so much from our vendor colleagues, with valuable suggestions, advice, and overall support. Their acceptance is yet another layer of validation that we are on the right path. YES!
People are starting to arrive at registration for the conference and we're catching more than a few glances in our direction. Soon we see a very familiar face: fellow Arkansan and COE Senior VP of Membership and Human Resources, Alvin Phillips. To say that Al is shocked at seeing us as vendors is an understatement, but even more than surprised, he seems elated. Al told us how proud he was of our venture, saying something like he was "a proud papa bird whose babies have flown the nest." He did a little jump for joy, even. Pretty sure we did the same thing two seconds after he walked away from the booth. Day one of TASSSP comes to a close without sales, and although we are pleased to have the validation of TRIO mentors and colleagues from Arkansas, and that of our new vendor friends, we continue to wonder if this effort will be profitable.
“What good are wings without the courage to fly?”
SWASAP President Mary Kate Snow stopped by our DreamCatcher Curriculum booth in the TASSSP exhibit hall! Happy to see a friendly face from our home state of Arkansas.
Shortly after setting up the booth on day two, TRIO conference attendees start sporadically strolling through the exhibit hall. Figuring out our DreamCatcher sales approach and striking the proper balance between informative and overkill is going to be a learning process. What to say when people stop by the table? Immediately pounce on them with explanation of materials or let them browse first? Start with pleasantries and small talk or wait for them to ask questions? Stand on either side of the table waiting for people to walk by? Make eye contact first or wait until people glance in our direction? Perhaps be less "salesman-y" and just sit in the chairs behind the table? With the crates stacked up, however, it's easy to look as though we're hiding. Several times we bolt up, jack-in-the-box style, and accidentally startle a few people (inducing heart attacks likely won't ensure sales). We take turns with one of us sitting while the other stands so as not to overwhelm people stopping to inspect our materials. Gradually we find our groove. And the great news is that people seem genuinely interested in our products!
At last we hear possibly the greatest words ever: "I'll take one of everything. No, I'm serious. I'll take it all." Our FIRST SALE! And it's a big one. We are officially in business. Pretty sure rays of sun shine down from heaven and angels sing a chorus at this very moment, because hallelujah... we have finally done it! More sales come after this one. Later an owner/founder/CEO of one of the other vendors in the exhibit hall approaches our booth and does a thorough inspection of our materials before stating that he was very impressed and asking, "Have you given any consideration to having a distributor for your products?" Pretty sure crickets may have been chirping in the stunned moments of silent shock that gave us. We fumbled around with some words and said something in response, but not likely anything coherent. He bought one of every packet. Wowza! The day continues with many business cards and order forms given out and lots of interest from conference attendees. It is hard to describe the complete and utter feeling of relief we have by the end of the day. It's a mixture of relief and joy and shock. Today was a very good day.
February 29, 2016: Our first official sales and professional validation that we may truly have a chance at making this venture our day job. Celebration is in order! Time to pack up our stuff and go see the Gulf sunset on this happiest of Leap Days. We are truly leaping with joy at what the future might hold for our business.
A gorgeous end to a wonderful day for our business at TASSSP. Galveston Beach at sunset.