Now onto the good stuff: the show!
SUNDAY, MAY 15
We felt great entering the booth on Day 1—even better after Eric gave Deb the thumbs up that the Starbucks line had finally dwindled down. With the lights on and the aisles cleared, it’s amazing how the Javits seemed to magically transform overnight. For those of you who couldn't be there, I thought you would appreciate this hyperlapsed booth tour I captured on my phone!
The Stationery Show is when many retailers start to shop in preparation for the holiday season. That’s why you’ll see nearly half of our booth was devoted to our holiday collection. We also had new everyday stationery, boxed notes, and gift wrap as well as a brand new line of edge painted correspondence flat notes (coming to our online shop soon!). I really enjoyed connecting with our customers face-to-face and getting their feedback. To our delight, we received a lot of enthusiasm for the spring release.
Now you can’t exhibit at a trade show and not have fun swag for visitors to remember you by. This year, we gave away little wildflower seed packets that we made to coordinate with our booth design. We also participated in Legion Paper’s ‘70s-inspired trading card set and had our interactive Name That Do cards out for people to collect. Check out the entire collection here.
Tip(s): You meet so many people that it’s impossible to remember who’s who at the end of the day. Save yourself the guesswork and write a note on everyone’s business cards as a reminder of your conversation and how to follow up. Also, avoid the Starbucks in the Javits at all costs if you don’t want to wait an hour for a cup of coffee.
MONDAY, MAY 16
We kicked off Day 2 with a few one-on-one meetings with our sales reps. We are always in touch with our reps over email and by phone but we don’t get to see them too often. In fact, it was the first time meeting some of our reps in person for both Sarah and myself. Unfortunately, Sarah could only stay through the morning; we needed her back at the studio to start working on orders! Clayton joined us at that point to help man the booth and field any questions. The traffic was steady, and it was probably the busiest day in terms of taking orders too!
The day ended with a fun rooftop party hosted by our friends at Postable! The photo was an afterthought taken in the stairwell as Eric and I were leaving (and very tired!).
Tip(s): As back up, it can’t hurt to take snapshots of your completed order forms at the end of the day. Keep your hard copies in a safe place but this is just one of those tips you don’t want to learn the hard way! Also, for a delicious and (comparatively) healthy lunch, forgo the food court and walk about a block north to Sunac Natural Market.
TUESDAY, MAY 17
On Day 3, we finished up our meetings with sales reps, and I had a chance to walk the show and visit many of our paper-loving friends! It’s always inspiring to see everyone’s booths and newest designs (more on this later!).
A big highlight was going to Oh So Beautiful Paper's Paper Party. Kudos to Nole and her team for a fun, disco-inspired evening! After another long day on our feet, we kicked back with some refreshments, more friendly chatter, and photo booth glamour shots. Deb introduced me to a bunch of great folks, and by the time we left I could barely speak from all of the shout-talking. :)
Tip(s): Say hello to your suppliers on the Supply Side. Here again it’s a chance to put a face to the name which I think is always so helpful in continuing a relationship where so much of the communication is online.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 18
The last day of the show is only a half day, and not surprisingly, it's usually fairly quiet. A few more customers visited our booth, and we invited them to sit down with us because we were honestly too tired to stand anymore! As soon as the clock struck 1:00 we started breaking down the booth. We had everything taken down and packed into the van in less than two hours. By that point, we just wanted to get out of there and get home. The drive back was, thankfully, completely uneventful.
Tip(s): Provide extra seating. Our little side bench was a very popular spot for people to rest. If they can sit, they (and potential orders) will come!
Stay tuned for Part 3: Favorite Booths!
Catch up on Part 1!
Getting to our booth on Friday morning wasn't exactly easy. First, there was the normal commuter traffic. Then, we had to skillfully navigate our way past all of the crates, furniture, equipment, and trash that filled the aisles of the Javits Center. It’s quite the obstacle course, but we made it! 
I spent this past Saturday at 
Lovers of letterpress and fans of Angela’s Italian ribbon (and her husband’s espresso!) filtered in all afternoon. Rachel‘s letterpress demo using a Kelsey table top press was also a huge hit. You can check out 
(image: Emily, Ari, and George having fun in the Swatch photo booth)
(image: a real reading rainbow!)
The printing demonstration was the highlight of the afternoon. Emily had set up the Vandercook so they could take turns printing a Smudge Ink Valentine’s card set. The children loved cranking the press and learning how the ink is pressed into the paper. They were so enthralled that they kept asking to print again and again, and with each passing roll of the cylinder they became more adept at positioning the paper and cranking the press in just the right way. To bring the process full circle, they took home the Valentines they printed to use for friends and family. They were beyond thrilled!
While they were printing on the Vandercook, Margaret was printing on Heidi, one of our Heidelbergs, and the kids quickly gravitated towards the rhythmic hissing of this press in action. Not only were they in awe of how she functions (cards are fed by air suction), they were equally obsessed with every single make ready she’s ever produced (make readies are pieces of paper used to make the press ready for printing, thus the name).