My Experience Exhibiting at Ely Cathedral Christmas Gift & Food Fair 2024

• Stall Fee: £390
  
  
• Accommodation: £55pn Airbnb - I managed to nab a location that was 5 minutes from the cathedral which was perfect after a very long day on my feet. It is rare to get such low-cost accommodation, most stallholders were staying in hotels or Airbnb sharing with other vendors that they had met the previous year (if you know someone else who is going to exhibit, definitely check with them if they would like to share somewhere to save money).
  
  
• Travel & Parking: This cost will obviously vary on your location. Cambridge to Ely isn’t too bad so it was a 30min drive for me. You will be given details of your time to arrive & a map as there are different entrances allocated for stallholders. I was very fortunate that I also had a free parking space available at the place I stayed. The host was also really kind, if you’d like further info just email me separately & I can share details.
  
  
• Display & Packaging: Approximately £100; I bought 3 wooden display units & 2 sets of brass units from Amazon to ensure my products were well-presented, I also already had 2 table rails which I then wrapped faux greenery around (which I regret as it reduced the amount of light on my stand plus it took ages to set up!) You will need additional storage behind you to keep your extra stock organised, I also took a small folding table which came in handy for gift wrapping items. Oh and invest in or borrow a portable trolley on wheels for moving stock from your car to your stand. I had a lot of heavy boxes I was carrying and another stallholder saw me struggling and gave me hers to borrow as you have a certain amount of time to unload your vehicle outside the cathedral, and then move it to another location.
  
  
• Stock & Materials: Creating enough inventory for four days of sales is extremely tricky if you are selling somewhere new. I figured I’d make as much as I possibly could (which came to a sales value of around £4000) as it just meant I’d then have stock ready for online sales plus the other 2 Christmas markets I’d signed up for, this is another thing I wouldn’t recommend especially when you’re also teaching 3 workshops. Yes, I am pretty silly at times. What you need to aim to do is calculate the amount of stock needed to cover your stall & accommodation costs to break even, then add on from there. If you are staying at accommodation in Ely you can always keep some stock in your room rather than have everything on your stand and just top it up each day. This is what the lady next to me did as she had a huge variety of candle melts & gift boxes, she had her mum helping her so between them if they needed a top up for the evening one of them took their portable trolley and got more stock.

Workshops – Clearly I wasn’t in the place to run a workshop, but I really wanted people to know that I do them. So I got Gav to print out an A1 width poster that listed my Wax Seal & Calligraphy Workshops. Now this was something that really benefitted me as the height & scale of it meant people could read it from a distance so they made a beeline for the stall specifically to ask about the workshops & where I held them.

What I learnt

• Price variation is key - I’ve done a lot of markets, & 2024 was certainly one where people were more price conscious, so make sure you have price variation to cover the bases. Stocking-fillers under £5, then your mid-point for people budgeting £10-£30 & have a few high options as you will have people wanting to get something really special. This is the ultimate place to take advantage of your surroundings. There are choirs singing, the air is filled with the most Christmassy smell of cinnamon, orange & cloves, so people are in that zone of wanting to buy and if you have a variety of price points on your stand then they will be more likely to buy multiple items from you. Some areas get so crowded that people cannot move around, so for some they want the convenience of these sorts of price options in one place.
  
  
• Leaflets are important – I was really daft and forgot to do them, the lady next to me was selling wax melts and added a leaflet to every order with a special online discount code. Simple but extremely effective, this is the best way to tell people more about your brand whilst potentially getting you your next sale.
  
  
• Take snacks & water – If you are doing this on your own and it is busy you won’t have much opportunity to trundle off for lunch so make sure you have a big bottle of water, a thermos for hot drinks, and some easy little snacks to keep you energised. There was a mobile coffee vendor called Temper & Glaze selling outside that had the excellent idea of bringing leaflets to each stand so that you could download their app and have hot drinks (and water) brought to your stand which was amazing!
  
  
• Do lots of social media posts – People want to see inside this lovely location so try to do stories on social media of everything being set up & then ones of your stand & the buzz of when it’s filled to the brim with customers.
  
  
• Do a timelapse of stall set up – People love to see a transformation. You are given a chair at your stand so pop it in front of your stall and use a clamp camera mount to pop your phone on and then get cracking with making your stand look beautiful. I didn’t do this as I have a terrible memory and I still regret it, so have the camera mount ready at the top of your bag when you arrive to just get it set up straight away.
  
  
• Get in touch with other sellers – It helps if you know others there, I knew of a few other sellers so I was able to have little catch ups with them, plus it’s always good to chat to the seasoned pro’s who have done it multiple times.

Pros & Cons of Exhibiting at Ely Cathedral Christmas Market

Pros:

• Stunning Location: The grandeur of Ely Cathedral added an incredible charm to the market.
  
  
• High Footfall: Thousands of visitors meant plenty of opportunities to engage with customers.
  
  
• Affluent Customer Base: Many shoppers were looking for high-end, unique gifts.
  
  
• Great for Brand Exposure: Being part of such a prestigious event increased my brand’s visibility.
  
  
• Networking Opportunities: I met other artisans, makers, and potential future collaborators.
  
  
• Sales & Profit: Despite the high costs, I made a decent profit. If I’d had the notebooks & calligraphy kits I would have significantly surpassed my target as quite a few people asked if I had these.
  
  

Cons:

• Cold Environment: The freezing temperatures inside the cathedral made it tricky at times as when you are cold to your bones it’s hard to look professional when you are bouncing on the spot like Tigger desperately trying to get warmer.
  
  
• High Costs: Between the stall fee and additional expenses, it was a considerable financial commitment that has to be made months before the actual event. I was given the confirmation email 8^th May, then had to pay the stall fee by 30^th June so if you want to take part make sure you have your stall money ready for then.
  
  
• Stock Selection Challenges: Some products were slower to sell than anticipated, I had some mini notebooks that barely sold along with some greeting cards.
  
  
• Logistics: Transporting and setting up a stand for four days required significant effort and planning. It makes life so much easier if you have someone with you for the start & finish.

1. Refining Product Selection – Next time, I would take fewer letter writing sets and focus on items that are easier to sell as impulse buys, such as notebooks and calligraphy kits.
   
   
2. Investing in Warmth – Take as many little heat pouches as you can to keep in your pockets. My hands were freezing but it was impractical at times to wear gloves as it doesn’t help if you’re trying to gift wrap stock.
   
   
3. Fine-Tuning Display & Packaging – Presentation is everything. Ensuring the stall looked as inviting as possible contributed to sales. It also gets very dark in there, so make sure you have lots and lots of lighting either as fairy lights or actual lamps, you can get portable ones that you can charge & have a clip to fasten to your stand so the products are well-lit and people can see the prices. Oh and print your prices out, I did mine in calligraphy and it was not clear enough. Don’t do a price list, do a price per product to make things as easy as possible for customers to view.
   
   
4. Building In Time for Rest – Four days of standing, selling, and engaging with customers is exhausting. Factoring in downtime and self-care would be key. If possible have someone with you as it is really hard doing it alone. My sister Claire & friend Janet very kindly offered to help on one of the days, and then Gav helped on the final day which was a massive relief as when it came to the end it was chaos as all the stallholders were desperate to just get everything packed and drive home asap. If you can, try to have a full day off the next day as you will be knackered & in need of some proper rest.
   
   
5. Taking More Marketing Materials – I went through all my business cards by day 2! Have a few hundred available along with postcards and/or leaflets to give to potential customers as it really helps maintain connections beyond the event. Also have a QR code set up & printed on a sheet of A4 in a frame so that if you do run out they have the option of scanning it and instantly being able to walk away with your details on their phone.
   
   
6. Beware of Bats! – Yes, bats. They live right at the top of the cathedral and love to divebomb & drop little bat gifts on your stand when you’ve left for the night. So everyone is advised to bring either bubble wrap or a lightweight plastic covering to protect your stock.