Sometimes it's just not meant to be!

[cerelife]

The week before my biggest festival of the year, everything started going wrong. And just to clarify - this festival draws over 20,000 people from all over the world and over the years I've built up my customer base and I average sales of $1K/day at the festival with lots of return customers who expect me to be there every year.
- The custom camper top that my DH ordered for his truck (over a month in advance - more than double the time that the company recommended!) was delayed in arriving AND got dropped upon delivery....damaging it enough that they sent it back to the manufacturer! This was less than a week before the festival and we were told there was no way they could get a replacement in time for the festival. At least they refunded our money, since we had to pay in advance for a custom top but it left us scrambling to figure out how to pack everything without the extra room we were counting on!!
- When I was trying to condense my packing, I realized that the company from which I buy my paper shopping bags shorted me an entire case of bags! I just saw boxes from them from a few weeks before and didn't think to check to make sure they were all there Great customer service at Nashville Wraps. It was an error in the warehouse and they expedited my bags and they arrived within 2 days of my calling them!
- Then I developed a medical condition that required an emergency procedure 5 days before the festival!! I'm a medical professional and I work closely with the ER docs, so when I said that I needed to be OK by 5 days out since I have an obligation to be a vendor at this festival, they obliged. Four massive injections of antibiotics over 2 days...I still have lumps on my bum!!
- And just to top things off...a hurricane took an unexpected turn and Louisiana got a ton of rain.
BUT....3 days before the festival they cancelled the entire Art Market since they had to relocate the festival due to all the rain and there wasn't room for the arts and craft vendors in the new location downtown. Are you f***ing kidding me!!?? 3 days notice when most of us have been working like fiends for months to stock up for this festival!?
On the positive side - I emailed customers who expected me to be at the festival as soon as I got the news of the cancellation, and they came to our hotel to pick up their orders So I still made sales AND got to be a tourist!

 

[mommycarlson]

cerelife, I have no words. Glad at least you made some sales and got to be a tourist

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Wow! That's a rollercoaster, but glad it wasn't too bad in the end

 

[navigator9]

Well, you definitely made lemonade out of lemons. Good for you! Sometimes our best laid plans just go down the drain, due to no fault of our own, and all you can do is roll with it. You rolled like a pro. Glad you are feeling better.

 

[Millie]

Wowza! Glad you found a glass half full after all that spillage! Hope you are well now.

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SJUhlRoBL8M[/ame]

 

[Prysm]

I'm glad you were able to be a tourist and get the sales in. What a bunch to go through.

 

[dibbles]

It sounds like everything that could go sideways did. Good job salvaging what you could from it all. I hope you are feeling better.

 

[cerelife]

Thanks for the encouraging words and for letting me vent
I love this festival (even if they did have poor planning this year) and it was really sweet that the local vendors invited me to set up with them when they found local venues in which to show their goods! I was invited to set up at a local hotel lobby with a couple of other vendors as well as at a local coffee shop who offered their sidewalk space adjacent to where the festival was relocated...but we had made peace with the fact that it just wasn't 'meant to be', so I declined. I bartered with my local vendor friends, so we were all happy with what we took home And I always bring gift bags for the staff of the hotel where we stay when we're in town for the festival, and I was surprised and a little overwhelmed when they comped us 2 nights of our 3 night stay saying "They should have done better for y'all - lots of us come for the Arts Market as much as for the music and we're glad you still showed up!"
LOVE this area!!! And for once we were well rested to enjoy the following week in New Orleans