I applied to this event in January 2024 and approved fairly quickly. I asked later in January if I could split my booth with another vendor and I could, so Lizbie became my booth partner which was really exciting!
I reserved the hotel the same month and basically forgot about everything until October when we started getting emails about load-in for the event. I would like to note that the vendor booths are 10x10, they come with 8 foot tables, 2 chairs and 2 badges. Extra badges at this time were $60 each and we both had to get an extra badge for each of our helpers.
We also joined a stamp rally for this event that was based on the chinese zodiac. My choice was dragon and Lizbie picked rooster.
Before the Event & Setup
We actually left late since my daughter decided she wanted to go to school. So we basically dropped the dogs off at the boarding facility, loaded up the rental vehicle and then picked her up an hour or so after we dropped her off so she could take whatever test she was going for.
The drive there was pretty long - I want to say about 10ish hours give or take stops. We had a small hiccup with how check-in was working at the hotel we were staying at. Apparently even though Lizbie was added to the room and allowed to check in, they needed her card if she wanted to check in. Since we were paying for the stay, we had to call and get them to send over something authorizing that we were okay with her checking in and paying. So that took a little longer than expected, but they did make it into the room after that. Never had that experience before even checking in with hotels my dad had booked for us when he was paying for them, so that was definitely different!
We didn't have any real traffic or issues on the way though, so that was nice. The load-in period was from 1pm to 9pm that Thursday, but we arrived around 10pm just missing that window. Friday morning load-in times were from 6am to 11am with the event starting at noon. It was more than enough time to get everything set up at least. After we got into the hotel and dropped everything off, we went to Walmart to grab some water to have in the room and get some change for the event. Filling up our water bottles at the event was easier than at the hotel.
The Event Itself
I was pretty excited for the event itself. Our hotel was basically in walking distance, but we drove each day because I wanted to.
Lizbie joked they thought she was a cafe and that is why we were placed next to all the food vendors.
Friday morning was fairly slow but it was due to people browsing, not due to lack of people in attendance. Honestly, for a Friday, I was shocked so many people were even there so early in the afternoon.
Saturday was a blast!
Sunday morning was a pretty good morning. We slept in and sort of sluggishly left the hotel after getting everything packed to be picked up later. Got to the event hall early enough to drop off our stuff and walk over to Starbucks. This was my first time actually going to where they'd been getting the coffee from all weekend and it was a really nice location. Grand Rapids just feels so upscale and clean.
We headed back to the booth where Lizbie had already set up for the day. After I realize it was pretty slow, I left my husband to man the booth. I had wanted to explore the artist alley and vendor hall more thoroughly with my daughter. The artist alley for this event was very small compared to the vendor section. I was actually pretty shocked at how few artist alley tables there were. The selection was really good though and we bought from several of the artists before returning back to the booth.
Sales were barely better for me on Sunday than Friday ($224 vs. $143). Lizbie's side felt pretty busy from my perspective so hopefully she did better Sunday than Friday as well.
Load-out was fairly quick. Having Kenny help me break everything down was so quick and easy. We also sold just enough plush to fill only two bags instead of the three we came with, so things fit much more nicely into the back of the Ascent this time around. The elevator line didn't even feel all that long despite how long it looked. It took a few minutes max before we were in the parking garage, paying the $13 parking cost and leaving. We went back to get our suitcases from the hotel room, dropped off our key at the front desk, and told them not to check the room out until Lizbie and them left Monday, then headed on our way back home.
The drive back to Minnesota flew by since we had a lot of thoughts and plans for future events after this one. While I know my sales were really bad at this event, I really loved Grand Rapids and would like to eventually fix my setup, add more product and apply again in the future. Maybe 2026? We'll see how much I can get accomplished in 2025. I do look forward to returning in the future though if they will have me!
What Worked & What Did Not
I think our booth placement was interesting and not sure if it worked well for us or not. I really liked being at the front of the convention center near the doors, but didn't love being placed next to pickles and the soda vendor for the event who kept yelling "chug chug chug glug glug glug" for three days.
The booth size was actually pretty nice. I think Lizbie could have easily filled a booth herself. I didn't have enough to fill the 10x10 space provided, so sharing worked out nicely in that regard. I liked having an 8 foot table as well. The artist alley booths were 6ft and the tables were up against one another. I really loved having so much space even if I couldn't fill it alone (yet).
Brand confusion has never been something I considered before. I personally feel like Lizbie and I have extremely different art styles, different aesthetics for our booths (she's very pink & I am more neutral) and she has a much wider variety of products than I do. Despite this, people were struggling to realize we weren't the same company. People for her would run up to me and tell me how much they loved my art and then pick stickers up from her and buy them or try to hand them to me for purchase. Honestly, this was a really good experience for me though.
The chairs that were provided were uncomfortable, so my husband brought one that wasn't next to a table over for us to use. It was a much different chair than what was provided, so everyone wanted to use that one since it was a much nicer chair. Not really anything that matters, but worth noting to bring a cushion or something if you need comfort.
They gave us a trash can which was so convenient and nice, especially when we were eating or couldn't get up all the time to throw things away. Artists didn't get anything but a table and two chairs.
The printed booklets were completely wrong. Lizbie and I weren't mentioned at all as well as several other vendors. They claimed the website would be up to date as well as the phone app, but Lizbie downloaded it to check. It was not updated. In fact, Sunday there was still no map even on the app. The only map that was correct was the one on the website which simply linked to a google spreadsheet.
I really loved the convention center. It felt very artsy and upscale, especially given where it was located downtown. It was also right on the river and it had skywalks that connected so many things to one another, making it comfortable to travel if it had been colder. Reminded me of a mix between Pittsburgh and Minneapolis in that sense.
Cellphone service was pretty hit or miss the entire time. We didn't purchase anything from the event for this and were thankfully able to use our HotSpot the entire time for transactions without any issues.
Conclusion
I do want to return to Grand Rapids. I have a wonderful time and would love to explore the city more (maybe in the summer instead?). The event hall was so pretty. The area was walkable, the food and hotels were all fantastic.
I know others had issues with staff, but my experience was pleasant.
The Details (TLDR)
Event: Grand Rapids Comic Con
Dates: November 15th-17th, 2024
Location: DeVos Place 303 Monroe Ave NW Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Hours: Friday 12pm-7pm, Saturday 9:30am-7pm & Sunday 9:30am-5pm EST
Total Vendors: 242 vendors, tbd artists
Attendance: ~15,000
Travelworthy: Seems like it is worth travel if you have scifi and nerdy things. Wouldn't recommend if you can't keep your costs down, not likely worth it for anyone traveling a long distance.
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Booth Cost: $297.50 (Lizbie Cafe & I shared a $595 vendor booth)
Total Sales: $1,224.25 (this is before all costs are taken out)
Transaction Fees: $26.81
Taxes: $68.05
Total Profit: $831.89