Dipping Our Oars in the Water
Walleye Festival 2025, Port Clinton, Ohio, Memorial Day Weekend
Our first Edgewater Supply Company/Great Lakes Girls event took place in a great location - a park on the shores of Lake Erie. Folks, believe me when I tell you that we didn’t know what we didn’t know. Mishaps? We had ‘em. Missteps? We made ‘em. Regrets? Not one. It was a ride! What a learning experience! And one heck of a week!
For starters it was a very wet week leading up to Memorial Day. It was also unseasonably cool. Like really wet and really cool. Like cold. But we’re Great Lakes Girls--We handle it. And we did, but not without a bit of wishing we’d packed for three seasons. Oh, and it was very windy. We had our brand new tent and we were looking forward to a break from the wind. That is, until a monster gust came and the tent took flight.
Literally. Took. Flight.
Thanks to everyone (Chris, Jenn and others) who stopped their own setup to race to our aid, catching, flipping and repairing what was left of our mangled tent enough for us to make it through the next five days - you saved the day. With a little volunteer brawn, some loaned extra weights, and with a fair amount of duct tape, we cleared that hurdle to get down to the fun stuff: setting up.
As the event continued, our weather improved exponentially. By Sunday and Memorial day, the weather was spectacular. A really nice breeze coming in from the lake was just right against the bright sun and clear blue skies. Perfect weather for strolling through the festival with plenty of food truck options.
We had a blast. Lots of browsers. Lots of customers. We, at several points during the weekend, had a line of people waiting to make purchases. Best of all, we had so much wonderful feedback! From our mugs to our high quality apparel, we have taken notes and we have more items coming soon! We met a lot of wonderful people who had a lot of encouraging things to say. We had such a great time with our customers, browsers and other presenters alike. It really boosted our confidence as far as continuing with the market/booth events.
We learned so much from this experience. We learned about the process-- like the necessity for speaking up to get what we need from very busy event coordinators. That it’s a good idea to make friends with the event electricians. Also, fellow event presenters are quick to lend a hand and are just all around great people (special shout out to Ron and “Hey” The Sword Man for showing us how ratchet tie downs actually work). Most of all we learned that that solid preparation is key but that (in the true spirit of the Midwest and Great Lakes mindset – in true Great Lakes Girls fashion) we handled it well.
We came away learning that we really enjoy booth/tent events. No sooner did we unpack than we started looking for more events. They fill up fast and some require applications nearly a year in advance.
Next up, you will find us at The Cleveland Market at Tyler Village on August 9th and 10th. First order of business– the new canopy. We can’t wait to meet you in person and hear your lake stories. Can't wait to share, promote and celebrate the spirit of the people and places of the Great Lakes region we all love. See you in August!
