Selling to Heroes, Villains and Geeks

This book provides a comprehensive guide to becoming a vendor at anime, comic, and sci-fi conventions.

Lewis likes to call herself a “vendorpreneur” who has carved out a very successful niche: selling products at conventions that appeal to pop-culture enthusiasts. In an instructive debut book supplemented with color photographs, Lewis painstakingly details a selling process to help the novice vendor establish a business, avoid pitfalls, and follow in her footsteps. The author begins with five “cardinal rules,” an overview of basic strategies concerning customer psychology, merchandise acquisition and selection, and pricing. Part 2 comprises the bulk of the book; here, Lewis offers a “Business Battle Plan Blueprint” that walks through every step, in sequence, a vendor needs to take to prepare for and attend a convention. Each phase, positioned as an “assignment,” includes simple step-by-step instructions, augmented when necessary by illustrative examples from websites as well as photographs. Phases include conducting online research, finding unique items on Japanese sites, investigating wholesalers, and crafting a merchandise plan. This portion of the book is sure to be of great value to the beginner and could help even experienced vendors improve their game plans. In Part 3, Lewis wraps up with a useful overview of convention registration requirements and logistics. She also uses photographs of her own booth to illustrate stall setup and merchandise placement. Throughout, Lewis sprinkles “Sensei tips,” short pearls of wisdom based on her experiences, as well as “Oops alerts,” which highlight “regrettable new-vendor decisions that led to disastrous sales results.” At the end of this entertaining book, the author appends a listing of “trusted suppliers” that should save the reader considerable research time. Lewis writes with an enthusiasm for her subject in a style that is breezy, informal, and a joy to read. Her merchandising expertise and knowledge of the subject matter shine through as she delivers on the promise of the volume’s subtitle: “An insider’s guide for new anime vendors.”

Engaging, well organized and deftly written; a treasure trove of valuable information for those who want to sell at specialized conventions.