Meet Gustaf and Linnea – two Gotland beekeepers who initially hesitated to exhibit at Formex but took the plunge. At the end of the last day of the fair, they took home contracts with several dream shops.
How did you prepare for Formex?
– We didn’t really know what to expect. The fear that buyers are “too cool for school” and that we would fail was palpable. We prepared by ordering the minimum stand space and a fabric wall and some nice curtains we wanted for the office anyway.
– We produced 2000 cardboard lip cerates to distribute with the assumption that “if they are happy, they will come back”. The aim was to distribute them all and thus obtain a high number of customer contacts.
And how did it go?
– No sooner said than done, we started handing out lipstick after lipstick and meeting one lovely buyer after another, they weren’t so scary and cool, rather open-hearted and curious.
The assumption “if they are happy, they will come back” was certainly true. We had people on the stand every hour wanting to hear all about the products.
Everything from big international wholesalers, Swedish dream stores we’ve long wanted to get into, to cozy country stores that suit us perfectly.
How have you fared after the fair?
– After the fair, we had a long line of exciting new retailers to deliver to. We followed up on leads, forged new partnerships and had to postpone many earlier plans as we sold out of stock several times. We will be at Formex every chance we get in the future, next time we will be a little cooler with our nerves. We are most proud to have entered all of Designtorget’s stores, it’s a nice confirmation that we are right on time.
– For the next Formex, we have produced something many people have asked for, namely beeswax cloths in our own design. We can’t wait for the next Formex!
Read more about Gustaf and Linnea here.
More inspiration here
