First time exhibitors, Golden Fox Goods' had a 80 sq ft, corner booth under the low ceiling at Javits. Missy and Grant initially wanted to use foam core walls but opted for hard walls built by a local carpeter to ensure they could easily and safely hang their art prints. They lucked out and were directly under an overhead light, they also utilized clip-on desk lamps with high-wattage LEDs. Shelving and tables were purchased at Ikea. They used vinyl flooring from a local store in Los Angeles. It was cushy and easy to lay over the concrete. Vinyl was cut by Dave at EGI Vinyl. Grant warns to order vinyl early and order extra in case you make a mistake. They built an (extremely) large crate that they shipped via Showtime which was by far their cheapest option. They shipped early to the GES storage warehouse and were hit with a $300 holding fee. Next time they will ship directly to the show. Grant and Missy recommend allowing 2 full days for set-up, particularly if you're installing your own walls.

Iron Curtain Press returned for their second year at the National Stationery Show, exhibiting in a 80sq ft corner booth located in the low ceiling area of Javits. Rosanna and Joel built their hard walls and reused clip-on lights they purchased last year from Ikea with bright LED light bulbs. Their woodgrain foam floor tiles were purchased from foamtiles.com. Vinyl signage was used for their logo and booth numbers, which they affixed themselves. Display shelves were made out of wood purchased at Home Depot and attached to the walls using carriage bolts and wing nuts. The carriage bolts, while pricey looked really nice and the wingnuts allowed them to attach the shelves without using any tools. ICP shipped a pallet via Airways Freight, costing $425 each way from LA to Javits and back again. Rosanna warns that crates and pallets will get roughed up during transit and delivery so pack it with great care.

Veteran exhibitor, Shana Frase worked with a cabinet maker to build her 10x10 custom booth. Shana used clip-on lights and chose to add a Parcan this year to ensure strong lighting which enhanced product photography. Shana says it was a tough decision to rent the parcan but she's glad she did. "I am now team parCAN (& team robbing banks ;))" Her flooring is two layers - very inexpensive floor tiles with navy carpet squares on top. Shana recommends ordering more carpet tiles than you need so that everything matches if you move to a larger booth. Her company name was hand painted, framed and displayed on a gallery wall. She also used custom vinyl on the outside wall. Her table and chairs were purchased for a previous NY GIft show and reused. She shipped everything on a pallet but would have preferred to use a crate. The booth is now stored in New Jersey with Showtime. Shana's biggest piece of advice is show up early for set-up. If you finish early you can enjoy the city & rest, but thinks always come up.

This was Ten Four Paper's second year at the National Stationery Show, but first year exhibiting in their own booth. Julie had a 60 sq ft booth, under the high ceiling area, in the #fresh section. Manny Stone provided pre-printed, 4-color, 3/8" foam core walls. Julie had Manny Stone pre-print her cards on the wall exactly where she wanted to hang them, so that when she arrived she was able to quickly affix her cards directly to the wall on top of the pre-printed placeholder with her ATG gun. She used 1 parcan and mini clip lights from Ikea (super bright and worked well). Her interlocking foam tiles were sourced from Amazon (listed as a children's play mat!). Tables & chairs were purchased at Target then painted. Rug was from Amazon. Julie shipped majority of her items to a friend then hand-carried into Javits. Julie says she paid a lot for her walls but would do it again. It made set-up and breakdown fast & easy.

Sarah of Fancy Seeing You Here used this booth for several consecutive years; allowing her to reuse materials, save time and establish a consistent look for the buyers! The clip on lights used Bright White eco bulbs (both purchased at Home Depot). The faux wood foam flooring was purchased on Amazon. Sarah's signage was laser cut wood affixed to the walls with 3M foam strips. Her displays were a mix of custom cut wood hung with pegboard hooks and some cards affixed directly to the wall. Sarah drove everything into NY, and was able to bring furniture from home most of which as from Ikea.

This was Life is Funny's first year at the National Stationery Show and he had a 80 sq ft booth in the low ceiling area at Javits. He built his booth using 2x2s and .25in birch plywood from home Depot. For shelves, Adam used 2 pieces of 1x2s from Home Depot, nailed them together and painted. He pre-drilled and hung everything before he shipped the booth and was able to hang everything in NY with only a screwdriver. While the walls were built to easily stand alone, the shelves screwed into the frame made the walls even more sturdy and he had no problems with cards falling off the shelves. He spent about $800 total on wood, paint, clip on lights and vinyl. Adam found a 3/8in faux wood foam tiles on Amazon. The vinyl was purchased locally in Los Angeles for approximately $200. He used Showtime Express to ship across the country and is now storing his pallet in New Jersey for the year. Shipping was $0.75 per pound. Adam recommends cutting costs wherever you can and not pre-printing inventory if you're a printer.