Westminster 2013 – The Vendor’s Perspective

By Amy Fernandez

Westminster’s new location had several advantages and some obvious flaws. But it was hard to make a determination about these issues for spectators and vendors until the end of the show. It seemed like the new venue would appeal to both groups. Vendors had plenty of space and a highly visible, accessible placement on Pier 94. I spoke to a few of them early on Monday.

They were optimistic despite the fact that Westminster had raised their rates substantially. Most of them considered it an investment. A couple of them admitted that they hesitated about the high rates at an untested venue. On the other hand, they didn’t want to risk losing a coveted Westminster concession space if they backed out.

Most agreed that Monday’s business was pretty good, but not spectacular. They hoped to make up for it with a big shopping crowd Tuesday. Did it happen? Some vendors did equally well both days, but many reported no substantial improvement in sales day two. However, they all agreed that one factor really hurt business. They missed that second wave of spectator traffic that usually converged on the Garden from 4:00-8:00 P.M.

Traditionally, the evening crowd showed up after work to do serious shopping before watching the group judging.  It didn’t help that show hours at the Piers also turned out to be shorter than past years. Contrary to information published in the premium list, mandatory benching until 6:00 P.M was not enforced. Exhibitors began packing up around 4:00, and most were lined up waiting for the freight elevators by 4:30. Since there were no more dogs to see, the spectators also cleared out early.

As expected, the west side location had an impact on spectators. Over the course of two days, I spoke to 20-30 diehard Westminster fans. Overall, they liked the new venue. The roomy benching area definitely made it easier to see dogs, chat with breeders, and take pictures. That’s good because it was very difficult to get a decent view of most of the judging.

But, almost every spectator I spoke to had specifically taken taken the day off work for this trip to the Piers. The show hours and inconvenient location made it impractical to stop in during lunch or bring the kids after school. A few spectators knew about the shuttle running from Midtown to the west side.  Others saw it but never realized what it was. Most spectators took taxis or drove, which added substantially to their $25 admission price. Needless to say, that left then with less shopping cash.

I’m sure that Westminster will tweak this routine and smooth out these rough spots for 2014.

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Posted by Tom on Feb 14 2013. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.