Small Kitchen - Who Else Has Had This Happen!!!

[Cindycooks]

The host of last nights show requested that I bring lots of products because she had no PC (other that what she just bought off of the person she booked from)...and she thought the guests would like to see lots of things. So I did. She is a vet at our new animal hospital and I wanted to please her - plus this was a whole new crowd. I felt like when I first started and I used to take EVERYTHING! I've cut way back on what I bring. I arrived at her house and her kitchen was the size of a postage stamp! Talk about shock and having to work fast! Had to do the demo there because there was no room in the living room (its an apartment). I made it work! Staggered things, I worked off of a butcher block small island and put things on the red crate (which I had used to carry things). I think I had products everywhere - even on the fridge and some in the livingroom - where food went and I checked out. WHEW!

The show is at $800 so far with more orders still to come in...and 3 bookings...we had fun and laughed and it was a great show - it just goes to show us that we can do anything! I've had guests say - my house is just too small - I've told them I once did a show in a single wide trailer - we can make it work!

 

[PCSarahjm]

I had a show a few weeks ago....very small kitchen. But I managed....I set a nice SA display on the coffee table in the living room. That is where check out was....it was the last thing customers seen before they left and I got a few bookings from it. I also did a cookware/stoneware display on the stove. I had a few compliments about how they liked things spread out not all grouped together. So sometimes when the kitchen is small spread displays through out....Things won't seem so cramped.

 

[Cindycooks]

Exactly - I normally do something like that - like I will group the cookbooks and spices away from everything else, but in this case I had no choice! There was no kitchen table and when I ask her if I needed to bring my small folding table, she said no! I used whatever I could find!

 

[lkprescott]

These are good tips. My one friend mentioned to me last night that her kitchen is VERY small... she's planning on having folks be in the living room and I can demo there and she'll run things back and forth from the kitchen... I may also have some things prepared more ahead of time than I usually do too just for sake of not having enough space to have folks come up and try things without making it a big pain "scuse me, oops.. sorry was that your foot?" switching around and such...

 

[mpkegley]

I am doing a show next month where the host said that her apartment is very small. It sure is great to know that we can improvise and still have a good show.

 

[erinyourpclady]

Until I moved to the states...I NEVER did a demo in a kitchen!! I demo'd a lot on tables in living rooms!

At one show....I had a four floor walk up! She had a wall of kitchen(very common in Japan) but a GREAT island. I set up on a table in another room but did my demo on the island.

Oh yeah..I forgot to mention...I had to walk up those stairs in the rain AND it took me forever because everything was so heavy! But the show was over $1000...so it was all worth it. The host still buys from me even thought she is Spain now and I am back in the states!

 

[caynreth]

I've always been in the States and never done a show in a kitchen. Always set up in the living room so the guests could sit comfortably and not crowd into someone's kitchen.

 

[JAE]

Sounds great, Cindy. Way to make it work.
I have started to do my demos on the kitchen table. If I have to use the food chopper I go to the counter, but everything else is at the table. It feels more like I'm one of them, and they are more into it than when I'm behind a counter. I don't care for living room demos because it's usually too far from the kitchen. But, you have to do what works in a small place.

 

[c00p]

I did a demo once in a kitchen that was only 8x8, and you have to remember that there were some cabinets in there, a stove, a refrigerator and a kitchen table. Then I brought in my card table (she didn't have one) and we actually managed to cram 12 people in that room plus myself!!! It was loud, crowded and crazy...but it was over $800 so it was worth it!! Not exactly my first choice though.....

 

[ChefBeckyD]

It's fun that we can do demos wherever we are!

Thursday, I did my demo at the kitchen island with everyone just standing around. A couple months ago, I did my demo kneeling on the floor on a coffee table in the middle of a living room. Both shows had 4 bookings - so I guess it doesn't really matter where we do the demo!:thumbup: