December 2003 - Nr. 12
Christmas Fairs Galore
My first visit was the fair at the Tannery in
Newmarket. It is a ver
y
beautiful location and well decorated for the season. The ceilings are low
enough to create a comfortable atmosphere and – with the help of the vendors
– a Christmassy feeling. But where were the customers? This is a
question
that applied to all the fairs this year. The vendors were complaining, some
barely broke even or left with a very small margin of profit. Was it the
weather? Have these types of fairs run their course? Were they scheduled too
early?
I
don’t have the answers, and no one else was able to put a finger on it for
me either.
The
items offered were standard fare: Smokers (Räuchermännchen), Pyramids,
woodcarvings, tree décor, Marzipan, Chocolates, Cookies and other related
items.
But
there were also items offered that had nothing to do with Christmas such as
coat hangers, pots & pans or shoe polish etc., that couldn’t possibly be
classified as gift items.
One
of the most unsanitary items that I saw at these fairs was unrefrigerated
and uncovered meat items like Kaiserfleisch or fish in open display. Many
people commented unfavoura
bly
on this to me, and they also didn’t buy much of it. I wonder what happened
to the unsold merchandise after a three-day exposure (!) at the fair?
A
great favourite – as food items go – was the smoked sausage offered by the
Mennonite communities. Some of the salamis and summer sausages were made
from beef
,
elk meat, turkey and other combinations, well wrapped and not in the need of
refrigeration – very tasty and appetizingly presented. I wouldn’t mind
finding one under the tree.
The Christmas Fair in St. Catharines was also not the success that had been anticipated by the organizers - or the vendors.
At
the "Donauschwaben Klub" in Scarborough a similar assortment of gift
and décor items was offered. This old and well-established fair did better
this year than last. Visitors showed up early on the first day, had lunch
and
then
started shopping – especially for food items and jewellery - when the
vendors hadn’t even finished setting up their booths yet. Since there was no
official opening this year, the confusion was understandable.
The
fair at the Hansa Haus did not do very well this year either and the
vendors were a bit unhappy and some even blamed the organizers for lack of
promotion on their part. But that may not be the only reason.
I
know lots of people who think the Hansa Club should run the Christmas Fair
themselves instead of an outside source that is only out to make a buck.
Many
of the visitors took advantage of the fact that delicious food was served in
the "Hansa Stube" upstairs and there were often more people upstairs than in
the hall downstairs, at the fair.
The Christmas Fair at City Hall in Toronto is underway already and will run until the 23rd of December. It should be more successful than last year’s fair, which was hidden between two buildings near the St. Lawrence Farmers Market and almost invisible.
This year’s location automatically guarantees greater exposure and should do well.
Another - usually successful - "Christkindlmarkt" will be the one in Kitchener’s City Hall and will run from the 3rd to the 7th of December. It features lots of seasonal entertainment to reinforce the seasonal mood and normally sees a lot of visitors during its 5-day run. (See more details in the ad in this issue)
r.k.a.
