Summer Animefest, a promise for the ultimate anime adventure, featuring: a cosplay showcase, a maid café, cozy crafting, and special guests! And all right over at Charlile’s Collectible Show in Stone Mountain, GA.
Summer Animefest was my first time vending at CCS. I’d heard of CCS back in January through a Facebook ad. They were going to host a meet-and-greet for Ted Lewis, dub voice actor of Bakura from Yu-Gi-Oh, so obviously I had to make my way over there. It just so happened, this was also their Retro Anime Minicon, which featured an artist alley. And so, I’d kept an eye out for a future CCS event I could apply to, and Summer Animefest was it!
Applying was easy enough, CCS’s social media and website clearly list out their upcoming events, and there’s a vendor contact form on their site. After I applied as an event vendor, I got an email back saying I was put on their list, and then it was just about waiting for an appropriate event to sign-up for.
As a venue, CCS feels like a cross between a card game shop and a convention dealer’s hall. There’s rental spaces, divided up by grid walls, for more permanent vendors who’d like to hold shop for more than just one weekend event. I noticed some of these vendors had already swapped from ones I’d seen in January. These vendors ranged from trading card games, Japanese anime good imports, retro toy collectibles, and artists. Then there’s game spaces, empty chairs and tables, where players can participate in scheduled tournaments and play. There’s also a concessions area, which stocks cold drinks and a wide selection of pre-packaged snacks. Parking was free, and Summer Animefest itself required no attendance fee.
Overall, I was satisfied with my vending experience at CCS and sales performance was within expectations. I made back my table costs, and noticed foot traffic seemed to improve a lot from what I observed at Retro Anime Minicon. Perhaps over the last several months word-of-mouth has gotten around the Atlanta area? My sales for Saturday and Sunday were about the same, with the busiest times being Saturday morning after opening and Saturday evening after the Cosplay Showcase ended. Interestingly, credit and cash sales about evened out for me for the first time since the pandemic. Guess I’m not ready to get rid of cash sales, just yet!
Most popular item by far was my “You-Gay-Ho!” vinyl sticker, which makes sense with the card gamer crowd. It reminded me that I ought to design more Yu-Gi-Oh inspired art, but of course original ideas take priority!
So here we go, what are Billie’s vendor rankings for Summer Animefest, at Charlie’s Collectible Show?
Billie’s Vendor Ranking
Live DJ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Foot Traffic | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Attendee Vibes | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
On-Location Food | ⭐⭐⭐ |
Pokémon GO | ⭐ |
Rest Rooms | ⭐⭐⭐ |
I’d say if you’re an artist vendor with nerd themes, and within driving distance, keep an eye on Charlie’s Collectible Show! While the local competition may grow as CCS becomes more popular, their commitment to hosting many differently themed weekend markets over the year will hopefully mean many different openings. And I plan on returning if I’m allowed the opportunity!
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