Thread: Timber & Working With Wood Shows 2011 Ladies

Originally Posted by

I think the title "Woodworking Women" might be more apt.

I'm not sure "they" realy need to be referred to separately.

Originally Posted by ubeaut

The bottom line has to be profit (something that seems to be a dirty word to many here) there is no profit for the woodworking side of shows like Newcastle Craft Expo or Craft Alive. Been there done that on many occasions. Jim Carrol can attest to this having done one Newcastle show and with Jims stuff he can make a profit almost anywhere. Even the dedicated pyrography demo's at Newcastle didn't create all that much interest or sales.Maybe they need someone "GOOD" doing it! Must admit though, I am a bit underwhelmed by pyrography.

Just about the only thing going to work for everyone is to move the brilliant Showgrounds venue to Jeffs Shed or somewhere else where there's lots of shopping, along with interesting things to see and do, in the general vacinity, etc, to create interest for those who don't want to stuck at a show they don't really want to be at.
The credit card being bent from two different directions could be a down side of this.



Strangely enough one of the few things that may work with the WWWShows is a quilting show. But I can hear the outcry even now as I type this. The only other thing that may work is to bring it more in line with a Trade Show rather than a hobby show as it basically is now. I've spoken to a dozen or so of our commercial users since the show and all said they don't bother with hobby shows like WWWShow but most went to the trade shows like AWISA, Furntex, etc.

The trade are a bit guarded with their secrets aren't they? Hey might get sick of "stupid" questions from the hobbiests.

'maybe they need someone good doing it.'
No that doesn't help much, what attracts Joe public is a TV personality.
I went to a veterinary clinics birthday bash a few years ago and they had 3 presenter an animal behaviourist, a highly qualified veterinary surgeon and Dr Harry.
Dr Harry's talks had the marquee over flowing, more than twice the seats but only about a dozen turned up for the other presentations. An insult to the two who put on two most interesting and entertaining presentations each. Most didn't even find out what the were talking on.

Originally Posted by tea lady

Maybe they need someone "GOOD" doing it!

They did have someone good doing it. Irene.... She's very capable, extremely helpful, polite friendly and very pleasant. She also knows the product very, very well. Couldn't ask for much better than that.

It's not the demonstrator, it's the show.

Getting back to the topic - in Sydney the TWWW show is in the "Entertainment Quarter". I wonder whether it might help get more customers to the show if more info on what else was on at Fox Studios etc was made available (esp if there was some kind of discount for those who went to TWWW and something else in the complex).

Originally Posted by A Duke

what attracts Joe public is a TV personality.

Maybe they should try to get Better Homes and Garden TV show to do an outside broadcast from a show like they occasionally do at a Bunnings store. You will have a variety of demos with huge star attractions.

Peter.

I am with the Tea Lady.

We don't have men woodworkers or lady woodworkers, we just have woodworkers.

We have several ladies in our club and they do exactly the same as the men, Cabinet making, scroll sawing, carving, turning etc.

We also have another 3 ladies signing up now.
One wants to make nest boxes, one wants to make toys and the other cabinet making.

Our club has been going for about 23 years now and I believe a lady turned up at the inaugural meeting to join. The first decision the Committee made was whether to have lady members. The rest is history.

Ladies and woodwork go back in time it was Holtzapffel's daughter who wrote one of the books and run the company for some years Ornamental Turning History: Victorian Era Turners: The Holtzapffel Family

The number of female aristocrats who went on to turning and using Ornamental Lathes is astounding.

Originally Posted by Sturdee

Maybe they should try to get Better Homes and Garden TV show to do an outside broadcast from a show like they occasionally do at a Bunnings store. You will have a variety of demos with huge star attractions.

Great idea Sturdee problem there is they are all pre recorded and shown at a later date. Don't think anything much is done live any more apart from Hey Hey which is back on again.

Had the radio broadcasting live from the show in Canberra but doubt it made any difference to the numbers attending.

I think the best thing so far for the ladies/partners (not always the bloke in the family that's the woodie) is the dedicated lounge(s).

Have to admit that personally, I question the need for something for "The Ladies" after all the show is 22 years old now and there have been complaints from woodworkers about anything not woodworking since day one. So it's either a complete makeover and call it a woodworking and craft show or leave it alone. Doesn't matter what is done there will always be a small minority who will have a complaint and I doubt very much that putting in a couple of things for "The Ladies" will make any difference other than raising more complaints from "The Grumpy Old Men".

Originally Posted by wheelinround

Ladies and woodwork go back in time it was Holtzapffel's daughter who wrote one of the books and run the company for some years Ornamental Turning History: Victorian Era Turners: The Holtzapffel Family

The number of female aristocrats who went on to turning and using Ornamental Lathes is astounding.

Think you'll find it goes back for just a couple or so years more than the Holtzapffel ladies. Like since women ruled the earth - Day one.

Originally Posted by ubeaut

Think you'll find it goes back for just a couple or so years more than the Holtzapffel ladies. Like since women ruled the earth - Day one.

I had typed something along the lines of " Who decides the design and furniture you buy" but scrubbed it.

Imagine poor old Noah building that Ark with a supervisor wife.

Or Adam and his fig leaf he cut for her "No thats look awful".

As far as I am concerned, a woodworker is a woodworker whether male or female. I don't see the need to differentiate. Personally I think having a joint WWS and a craft exhibition at the same venue would take a lot away from the current format of the show however, as pointed out, at the end of the day, profit is the name of the game and maybe something like a joint venture has to happen.

Show grounds is a terrific venue inside, but the location sucks. Jeff’s Shed is the exact opposite, so if I had to choose (as I have the last two years) it’s not to go to the Show grounds.

At the show grounds it the Wood show then nothing, but at Jeff Shed it’s the Wood show then it’s either Casino, a restaurant, movies or a nice stroll down South bank, plus you are flanked by two major train stations to get you home quick, an that includes to country Victoria.

Also the one thing I would love, and it would guarantee me going, is a decent size furniture exhibition and competition. Being a wood show its always disappointing there is only ever a small amount of furniture. From memory the last Jeff’s Shed show had a decent amount of furniture on display and it was fantastic.

Originally Posted by Lignum

Also the one thing I would love, and it would guarantee me going, is a decent size furniture exhibition and competition. Being a wood show its always disappointing there is only ever a small amount of furniture. From memory the last Jeff’s Shed show had a decent amount of furniture on display and it was fantastic.

Quite a bi of "finished " woodwork there this year. Always room for more I reckon!

Originally Posted by tea lady

Quite a bi of "finished " woodwork there this year. Always room for more I reckon!

I looked at a fair bit of PR and didnt see it mentioned. If i had known a good size exhibition was on i would have gone. Their comes a point in your woodworking life when tools, timber and machines become a bit boring. Now im more interested in peoples finished products.

As someone already mentioned a forum exhibition would be fantastic.