Day 1 Curiosity. Day 2 Momentum. Day 3 Overwhelm.
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What a Multi-Day Conference Taught Me About Live Embroidery, Customer Behavior, and Letting People Watch
When I signed up to vend at a multi-day conference in Charlotte, I expected sales.
What I didn’t expect was how differently people behave over multiple days.
By the end of the weekend, I realized something important:
People don’t immediately buy live embroidery.
First, they watch it.
And honestly? That realization completely changed how I think about conference vending.
Day 1: Questions, Conversations… and Zero Sales
The first day started with nearly three hours of load-in and setup.
Tables.
Machines.
Thread.
Extension cords.
Displays.
Testing.
Troubleshooting.
Re-arranging things after realizing I forgot something important five minutes earlier.
By the time I was fully set up, I only had about two hours left before the conference wrapped for the evening.
And during those two hours?
A LOT of conversations happened.
People stopped constantly to watch the embroidery machine run.
They asked questions about the process.
About the business.
About the machine itself.
About how long embroidery takes.
About whether I could personalize things they already owned.
I handed out cards all evening.
But I didn’t make a single sale.
Not one.
And honestly?
I was nervous.
Because while people seemed curious, they didn’t necessarily seem interested in buying anything yet.
At least… that’s what I thought.
Looking back now, I think a lot of those attendees were just observing first.
Studying the booth.
Watching the quality.
Trying to understand the process.
Mentally saving the idea for later.
It was less “no interest” and more “legal conference poker face.”
Day 2: The Conversations Changed Completely
On the second day, I brought out more of my Divine 9 products.
And suddenly the conversations changed.
People started recognizing organizations.
Colors.
Lettering.
Cultural references.
The booth became more personal.
Orders started trickling in throughout the day, and once the first few people purchased something, other attendees started viewing the booth differently too.
One of my favorite projects from Day 2 was an authentic Kendrick Lamar team hoodie.
I handled that hoodie like museum artwork.
I gave it a full inspection before even deciding where to stitch.
The original typography and color palette were so intentional that I wanted the personalization to feel like it had always belonged there.
So I carefully matched the font style and color to embroider her name onto the left chest.
When she saw the finished hoodie, she loved it.
And honestly, I think she was right:
the hoodie somehow became even more rare, more personal, and more permanent than it already was.
I also made an incredibly cute purple towel featuring a monkey design and monogram for one attendee’s daughter.
That towel reminded me how special personalized items feel when they’re made for kids.
When I was younger, some of my favorite things were personalized because they felt like they were truly mine.
I hope that little girl feels the same way when she sees her towel.
Day 3: The Floodgates Opened
By Day 3, everything changed.
The floodgates opened and the water came pouring in.
I was busy almost immediately after the conference started that morning.
People who had watched the machine earlier in the week came back ready to order.
Some brought friends.
Some brought gifts.
Some brought jackets, towels, bags, and ideas they’d been thinking about overnight.
By the afternoon, I was completely overwhelmed in the best possible way.
At one point, I had to start asking people to come back later because I physically couldn’t keep up with the order queue.
And that’s when I fully understood something about live embroidery at conferences:
The booth is not just a storefront.
It’s a demonstration space.
People need time to experience it before they buy.
The Night Shift Nobody Saw
Even after attendees left, the work didn’t stop.
I stayed until almost 8 PM finishing orders and organizing pickups because some attendees were leaving early the next morning.
I wanted every completed order waiting for them before they left Charlotte.
I also wanted to clear my entire docket so I could start fresh the next day.
That evening, I created one of my favorite pieces of the weekend:
a “Pro Bono Hero” raffle blanket stitched in purple, white, and silver thread on a teal blanket with strong Charlotte Hornets energy.
I also personalized the opposite corner to make it feel even more custom and gift-worthy.
But the final order of the night was probably the one that stayed with me the most.
A hotel employee asked me to personalize an incredibly soft Winnie the Pooh baby blanket.
I stitched the baby’s name in an elegant satin gold script font.
The next day, when I handed it to her, she could barely stop looking at it.
I only charged her $15, but she handed me a $20 bill and told me to keep the change.
Then she explained that she couldn’t attend the baby shower because she had to work.
But she absolutely planned on being there once the baby was born.
And the way she looked at that blanket told me everything I needed to know.
That baby is going to be warm.
That baby is going to be loved.
And somehow, through a little thread and fabric, I became a tiny part of that future memory.
That’s a very special feeling.
The Souvenir Towels That Made Me Feel Like Santa Claus
That same evening, I also finished:
- a pink Panda towel
- an army green Zelda Triforce towel
- several personalized keepsakes
And honestly, making personalized items for kids feels different than making products for adults.
There’s something magical about creating an object that might become part of somebody’s childhood memories.
Sometimes I feel a little bit like Santa Claus while doing this work.
Not because I’m giving things away — but because I get to quietly contribute to moments people will remember long after the conference ends.
Day 4: The Soft Landing
Day 4 was much shorter.
Only a few hours.
It mostly became a cleanup day for all the “I’ve been thinking about it…” customers.
The curious attendees from earlier in the conference finally came back to place their orders before leaving town.
That morning I:
- personalized Hazel’s vest on both sides
- created Colonel’s cape-style dog bandana
- made a custom rainbow-thread inside-joke shirt for DeeDee that she absolutely loved
She even asked me to take photos of her wearing it because she was so excited about how it came out.
That moment felt like the perfect ending to the weekend.
Not because of the sale itself.
But because by that point, the booth no longer felt like a vendor table.
It felt like part of the conference experience.
What I Learned From the Entire Weekend
The biggest lesson I learned is this:
People need time.
Time to watch.
Time to trust.
Time to imagine themselves owning something personalized.
Live embroidery is different from traditional retail because the process itself becomes part of the product experience.
The machine attracts people.
The stitching builds curiosity.
The waiting creates anticipation.
And the personalization creates emotional attachment.
By the end of the conference, I realized I wasn’t just selling embroidered products.
I was helping people turn moments into keepsakes.
And that’s a completely different kind of business than I thought I was building.