Hi everyone! I hope everyone is doing great and being productive at the beginning of this new year! As you may or may not know, Neomai Vintage started participating in markets in the Houston area last August, and we love doing them SO MUCH. It is so much fun to be able to sell to people face-to-face. Seeing people love our items and take them home with them is just so rewarding. So, as we are trying to do at least 3-4 markets a month, I want to do a little "recap" or "debrief" of each market to talk about fun or interesting interactions we have with you all while we’re there! So here goes our first recap!

 The day started out as a very humid and muggy Sunday morning. The Montrose Market had been delayed due to heavy rain in the morning, so we arrived to set up at 11:30 instead of 9:30. All the vendors were very quiet and sweaty as we set up our tents, many of us with cringes on our faces because the humidity was just that gross.

It seemed as if as soon as we all finished setting up, the humidity started to drift away. Gotta love Houston's weather.

 As soon as we finished setting up around 12:30, we already had people walking around to see what they could get first grabs on. This one guy came up to us, he was super nice and he complimented our curated selection. He said he owns/works at a vintage store close by, and he asked if we had any interest in doing a pop-up in their store. I said, "Absolutely! Oh my GOSH, that would be awesome!" I was screaming on the inside. It was a nice moment where the world and this guy proved to me that my hard work was paying off and that it wasn’t going unnoticed.

 Later, a group of friends came In and they were all so happy and giddy that it was contagious. Each of them got some adorable $5 items that seemed to fit each of their individual personalities perfectly. They were hyping each other to spend the money when one of them questioned the amount of broke they were, and when I told them they could save $3 if they followed our Instagram, they all happy screamed and said, "Ayyy!" and the sale went through. Their energy was amazing and was a great way to start the day.

 A woman came in because she was instantly drawn to a beautiful vintage 70s brown purse that was hung up in the middle of our booth. She inspected it for a second, asked how much it was, and immediately was like, "I’ll take it." When she came up to our table, I saw she was wearing an awesome green and blue swirl 70s style purse as well, and I asked her if she was collecting them. She said she wanted to start because she loves them. I love it when someone buys something that just fits their personality so well. A lot of times, it’s frustrating for us at the table when we see someone looking at a piece that looks PERFECT on them, like it was MADE for them, but then whoever they are with talks them out of it. We’re at the table like, "NOOO, listen to your heart!!!"

 At one point, I was doing something on my phone and when I looked up, I saw this guy, and I immediately loved his outfit with this beige oversize jacket, and then I realized he was trying on one of our own jackets. I told him out loud, "that looks really good on you! I thought that was yours! ", and he agreed and bought it.

 A cute couple came in and the girlfriend was drawn to this green and dark brown leather Dooney and Bourke purse. The boyfriend agreed with her that it fit her and her style very well, and they came up to purchase it. The boyfriend went to pay first, and the girlfriend tried to tell him that she'd just pay cash. The boyfriend said, "No way, I’m buying this for you, they’re literally your colors." I was thinking that girl better wife that man up right now because he’s a keeper. He was so sweet. A 10/10 couple.

 Around 1:30, the weather had turned into a very unexpectedly beautiful day. That meant more and more people were coming out to shop, and within the first 2 hours we were progressing along better than we probably ever have. It was high fives all around every 10 minutes.

 This one guy didn’t say a word, he just nodded and smiled a goofy little smile that reminded me of Mr. Bean. When we completed his transaction, he just pointed and smiled towards our sticker bin, asking with his finger whether he could take one. We all smiled and said, "Yep, they’re free!" What a cute, goofy guy. I miss him.

 By the end of the market day, it was around 55 degrees, and we were all getting very cold. We started taking everything down around 6:40 and made a last-minute sale like we always do. It was a very quick dismantle, and we were all happy to be in our cars on the way home with the heaters blasting. It was a really good market day, and I sincerely appreciate everyone that comes out and shops with us. It just melts my heart when someone says, "Oh yeah, I’ve bought from you before!" I love that we’re starting to create a sense of community around Neomai Vintage, and I’m just so excited about what’s to come.

 Have a wonderful, beautiful day, and we’ll see you at this weekend’s Montrose Market!

January 11th, 2022