Since I enjoy seeing other creators takes on their convention experiences, here’s mine after vending a booth at NEW Gameapalooza in Oshkosh, Wisconsin (2025 Edition).
First up, I like Oshkosh. I went to college there and lived there for a few years after graduation. Some of my most foundational grown up memories happened there, so it was really great to be back for this con. I also treated this trip as an opportunity to hang out with some friends.
I also knew that that this con was going to be very small, so my expectations for making money where very low.
When I got to the con I saw that it was in fact very small. I was one of only 7 vendors in a room full of gaming tables. This is not the first con that I’ve been to that was this small though. I’d say it was likely the size of Fear the Con and maybe a bit smaller than Plattecon.
Comparing it to those cons, sales were higher than Plattecon, probably because Plattecon was almost all broke college kids, but also at that time I didn’t have many games to sell. Sales were lower at Gameapalooza than Fear the Con, because Fear the Con is way more table top role playing games focused and they had a dedicated Savage Worlds fan base.
So yeah, Gameapalooza is very, very boardgame focused, which would be great if I had a board game, but I do not (yet).
Despite low sales, I was able to cover the cost of my hotel and a little extra, so that was good.
The staff that I talked to were super nice and helpful. The other vendors were also great and hopefully I get to see some of them at future conventions. And I also had some great conversations with people that came to the booth.
Future Improvements
While not directly related to Gameapalooza, I do need to make some improvements for cons in general.
First up, I gotta make sure that my tablecloths aren’t all wrinkly before I leave the house. I really disliked that there were wrinkles and folds and there wasn’t much I could do about it.
I also need more signage. Right now the only sign I have an enormous Street Wolves banner that’s annoying to put up and should be reserved for big cons. I really want to get a Table Cat Games table runner that kinda sits in the middle of the table and I also need one or two retractable banners that are smaller in nature and easier for me to handle by myself.
The reason why I haven’t gotten them yet is money. Table Cat Games hasn’t done as well as last year (but still pretty good) so spending money isn’t something I’m keen on if it’s not 100% necessary. I just haven’t had enough conventions this year to make it worthwhile to buy that stuff. I’ll def have to get going on it soon though, because I have Midwinter con coming up in January of ’26.
Aside from that, I’m still suffering from not running games. While the attendees were all playing board games, I think it would have helped to have run a couple of demos of my role playing games. But again, I suffer from anxiety when running games for strangers… so I gotta figure something out with this.
Top Sellers:
1. Dice
2. My games
3. Other People’s Games
4. Gachapon
If I didn’t carry dice or other games, I’d have been slaughtered. I think that’s a real key if you’re going to a small convention where it’s not so much ttrpg focused and you don’t make D&D related items. Having something that appeals to people besides your thing really helps if you want to make money. If you want to just show off your stuff and market yourself, then they’re not necessary.
Anyway, speaking of dice I carry two brands of them now. One brand has $10 and $15 price points that used to sell really well. The other is 22 and they crush the original ones. It’s just so interesting to me that since I’ve gotten them, the other price point dice aren’t even really looked at any more. I don’t even know if I have to even bother bringing them to cons at this point.
As for my own games, I only sold one copy of Street Wolves the entire weekend. The guy that bought it also got Dead Hand and Turbo Dreams at the same time, so that was really cool. However, despite talking to some folks who knew what Savage Worlds was and actually are players of it, they did not buy it. *insert pacman dying sound*
The “big seller” was The Wicked King Forever Hungers. If I go to a convention, I know I’m selling a few copies of Forever King. It’s my old reliable. It’s got to be the lower price point and low commitment. It’s more of a one shot or couple session game. And it looks cool. It’s a great impulse con purchase.
As for other publisher’s games, I sold a copy of Delta Green and a couple of other books. As I publish more of my own stuff I’m going to eliminate this category, though I will likely always carry Delta Green since I like it so much.
And finally, I sold a few gacha from my gashapon machine. Not a ton of them, but enough to give me hope that if I go to a bigger con I could sell even more. The more I sell, the closer I get to paying for the machine. But also I really enjoy talking to people about gashapon and seeing which ones they pull out of the machine.
Making Good Use of my Time
In between long stretches of people coming to my booth I had some long talks with vendors that were great, but I also worked on testing an upcoming game I’m working on. Being in one place with not much else to do really gave me a bunch of hours to work on it, so that was nice.
Would I Vend at this Con Again?
The answer is a big maybe. I really liked the staff, the vendors, and the people I talked to. But sales were low. I guess I have to balance how much I expect to make, the time and energy used on the con and my costs to determine if I want to do it again. If I get to visit my friends again and maybe play a game or two instead of just hanging out at my booth, then it may be worth it.
If you happen to be a table top gaming creative (especially board games) or related to tabletop games in some manner and are a local to the Fox Valley area (Appleton, Oshkosh, Fond du Lac), I’d highly recommend NEW Gameapalooza. If you’d have virtually no travel costs it would be a real no brainer to try it out.
If you have to pay for a hotel and travel, it may not be worth it unless the con gets a little larger.