It is common for maid cafes to have separate entry fees. I've been to a handful of them at various cons. This is usually to curb the crowds. Sometimes it covers food/drinks, sometimes it doesn't. A lower entry fee usually means that food isn't covered where a higher one would suggest it does. They will usually tell you up front, though. Hope that helps :)
Hi, I stopped by your table with bird stickers! The rest of the con was absolute *clownshoes*-- no joke, roughly 40% of the vendors were either packing up or gone roughly 2-3 hours before the event was supposed to close. I had no idea they were turning attendees away at the door for lack of vaccination cards; it's absolutely crazy that they'd do that in 2024 omg. I was really looking forward to this con because my friend who I was vending with said that last year's show was really good, but this vaccination card policy for the attendees was new and???? like why?????? Anyway, I really enjoyed meeting you and hearing your take in this vlog! Being brand-new to artist alley, your videos have all been really valuable resources and I really appreciate what you do 🙏
You are very correct. If you had stayed the weekend it would have been a huge waste of time because sunday did not improve one bit xD. I stuck out for the whole show only cuz I was local local but in the end everyone was packed and ready to leave before the show even ended on sunday. Saved yourself a lot of pain by leaving early.
I did Yumecon last year (not this year because I was on a trip) and last year it went ok! It wasn't amazing sales but it was fine for a 1-day show. The venue they chose, the size of their artist alley, and the length of the event all felt very reasonable for the size of the event. I was really hoping that Yumecon would slowly grow over the years to become a bigger and more reputable local show so I was really disappointed to hear how poorly it went this year from other artists. I will say that I was very alarmed when Yumecon announced it would become a 2-day show and that table prices would more than double because it felt like they were trying to expand faster than they were growing (they only had 1K attendees last year). Looking back now, it definitely felt like an early warning sign and I will be watching for similar kinds decisions in the future when researching cons.
Went to Yume con as a guest last year and this year. It was cute last year, but the vibe was a little different this year lol. No idea why they made it 2 days this year. Bought some things from the artist alley both years of course, but I could tell this year it was quite slow. My guess is that the drama with Fanime (another albeit much much larger San Jose con) this past year made them think they'd have more crowds since people might avoid Fanime and go to their con instead?? Drama aside, Fanime was super popping this year lol. Hosted a great panel and got tons of good art and merch deals, and so so much to do. Yume just doesn't have enough of a draw. Also, just a guess on my part, is that the Yume con folks were hard asses about covid vaccines and masking because there was drama with Fanime ditching their masking policy before the con but after people bought tickets, meaning immunocompromised people would be at risk... even though Fanime is so jam packed even with masks you'd be running a risk imo. Just conjecture on my part. My friend and I ran out of things to do, so we went home midday and popped back for the Yaoi Trick or Treat panel which was super fun lol. But yeah... feel bad for the artists. Not sure if I want to go next year lol
That totally makes sense! I couldn’t help but compare it to Fanime in the sense that it’s the only other show I know of that still has a strict Covid policy, but that was where the comparison ended for me 😂 They had me thinking it was a San Jose thing to push the policy, though all the other shows we do there don’t have one. It’s really sad to know the vibe shift was felt so much by everyone, but at least it makes us vendors feel less crazy
I'm glad you made this vlog because this show was on my 'maybe' list for 2025 That kind of slowness is not worth the time and expense of traveling to a convention. (Also, doubling table cost because of an extra day??)
I couldn't watch the rest of the video because I was put off by the masks. Was that actually happening with checking vaccine cards? I wonder what it's like to sit and wear a mask like that and rebreathe your own hot breath all day. Did they do this voluntarily or did the convention force this. I just feel sad for people still doing this to themselves. Sometimes I see people alone in their cars driving with masks on and feel sick about them torturing themselves.
As someone who was also vending at the con I can't help but agree with your points. I feel like this con has potential but with all of the missteps ...oof.
Sorry to hear this one didn't go well! I heard of this con for the first time last year so I volunteered in order to check it out since volunteers got a free badge. It was low energy and low attendance last year too even as a one day event so it was maybe not such a good idea to make it 2 days yet. I still think it's a good first con for newbies to get some EXP but with the table price, only if they split a table with another artist. Hope to see you at the holiday fair! :D
I applied to table for this convention but good thing I changed my mind. I live in Hawaii (although my family lives in San Jose) so it would’ve been very wasteful if I went there. Thank you for your insight! Hopefully they improve through the years if they still want to continue with this event.
I'm based in Germany and entry to maid cafés here are always included in the ticket price. But if you go and order food and/or drinks, you have to pay for them separately. Also I've had my fair share of bad conventions and sometimes wished leaving early was an option, but it's rather difficult logistically.
Love your videos, just starting vending myself and absolutely loved it. Do you have a video about how to gauge success in this? Especially for first time vendors
Cons are getting more and more audacious with charging up the wahzoo for very mid or poorly ran shows. Thank you for posting this video because shows need to be held accountable for this.
It is common for maid cafes to have separate entry fees. I've been to a handful of them at various cons. This is usually to curb the crowds. Sometimes it covers food/drinks, sometimes it doesn't. A lower entry fee usually means that food isn't covered where a higher one would suggest it does. They will usually tell you up front, though. Hope that helps :)
+1 you almost always have to pay a fee to get into maid cafes
Thanks for sharing! I love the transparency :)
Hi, I stopped by your table with bird stickers! The rest of the con was absolute *clownshoes*-- no joke, roughly 40% of the vendors were either packing up or gone roughly 2-3 hours before the event was supposed to close. I had no idea they were turning attendees away at the door for lack of vaccination cards; it's absolutely crazy that they'd do that in 2024 omg. I was really looking forward to this con because my friend who I was vending with said that last year's show was really good, but this vaccination card policy for the attendees was new and???? like why??????
Anyway, I really enjoyed meeting you and hearing your take in this vlog! Being brand-new to artist alley, your videos have all been really valuable resources and I really appreciate what you do 🙏
You are very correct. If you had stayed the weekend it would have been a huge waste of time because sunday did not improve one bit xD. I stuck out for the whole show only cuz I was local local but in the end everyone was packed and ready to leave before the show even ended on sunday. Saved yourself a lot of pain by leaving early.
I did Yumecon last year (not this year because I was on a trip) and last year it went ok! It wasn't amazing sales but it was fine for a 1-day show. The venue they chose, the size of their artist alley, and the length of the event all felt very reasonable for the size of the event. I was really hoping that Yumecon would slowly grow over the years to become a bigger and more reputable local show so I was really disappointed to hear how poorly it went this year from other artists.
I will say that I was very alarmed when Yumecon announced it would become a 2-day show and that table prices would more than double because it felt like they were trying to expand faster than they were growing (they only had 1K attendees last year). Looking back now, it definitely felt like an early warning sign and I will be watching for similar kinds decisions in the future when researching cons.
Went to Yume con as a guest last year and this year. It was cute last year, but the vibe was a little different this year lol. No idea why they made it 2 days this year. Bought some things from the artist alley both years of course, but I could tell this year it was quite slow.
My guess is that the drama with Fanime (another albeit much much larger San Jose con) this past year made them think they'd have more crowds since people might avoid Fanime and go to their con instead?? Drama aside, Fanime was super popping this year lol. Hosted a great panel and got tons of good art and merch deals, and so so much to do. Yume just doesn't have enough of a draw.
Also, just a guess on my part, is that the Yume con folks were hard asses about covid vaccines and masking because there was drama with Fanime ditching their masking policy before the con but after people bought tickets, meaning immunocompromised people would be at risk... even though Fanime is so jam packed even with masks you'd be running a risk imo.
Just conjecture on my part.
My friend and I ran out of things to do, so we went home midday and popped back for the Yaoi Trick or Treat panel which was super fun lol. But yeah... feel bad for the artists. Not sure if I want to go next year lol
That totally makes sense! I couldn’t help but compare it to Fanime in the sense that it’s the only other show I know of that still has a strict Covid policy, but that was where the comparison ended for me 😂 They had me thinking it was a San Jose thing to push the policy, though all the other shows we do there don’t have one. It’s really sad to know the vibe shift was felt so much by everyone, but at least it makes us vendors feel less crazy
I'm glad you made this vlog because this show was on my 'maybe' list for 2025
That kind of slowness is not worth the time and expense of traveling to a convention. (Also, doubling table cost because of an extra day??)
I didn’t know anyone was still checking Covid cards or requiring masks! I thought this was old video at first 😅
I know right?? That was 2021/22 ish. Were in …. 2024. Like. No one requires the cards anymore.
I couldn't watch the rest of the video because I was put off by the masks. Was that actually happening with checking vaccine cards? I wonder what it's like to sit and wear a mask like that and rebreathe your own hot breath all day. Did they do this voluntarily or did the convention force this. I just feel sad for people still doing this to themselves. Sometimes I see people alone in their cars driving with masks on and feel sick about them torturing themselves.
As someone who was also vending at the con I can't help but agree with your points. I feel like this con has potential but with all of the missteps ...oof.
Sorry to hear this one didn't go well! I heard of this con for the first time last year so I volunteered in order to check it out since volunteers got a free badge. It was low energy and low attendance last year too even as a one day event so it was maybe not such a good idea to make it 2 days yet. I still think it's a good first con for newbies to get some EXP but with the table price, only if they split a table with another artist. Hope to see you at the holiday fair! :D
I applied to table for this convention but good thing I changed my mind. I live in Hawaii (although my family lives in San Jose) so it would’ve been very wasteful if I went there. Thank you for your insight! Hopefully they improve through the years if they still want to continue with this event.
I'm based in Germany and entry to maid cafés here are always included in the ticket price. But if you go and order food and/or drinks, you have to pay for them separately.
Also I've had my fair share of bad conventions and sometimes wished leaving early was an option, but it's rather difficult logistically.
Love your videos, just starting vending myself and absolutely loved it. Do you have a video about how to gauge success in this? Especially for first time vendors
Are you going back to FanExpo in the Bay area this year?
do you have a link to the artist alley discord mentioned in the video?
What is the display item you have the sticker sheets on? I think that it is wood with a clear front
Cons are getting more and more audacious with charging up the wahzoo for very mid or poorly ran shows. Thank you for posting this video because shows need to be held accountable for this.
says on their site the tables were 175, cheaper than some of the cons ive watched..some are thrice that..and the guests are unknown to me either lol
That con has let down its vendors so badly omg.
They gave you snacks?! I didnt get anything
This sounds awful, hope your next one goes a lot better ☺☺
vaccine cards and masks in 2024?
We still try to mask whenever possible (just to prevent getting sick with anything), but requiring vaccine cards was really wild