There are literally thousands of vendors who descend upon Tucson each winter, selling their beads, gemstones and anything jewelry-related. Each year we have helped students and instructors find their ways to the best shows in Tucson. We are going to continue our tradition and serve as concierge this year to help you find the best-suited vendors for you and your specific needs and desires. We will help you find transportation to-and-from your destination, and give you our advice on what to buy and how to buy it.
There are many retail tents that sell to the general public, and there are several that are wholesale only; serving those customers who are either jewelry designers or buying for a storefront. Our recommendation is that you frequent the wholesale tents, because they have somewhat better pricing and quality than the retail tents. Additionally, they are usually less crowded, and you’ll be able to interact better with the dealers who are selling their products. To gain entrance into the wholesale tents, you will need to produce a wholesale license for registration. This would consist of either a resale license from your state or an employer identification number.
If you are venturing out on your own, this is a terrific website that shows the major shows, links to their websites and maps to the venues (click here).
Contact either of us, and we can give you many more pointers about where to shop, how to get there, what you’ll need to take with you, etc. We can even help with recommendations for lunch or dinner in the area of your shopping spree – there are lots of good choices in Tucson!
We hope this information helps you! If you’ve never been before, you are in for a treat. If you are a seasoned shopper, you can leave comments on this post that may be beneficial to others. You will have to come ready to practice restraint for certain. The one comment we hear over and over again is that there is too much merchandise and not enough money to go around!
Happy trails to you!
Barb and Erin