Event Recap: Southern Fried Gaming Expo 2025
TRANSPARENCYEVENT RECAP
Alright! My first year (of hopefully many) at Southern Fried Gaming Expo is behind me, so let's dish!
This was my first time at a convention that is gaming focused. I will say that I had anticipated it being a bit more Tabletop RPG focused than it ended up being. Not that there were not a lot of TTRPGs being played, it's just that the bulk of gaming seemed to be centered around pinball/arcade machines and board games. There was also a good chunk of indie computer game developers, amateur wrestling, podcast content, and a whole lot more. All in all, a nerdy wonderland.
Going into this I had anticipated my zines would be my top seller. That ended up not being the case (though I did sell a good number). Partly I think it was because folks were just really into my novels. But also I think I need to rethink how I display my games when I am at a more gaming centered space. I also need to get a few more games on the table (they are coming!).
A real highlight was getting to hang out with some of my favorites, like Joe Ard, Charles McFall, Tyra and Shane Burton. I also got to hang with Tim and Jenna, two of my absolute favs. Go check out their podcast Horse Girls. Seriously.
I have a few small thoughts.
I want to get some custom Hawaiian shirts. Like a good Bearded Bard Inkworks one.
I am thinking about ordering some table runners.
Paying attention to where folks eyes tend to fall tells me that my banners are getting a lot of eyes. And I wonder if there is something better to have there. Something cleaner, and easier to parse.
I need to start calculating my upper threshold math for each event. I know how many I pack of each when I pack, it would take two seconds to enter those numbers into a premade spreadsheet set to calculate how much money I could potentially make at any given event. Plus, it gives me an excuse to make a new spreadsheet.
Someone suggested I sell beard clips. I wonder how hard it would be to make a possum beard clip....
I got to demo a really great game called Trash Dash. I will be ordering a copy. My family is going to love it.
Someone was walking around as a redneck wizard. It made me laugh.
I had one panel. This con doesn't put a ton of emphasis on panels, as the focus is much more on actually playing.
Wise_N_Nerdy: Where Fatherhood Meets Fandom
Whenever Wise_N_Nerdy does a show at a convention, if I am there, I jump on as a guest. I love doing it so much, and I hope this tradition continues for many years to come.
I had no idea what to expect for this event sales-wise, it being my first gaming convention, and my first time at this event. While my TTPRG zines did not sell as well as I thought, my books more than made up for that. My expenses were higher for this event than normal, due to me running solo for the weekend and thus having to pay for my hotel, table, and parking by myself. But even with that, I still made well over 600 bucks in profit! That dog will hunt as my dad would say.
Omnibus 2 copies did not move this weekend (I sold 1), which was sort of odd considering that I came one sale short of selling out of Omnibus 1. Usually I would have sold 3-5ish. And same for Southern Saudade. I had a lot of lookers, but only one person actually picked up a copy.
I did not sell a Ultimate bundle, for the umpteenth con in a row. Since I have changed over to the hardback bundle, it just hasn't moved. So I am thinking I will no longer carry it to cons. It takes up way too much space to never actually sell. That will probably be something I just bring to cons when folks let me know they want to pick up a set for now, and within a year I plan to have a collectors edition omnibus 1 and 2, so it will be moot then anyway.
Anywho, here are the numbers:
Daily Sales Numbers:
Friday: 240.00
Saturday: $660.00
Sunday: $370.00
Total Sales Numbers By Item:
Bringing Home The Rain: 16
Omnibus 1: 17
Omnibus 2: 1
Southern Saudade: 1
Create Your Way To Freedom: 0
Zines: 21
Ultimate Bundle: 0
Total:
$1,250.00
Fixed Expenses:
Badge: 0.00
Booth Fee - $175.00
Parking - $74.00
Hotel - $342.00
Other - 0.00
Total - $591.00
Grand Total Profit: $659.00
