What is a Trunk Show?

Trunk available at Caribou Creek 

According to Wikipedia, a trunk show is " a special sale in which vendors present merchandise directly to store personnel or select customers at a retail location or another unique venue. In many cases it allows store personnel to preview and/or purchase merchandise before it is made available to the public. It is particularly desirable to have the actual designer present at the event. Most small businesses do this to get more buys. Trunk Shows are particularly popular in the bridal industry. January through May is Trunk Show season. Brides can view a larger selection of a bridal designer's collection than is normally carried in a bridal salon. Trunk shows got their name from the way dresses used to be transported to these events--in trunks."

As a designer, this is one of my favorite ways of showing my collections.  I get to spend a lot of time with customers and usually end up coming home with new ideas and inspiration for new work.  How does it work? Here is an example...

Typically, a customer will pick out a time and date and invite a bunch of friends.  In the past, my hosts have held "trunk show happy hours" where the host offers wine and hors d'oeuvres.  Although I don't show up with an actual trunk, I do show up a half hour early to set up a few trays of jewelry.  It's that easy.  The host gets to pick out a free piece of jewelry and gets a discount on all of her purchases.  All of the guests have a great time... eating, drinking, and trying on jewelry!  There's no hard sell, there's no minimum purchase, just drinks, friends, jewelry, and good times!