Who runs the group?
Group Promoter
Founded group in 2015 at Marktplatz Mall. |
Group Co-Promoter
Joined group in early 2016 as a Co-Promoter & New Ulm Representitive. |
First, a little about me. James.
I've had a lot of people ask me why I do this since I never take part in the shows myself with my business and gain nothing from it. I can never give a straight answer. I think for the most part I simply enjoy it. Some think this all started for me when I was in the Mall here in New Ulm, it did not. This all started for me when I was in Arlington, MN. The first "deal" I did was Halloween in Arlington. I wanted to do something fun for the town so I tried to get the chamber of commerce to host a Halloween Trick-or-Treat event down Main Street. At that time, they wanted nothing to do with it, so I proceeded without them. Decorating the store, getting TONS of candy, we had over 400 people walk in and get scared! It was a great evening to say the least! After seeing what took place, the chamber wanted a piece of the action now. So the following year we started Fright Night in Arlington! All the businesses on Main Street got involved and the businesses off main street came in and setup as well! We did a Haunted Alley which was great and a few other stores decorated as well. It was a BLAST! And even thou I am not in Arlington anymore, Fright Night stills takes place every year. The next thing I did in Arlington was Town & Country days. A lot of tension was created during this event with me as the President due to a large raffle we wanted to do, but we got the funds and ended up having the biggest profit year for the Chamber ever! Of course, the following year T&C Days was completely destroyed by the new President and now no longer takes place. Sad.
After that I came to New Ulm to the Mall, I saw the amount of traffic New Ulm had during it's OktoberFest my first year here. The following year, I decided it would be really neat to have a Craft & Vendor show during OktoberFest. Not having clue what I was doing, I managed to get together 30+, lined them all in the halls and we had a blast! The nice thing about that was the GM from Herbergers came to me and said "I have never seen this many people in the Mall before!" And we've been going ever since.
Misfit Crafters thou technically only formed at the end of 2017 has been around putting together events since 2015. We started our Facebook page on Nov. 27 2017 which officially named us who we are today.
With the help of Heather Ellanson, her husband and even her 2 kids we have worked over the past several years to keep our shows going.
We also get help from some crafters/vendors who love being part of the group. It is of course because of all of them that we keep going.
We are not registered a nonprofit however we operate as not-for-profit. All funds that come into the group from events get used for events. With paying for rental space as well as advertising and the purchasing of items for our Spring Fling and our big show Holly Days, every penny we bring in is needed to make sure we can do what we want for these events while keeping the costs to all crafters & vendors low.
And with our recently added HotDog Roller machine (just like they use at the gas station) we will be bringing in nonprofit groups during our outdoor events to raise money for that group via sales of hotdogs.
We have recently decided to change what we are called to Misfit Crafters. With all the great Crafters & Vendors that join us every year and all the fun we have during out events and even after, we have become a group of vendors that are like family. A bunch of misfits getting together once a month to cause some fun!
Our Vision:
The Vision of the Misfit Crafters aims to provide local, fun, and family-friendly events for our community. The misfit crafters group strives to provide the community with opportunities to support local families and small business owners while simultaneously providing services and events for the community that help to shape who we are as a whole. Through events in our community the misfit crafters group hopes that families are able to get involved in the community and engage with their neighbors to build and sustain a healthy foundation for our beautiful city. About our Events: Every event includes exciting vendors, delicious treats, and wonderful relationships to be cultivated. Many vendors that participate in our events give back to our local community, and all members are residents of New Ulm and the surrounding area! Events are free of charge to the public and open to all who would like to attend.
I've had a lot of people ask me why I do this since I never take part in the shows myself with my business and gain nothing from it. I can never give a straight answer. I think for the most part I simply enjoy it. Some think this all started for me when I was in the Mall here in New Ulm, it did not. This all started for me when I was in Arlington, MN. The first "deal" I did was Halloween in Arlington. I wanted to do something fun for the town so I tried to get the chamber of commerce to host a Halloween Trick-or-Treat event down Main Street. At that time, they wanted nothing to do with it, so I proceeded without them. Decorating the store, getting TONS of candy, we had over 400 people walk in and get scared! It was a great evening to say the least! After seeing what took place, the chamber wanted a piece of the action now. So the following year we started Fright Night in Arlington! All the businesses on Main Street got involved and the businesses off main street came in and setup as well! We did a Haunted Alley which was great and a few other stores decorated as well. It was a BLAST! And even thou I am not in Arlington anymore, Fright Night stills takes place every year. The next thing I did in Arlington was Town & Country days. A lot of tension was created during this event with me as the President due to a large raffle we wanted to do, but we got the funds and ended up having the biggest profit year for the Chamber ever! Of course, the following year T&C Days was completely destroyed by the new President and now no longer takes place. Sad.
After that I came to New Ulm to the Mall, I saw the amount of traffic New Ulm had during it's OktoberFest my first year here. The following year, I decided it would be really neat to have a Craft & Vendor show during OktoberFest. Not having clue what I was doing, I managed to get together 30+, lined them all in the halls and we had a blast! The nice thing about that was the GM from Herbergers came to me and said "I have never seen this many people in the Mall before!" And we've been going ever since.
Misfit Crafters thou technically only formed at the end of 2017 has been around putting together events since 2015. We started our Facebook page on Nov. 27 2017 which officially named us who we are today.
With the help of Heather Ellanson, her husband and even her 2 kids we have worked over the past several years to keep our shows going.
We also get help from some crafters/vendors who love being part of the group. It is of course because of all of them that we keep going.
We are not registered a nonprofit however we operate as not-for-profit. All funds that come into the group from events get used for events. With paying for rental space as well as advertising and the purchasing of items for our Spring Fling and our big show Holly Days, every penny we bring in is needed to make sure we can do what we want for these events while keeping the costs to all crafters & vendors low.
And with our recently added HotDog Roller machine (just like they use at the gas station) we will be bringing in nonprofit groups during our outdoor events to raise money for that group via sales of hotdogs.
We have recently decided to change what we are called to Misfit Crafters. With all the great Crafters & Vendors that join us every year and all the fun we have during out events and even after, we have become a group of vendors that are like family. A bunch of misfits getting together once a month to cause some fun!
Our Vision:
The Vision of the Misfit Crafters aims to provide local, fun, and family-friendly events for our community. The misfit crafters group strives to provide the community with opportunities to support local families and small business owners while simultaneously providing services and events for the community that help to shape who we are as a whole. Through events in our community the misfit crafters group hopes that families are able to get involved in the community and engage with their neighbors to build and sustain a healthy foundation for our beautiful city. About our Events: Every event includes exciting vendors, delicious treats, and wonderful relationships to be cultivated. Many vendors that participate in our events give back to our local community, and all members are residents of New Ulm and the surrounding area! Events are free of charge to the public and open to all who would like to attend.
