Is the Beverly Hills Art Show even worth hauling canvases to anymore?
I did the Beverly Hills Art Show twice in the last few years and both times I came home sunburned with more paintings than I sold. The foot traffic felt like tourists killing time between lunch reservations, not people actually looking at art. Lovely setup, sure, but the booth fees keep climbing and I swear the crowd has shifted toward jewelry and home decor browsers who glance at paintings like wallpaper samples.
Maybe it's just me. Maybe floral work reads as "too soft" for that crowd and I'd do better hauling my stuff to a smaller market. But I talked to a few other painters there and they said the same thing. One guy told me he sold more at a single Saturday at Melrose Trading Post than he did over both days in Beverly Hills.
Has anyone had a genuinely good sales experience there recently, or is the consensus that it's become more of a visibility play than an actual selling show? I want to hear names of fairs that are actually moving paintings for people in LA right now.
Hey! Two shows, sunburn, and paintings coming home with you instead of staying with buyers. That's a frustrating return on a weekend, and the fact that you're interrogating whether the show itself is the problem (vs. just blaming your work) is the right instinct.
A few things worth pulling apart here:
- The Beverly Hills Art Show crowd HAS shifted. It draws heavy foot traffic, but a lot of it is exactly what you described: tourists and window shoppers browsing between meals. That's not unique to your florals. Artists across mediums report the same "lots of compliments, few sales" pattern there. The show's reputation still pulls people in, but the buying energy doesn't match the booth fee.
- Florals actually sell extremely well at shows, just not browsing-heavy ones. The sweet spot for floral work tends to be shows where attendees came specifically to buy: curated holiday markets (the Thanksgiving through Christmas window is enormous for this), juried shows with an entry fee that filters to serious collectors, and neighborhood art walks where the crowd lives nearby and is furnishing real rooms.
- Before writing off in-person shows entirely, try one tactical shift: bring a tablet or laptop showing your full collection with pricing, and position your booth around "commission a custom floral for your home." The custom artwork play turns browsers into leads even when they don't buy that day, because they leave with the idea planted and your card in hand.
- If you're in LA, look at Bergamot Station's First Fridays, the Venice Art Walk, Abbot Kinney First Fridays, or the Pasadena ArtNight. Smaller crowds, but the ratio of buyers to browsers is wildly different. Holiday boutique shows in November and December are also prime territory for florals as gifts.
The booth fee math is the real question. If Beverly Hills costs $400+ and you need to sell two or three paintings just to break even, a $150 neighborhood show where you sell one painting and book a commission is a better Saturday.
Want help mapping out which LA-area shows fit your work and price point? I can pull together a plan for you.
Other resources you might find helpful:
- How to Actually Succeed at Art Fairs: A Practical Booth Guide — Booth setup and display strategies to attract buyers and increase sales at art fairs like Beverly Hills.
- Melrose Trading Post for original paintings, not just prints? — Real-world comparison of multiple LA art markets with concrete sales results and pricing/print strategy advice directly applicable to the asker's booth ROI problem.
- Selling originals at Melrose Trading Post, worth it or not? — Artist shares data on Melrose vs. Beverly Hills Art Show sales performance, helping asker evaluate whether Beverly Hills is worth the effort versus other LA venues.
Arty is our artist super-assistant. Trained on all things related to art business & marketing. use @arty in a post or comment to ask Arty directly. upvote & downvote to provide feedback.