Was a great day out, great to see some of the friendly faces again. The venue was awesome, clean maybe a little overcrowded but for me it added to the vibe which was awesome. Some of the specials were insane and well worth the visit, I ended up with a load of stuff I had no intention of buying. There were lots of flyers with specials that made bargain hunting a lot easier, not to mention the very pretty girls that were handing them out. Thank you to all involved for making it what it was.
Now the cons and some unqualified suggestions and please see this as constructive criticism and not a bitching session as regardless of the few problems mainly due to an unexpected large turnout I had a great day.
I hate ques, The attendance was much more than expected and EVERTHING had ques.
Pre-paid tickets were a big fail. Stood in a que for ages only to see people walk up to the cash entrance and straight in. However everyone was friendly and when i finally got to the front I was met with smiles and made to feel very welcome. Thank you.
We spent a fortune on Uber rides and the Gautrain so we could relax and have a few beers without the fear of drinking and driving. The pub had a very poor selection to offer and they ended up running out of beer at 12 O clock. Had to wait whilst new stock arrived and then only Heineken (the worst beer in the world) was available. The expense and effort of being responsible was a waste, could of driven there in half the time and a fraction of the expense. Oh and lets not forget about the price, R80 for 3 beers in a plastic cup is over the top, it wasn't a 5 star restaurant so why charge 5 star restaurant prices? I dont think the expectation of getting a cold castle or Hansa is unreasonable but I suppose at the end of the day I have to appreciate that it is VAPEcon not pubcon (why cant the news Cafe be 10 time bigger). Thank you for the effort I did manage to get 2 x black labels and they were cold and lovely.
After leaving home at 6:30am without breakfast by lunch time we were starving. 1 food vendor with a 45min que that we refused to stand in reluctantly sent us home early. On the plus side, we ended up at a restaurant and I had the best prawn pasta I have ever had, maybe because I was so hungry, lol.
All of the vendors were under huge pressure, some handled it well (very well done) however some were less prepared i.e. had stock but couldn't find it, didn't know pricing etc. after standing in a que for 15mins waiting to be attended to and then being told we have stock but I dont know where it is is rather frustrating and it happened at more than 1 vendor.
I would also suggest in future that vendors have more than 1 card machine. waiting in a que to be served was unavoidable but to then wait in a 2nd que to pay could have been prepared for a little better and prevented.
Most display cases were a waste as they were mainly the serving tables and were swamped by customers which made it very difficult to browse. One of the vendors had a great display stand that was on the side of the serving area so you could browse/perv before you go to the serving table. Some stands were just space full of cardboard boxes and was impossible to browse. Maybe introduce a prize for the best stand by means of a customer vote?
Stock and price lists would also have been a good idea for many of the vendors. I was looking for specific items and had to wait in many ques to be told they didn't bring that stock with. They could even be made into order sheets which would improve the traffic flow through the stands.
Ventilation needs to be improved, even if just a few large fans to get some air movement.
At the end of the day there is always room for improvement and the good definitely out weighed the few hic-cups that were experienced. Well done to all the organisers, vendors and sponsors for a truly epic event.
Now the cons and some unqualified suggestions and please see this as constructive criticism and not a bitching session as regardless of the few problems mainly due to an unexpected large turnout I had a great day.
I hate ques, The attendance was much more than expected and EVERTHING had ques.
Pre-paid tickets were a big fail. Stood in a que for ages only to see people walk up to the cash entrance and straight in. However everyone was friendly and when i finally got to the front I was met with smiles and made to feel very welcome. Thank you.
We spent a fortune on Uber rides and the Gautrain so we could relax and have a few beers without the fear of drinking and driving. The pub had a very poor selection to offer and they ended up running out of beer at 12 O clock. Had to wait whilst new stock arrived and then only Heineken (the worst beer in the world) was available. The expense and effort of being responsible was a waste, could of driven there in half the time and a fraction of the expense. Oh and lets not forget about the price, R80 for 3 beers in a plastic cup is over the top, it wasn't a 5 star restaurant so why charge 5 star restaurant prices? I dont think the expectation of getting a cold castle or Hansa is unreasonable but I suppose at the end of the day I have to appreciate that it is VAPEcon not pubcon (why cant the news Cafe be 10 time bigger). Thank you for the effort I did manage to get 2 x black labels and they were cold and lovely.
After leaving home at 6:30am without breakfast by lunch time we were starving. 1 food vendor with a 45min que that we refused to stand in reluctantly sent us home early. On the plus side, we ended up at a restaurant and I had the best prawn pasta I have ever had, maybe because I was so hungry, lol.
All of the vendors were under huge pressure, some handled it well (very well done) however some were less prepared i.e. had stock but couldn't find it, didn't know pricing etc. after standing in a que for 15mins waiting to be attended to and then being told we have stock but I dont know where it is is rather frustrating and it happened at more than 1 vendor.
I would also suggest in future that vendors have more than 1 card machine. waiting in a que to be served was unavoidable but to then wait in a 2nd que to pay could have been prepared for a little better and prevented.
Most display cases were a waste as they were mainly the serving tables and were swamped by customers which made it very difficult to browse. One of the vendors had a great display stand that was on the side of the serving area so you could browse/perv before you go to the serving table. Some stands were just space full of cardboard boxes and was impossible to browse. Maybe introduce a prize for the best stand by means of a customer vote?
Stock and price lists would also have been a good idea for many of the vendors. I was looking for specific items and had to wait in many ques to be told they didn't bring that stock with. They could even be made into order sheets which would improve the traffic flow through the stands.
Ventilation needs to be improved, even if just a few large fans to get some air movement.
At the end of the day there is always room for improvement and the good definitely out weighed the few hic-cups that were experienced. Well done to all the organisers, vendors and sponsors for a truly epic event.
