The Wine Festival at The Plains

DO NOT TRY TO PRINT THIS EXHIBIT KIT

I will upload a printable version for you here one week before the event.

THE WINE FESTIVAL AT THE PLAINS

AT GREAT MEADOW EQUESTRIAN CENTER

September 11-12, 2010

SATURDAY 11:00am – 6:00pm - SUNDAY - 11:00am-6:00pm

IT'S THE PERFECT PAIRING - Thank you so much for joining us to put on a spectacular culinary event, featuring Virginia Wines paired with gourmet cuisine, fine art, fancy foods and Polo in the gorgeous upscale venue of Great Meadow.

Virginia has been named "America's most promising, emerging wine region" by Wine Spectator magazine. We're so excited to finally have a premier venue set in the rolling meadows of Virginia Wine Country that we feel will upgrade the Virginia wine industry and is befitting the theme of discovering Virginia's award-winning artisan wines.

We’re especially pleased to welcome the many sponsors and exhibitors who have caught our enthusiasm and joined us to create a premier destination event for guests to enjoy.

We think the layout and amenities we’ve included will set the tone for a distinguished upscale experience for participating wineries, restaurants, exhibitors and guests alike. We hope you like the concept and have a great (andvery profitable) show!

Setup Hours:

Friday September 10 (10am – 7pm)

Show Hours

Saturday September 11 (11am – 6 pm)

exhibitors enter between 8am & 10:00am

Sunday September 12 (11am – 6pm)

exhibitors enter between 8am & 10:00am

Exhibit Removal:

Sunday September 12 (6pm – 9pm)

Click here for HOTELS IN THE AREA

Comfort Inn Warrenton is offering vendors a group rate of 85.99. It is the closest hotel approximately 6 miles from the site.

WINERIES CLICK HERE TO ORDER YOUR REMOTE LICENSE

WINERIES CLICK HERE FOR ADDITIONAL WINE EXHIBIT NOTES

CLICK HERE FOR DRIVING DIRECTIONS TO GREAT MEADOW

5089 Old Tavern Road
The Plains, Virginia 20198

Click here for MapQuest Directions

BEFORE THE EVENT

WINERY AND FOOD EXHIBITORS - You must contact your liability insurance provider and obtain a rider naming the following as additionally insured for the dates of September 11-12, 2010: Farm Wineries Council Inc., 25378 Whippoorwill Terrace, South Riding, VA 20152 and Great Meadow Foundation, 5089 Old Tavern Road, The Plains, Virginia 20198 . This should be a free service of your insurance provider.
WINERIES - you will need to order your ABC remote license for this event. CLICK HERE TO ORDER YOUR REMOTE LICENSE.
FOOD SAMPLING AND SERVING - Restaurants and gourmet food vendors conducting sampling must obtain a temporary event health permit. Information will be provided individually upon acceptance of application.

click here for Temporary Health Permit

WINERY AND FOOD EXHIBITORS - Please fax a copy of your ABC remote or health license and liability insurance rider to us at 661-451-5491.

Sales Tax / State Dept. of Taxation - Click here to download the Virginia sales tax Form. Exhibitors are responsible for the collection and payments of all sales tax. The current tax rate, County and State combined, is 5% for Fauquier County, Virginia.
VIRAL MARKETING OF THE EVENT - The best marketing of an event like this happens in a viral marketing manner .... you tell two friends and they tell two friends and so on and so on and so on! Please help make this a successful event for us all by letting your fans know you will be there and posting the event on your website. Please hyperlink to the show in your website http://www.winefestivalattheplains.com

-----

Here's a blurb you can post on your website:

Meet us at The Wine Festival at The Plains, September 11-12, 2010 for Great Wine, Great Art, Great Food & Great Polo at Great Meadow in The Plains! www.winefestivalattheplains.com

-----

If you have a place where you can distribute postcards for the event, please let us know and we will send you a batch.

STAFF ENTRY FOR THE SHOW

We do not need a list of the staffers who will be coming to help you at the show. We will have a sign in roster where everyone who is coming through to help you will sign in under your company name as they enter the event. We do not want to limit the number of people you think you need to run your business, but please keep your staff to a reasonable number. If an overly large number of people sign in under your company name claiming to be working in your 10x10 booth, we will come to see how you are getting them all in there ... and, if they are not there working the booth, we'll have you pay for their entry.

Here is a note you can copy and pass to your staff about getting into the event.

-----

Thanks so much for helping us out at The Wine Festival at The Plains September 11-12 at Great Meadow Equestrian Center. The facility is located at 5089 Old Tavern Road, The Plains, Virginia 20198. Click here for - Directions to Great Meadow Equestrian Center.

Please arrive by 10:15am so that you do not get stuck in a traffic jam or guest line. After you park, you will enter through the far right gate under the banner that says Vendor. Sign in on the staff roster under our company name. You will be given a vendor button that allows you to come and go through the show as you need to and shown where to find us. You must sign in at the front gate each day you are working as you arrive. Check out the event here - www.winefestivalattheplains.com

-----

SET-UP

SPACE ASSIGNMENTS - Placement on the festival grounds is being assigned by management selection to ensure a good mix across the field. You may tell us your preferred spots and we will try to get you close to that area, but WE DO NOT GUARANTEE PLACEMENT in any particular spot on the field. We have tried our best to provide everyone with high visibility on the field. We'll let you know where you will be as we get closer to the dates.
ARRIVAL LOCATION - Please enter through GATE 2 on Old Tavern Road at Great Meadow. The Exhibitor registration desk will be located just inside that gate. Don't worry we will have signage out.
SET-UP TIME - Move in and set-up must be completed on Friday, September 10, between the hours of 10:00am and 7:00pm.
CREATE YOUR OWN GALLERY - Space provided for exhibitors consists only of the purchased space assigned by space number. The parameters of your designated space will be clearly marked on the ground. Exhibitors must create a professional appearance with their own display equipment. All tables must be skirted to the floor. If you are in an “in line” booth - not on a corner - your display must have a tall seperation between you and the booth behind you, giving you complete separation from the display behind you. Use your creativity to display your work, attract the attention of customers and draw people to your boutique.
MOVE-IN - Every exhibit space in the event is in very close proximity to the farm road. Driving on grass to get to exhibit space will not be allowed under any circumstance at this event. Exhibitors will be guided to the spot closest to their space on the road on a first-come basis. All exhibitors must unload from the road and return to the parking area without driving on grass. Forklifts will be available for winery use on a first come basis. A crew will be available to help you move in if you reserve assistance ahead of time at a cost of approximately $50.
BANNERS, DECORATIONS - Nothing may be taped, nailed or other wise affixed to provided tents, including but not limited to: decorations, banners, signs, adhesive-backed (stick-on) or any other material. Banners must be attached to your own exhibit material in a professional manner. We reserve the right to require removal of unsightly decor. Here are a few examples of branding banner contraptions we've had exhibitors do that we thought worked particularly well ...

Making a freestanding banner contraption is easy - you will need 2 long PVC Pipes to create the vertical height of your banner, 1 PVC Pipe cut the same length as your banner to be the horizontal piece and 2 PVC corners. You will also need 2 tall (2 ft) stakes which you will hammer into the ground to hold the banner up, and several large twist ties to attach your banner to the contraption. You can get all of these items very inexpensively ($20 or so) at Home Depot.

WHAT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE

Here's an example of how our festival WILL NOT LOOK. Here's me, doing a tasting. This is what all guests faced while they were tasting Virginia's fine wine at one recent wine festival. Um - do you think this set-up strategy affected our impression of the product? This "decorative look???" will not be allowed at The Plains or any other Farm Wineries Council event.

CANOPIES - all exhibitors will be placed in our large provided tents. If you need to use a canapy of any kind, it may not be larger than your designated 10x10 footprint. All structures must be flame retardant and shall have the proper documents and certification attached and available on site at all times.
FLAME RETARDANT MATERIALS ONLY - All decorative materials must be flame retardant in accordance with the Public Safety and Fire Regulations and County Fire Safety Code. This includes drapes, banners, all decorative fabrics, poster paper, foam cores board as well as hangings, curtains and drops, projection screens, plastics and all other decorative materials. No flammable material such as bunting, tissue paper, crepe paper, straw, hay, etc. shall be used as decorations.
DAMAGES - No holes may be drilled, cored or punched on the property. Damage fees will be assessed for all replacements and /or repairs to any one who damages provided tents, furniture, fences, grass or the road on the field grounds.
Set-up must be completed between the hours of 10:00am and 7:00pm on Friday, September 10th. An additional VIP set-up fee of $400 will be charged to exhibitors who find it necessary to set up exhibits outside the hours of the allocated set-up time.

DURING THE SHOW

Aisles and walkways must remain clear throughout the entire show.
All exhibits must be staffed and open during all hours of the event.
Sound equipment is not permitted at exhibitor booths.
Exhibitors may only display and sell items approved and specified in their show application.
Proper exhibitor identification credentials must be worn at all times while staffing the booth.
Food items may not be part of your offering unless you have been officially approved to do so.
All Emergency exits and required aisles shall be kept clear of obstructions at all times.
NO OPEN FLAME allowed in tents. Candles shall not be lit at any time.
No live animals, reptiles, fish or birds are permitted to enter the grounds unless a written permission has been obtained in advance. Only a properly muzzled “guide dog” accompanying a person in need of assistance is allowed in the festival venue.
Written permission is required for any collections, donations, whether for charity, business or personal.
Exhibitors are responsible for the securing of their own booth space. The field will go into lock down at 7:00pm Friday and 6:30 Saturday nights. Overnight security will be on site. However, festival producers, venues, sponsors, and partners will not be held liable for any lost, stolen or damaged items so whatever you would like to leave there must be secured under a tarp or zippered tent structure.
SOFT PACK IN/OUT SUNDAY MORNING - We will have an opportunity Sunday morning from 6:30am to 9:30am to allow you to do a soft pack in/out if you need to bring in extra inventory or would like to reduce your inventory on the field. You will need to request this Saturday evening before you leave if you foresee a need to do it as we will obviously not have time to allow everyone to bring cars in. The ability to drive onto the polo road Sunday morning will be available on a first come basis. You must obtain a SOFT PACK tag from the Vendor desk after the show closes on Saturday if you would like to bring your vehicle onto the festival road Saturday evening or Sunday morning. Tags will be available only to the first 30 exhibitors who ask for them Saturday evening. All others will be placed on a waiting list and may be able to service their tent after all tagged vehicles have been removed from the road.

Clean-up is the responsibility of each exhibitor. All trash (empty boxes, bottles, etc.) must be properly flattened and discarded in designated recycle bins throughout the day so that on-site staff can keep up with clean-up as it happens. Any items needing disposal Saturday evening must be flattened and placed beside the road or inside designated recycle bins nearest your booth space Saturday night for removal.
Large items brought in by exhibitors must be taken out by exhibitors. If you need to discard items that do not fit inside a recycle bin, please place them beside the road nearest your booth Saturday evening or Sunday evening after the crowd has left the event.
Exhibitors who trash the field at the end of the day, making it impossible to clean in the dark, or leave large items such as pallets on the field which are not removable, will be charged a $500 cleaning fee and will not be allowed to exhibit in any future Farm Winery Council events.

MOVE OUT

Tear down may not be started before 6:15 PM on Sunday, September 12. A penalty fee of $1000 will be charged to any exhibitor who dismantles an exhibit prior to close of the show.
Clean-up is the responsibility of each exhibitor. All trash (empty boxes, bottles, etc.) must be properly flattened and discarded in designated recycle bins throughout the day so that on-site staff can keep up with clean-up as it happens. Any items needing disposal Sunday evening must be flattened and placed inside designated recycle bins nearest your booth space, or at the side of the road nearest your booth space or inside the stakebed truck that will move onto the field each evening.
Large items brought in by exhibitors must be taken out by exhibitors. If you need to discard items that do not fit inside a recycle bin, it is your responsibility to take it home or get it to the stakebed truck. We do not have the staff or facilities to handle your large pallets and other garbage for you.
All exhibitors will be required to move out of the field Sunday evening. There is a road that runs the length of all exhibit spaces and there will be no driving allowed on grass in the exhibit areas at any time.
All exhibitors must check-out at the vendor desk prior to departure to ensure tables, chairs, table cloths, etc. that belong to the rental company are properly returned.
Exhibitors who leave large items such as pallets on the field which are not removable, will be charged a $500 cleaning fee and will not be allowed to exhibit in any future Farm Winery Council events.
IN THE CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER exhibitors will not be allowed to roll inventory or vehicles anywhere on the festival grounds without a management permission tag. We will be enforcing contingency move in and move out plans to protect the field. Please be patient while we conduct a responsible entrance and exit. Exhibitors who do not comply will be charged a $500 penalty fee at the minimum and/or entire cost of damage caused, whichever is higher.

REFUND POLICY

No full refunds will be given after you have been accepted to exhibit at the event. Partial refunds will be given based on number of days before the opening day of the show we receive your cancellation:

150 days or more notice - 80% 120-149 days notice - 60%

90-119 days notice - 40% 60-89 days notice - 20%

30-59 days notice - 10% under 30 days notice - 0

No refunds will be given for bad weather, booth location on the show floor, less than desirable sales of your product, feuds with neighboring exhibitors, last minute booth location changes, show cancellation due to weather, acts of nature or any other unforeseen circumstance.

Although we encourage exhibitors to look at the show floor plan and suggest to us their preferred placement, your location on the show floor is made solely by the show manager. We do reserve the right to place all exhibitors where we envision the best fit based solely on our subjective opinion.

~ CONTACT US ~

donna@farmwineriescouncil.org | carl@farmwineriescouncil.org

Tel: 703-823-1868 | Fax: 661-451-5491