The holidays are undeniably upon us. Heaters are on, Christmas lights are up and grocery storefronts look like tiny evergreen forests.
Another telltale sign of the season is the abundance of holiday markets. Though inflation and other soaring costs have worried some retailers about holiday spending, this time of year is still a boon for small businesses and craftspeople around Colorado.
Edoardo Quevedo-Kcomt runs the clothing company Wuaman with his wife, Sandra. Sandra’s parents started the company in Peru, where both are from, in the 1990s. In 2019, Sandra and Edoardo brought Wuaman to Denver.
During the holiday season the couple adds six holiday market setups to the five permanent retail locations where they sell. Sandra handles production, merchandising and inventory, while Edoardo works with wholesalers, designs shop displays and is the company’s sole salesperson. Edoardo said their holiday work begins in July and continues until the end of the year, with some workdays stretching from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Shoppers browse the Denver Christkindlmarket Nov. 27, 2023, in Civic Center Park. The German-style market will be open from Nov. 17 through Dec. 23. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)
The winter markets make up 30% of their annual revenue by Edoardo’s estimate. And the holiday season in general — the last third of the year, as Edoardo defined it — brings in about 60% of their annual revenue, almost all of which gets sent to their families and community members in Peru, where Wuaman’s alpaca-fiber apparel is made.
“This is a family business, but it’s more than that,” Edoardo said. Wuaman employs community members from their home in the Andes and trains them to make the products. They are a proud Colorado business, Edoardo tells customers, but their ultimate purpose is to create economic opportunities in Peru.
It pays to play
Keeping overhead low is part of how Wuaman is able to afford pricier vendor spots at holiday markets. Cherry Creek Holiday Market, where Wuaman has exhibited for the past four years, costs $9,300 for the full month — though there are payment plans and partial-market vendor spots available.
The fees go toward infrastructure like semi-permanent booths that line Fillmore Street in Cherry Creek North, as well as permitting, event staffing, entertainment and marketing. This year, Fetch Concepts, which produces the Cherry Creek Holiday Market, set up the Mistletoe Lounge, a festive pop-up with food and holiday-themed cocktails to attract more shoppers.
“Everybody loves a warm tent,” said Kenny Nelson, production manager of Fetch Concepts. It’s one of the major lessons the company has learned over the past four years of hosting the market, which debuted in 2020.
That first year — during a time when people were both terrified of and desperate to attend social events — was full of lessons. “It was constant pivoting, constant adjustment, constant learning and constant joy,” Nelson said.
Shoppers browse the Denver Christkindlmarket Nov. 27, 2023, in Civic Center Park. The German-style market will be open from November 17 through December 23. (Olivia Sun, The Colorado Sun via Report for America)
Since then, the market has arranged and rearranged its booth layouts to create a more pleasant shopping experience. They’ve pushed their vendor registration earlier into the year to allow businesses to account for longer shipping times, another lesson learned during the pandemic. Those longer lead times between registration and market also allow small-business owners to assess and experiment with things like retail shopfronts. For some, the holiday market is the first time they will hire employees.
“It’s basically your own little store for two months during the holiday season. It’s really great to test out, like: Is retail working for you? Are you good at selling directly to people?” said Jimmy Bryant, the owner and artist of AtomicChild, a clothing and gear company that he started in a Colorado apartment and now sells to major retailers like REI. “It gives you an idea of what having a pop-up location can be. It’s super valuable if that’s something you want to pursue in the future.”
At other markets, like the Cripple Creek Christmas Craft Fair, vendors can snag a spot for $20 plus a $2 table rental fee. Many vendors mix and match, setting up a more expensive stall in a longer-running market and dragging their pop-up setups around on the weekends.
AtomicChild and Wuaman both use this strategy, participating in a mix of weekend markets alongside the Cherry Creek Holiday Market. For Edoardo of Wuaman, the biggest draw of Cherry Creek is the chance to interact with customers.
Wuaman’s products are a higher price point — $250 for a robe, $70 for a scarf — so they fit the Cherry Creek client base, where median household income is $125,000 according to U.S. census data. But he also likes the opportunity to bring his company’s mission to the customers. To bring a little bit of Peru to Denver, and a little bit of Denver back to Peru, as he put it.
“You have to focus on everything you have to gain from the markets. It’s not just sales, not just numbers,” Edoardo said. “It’s important to be present so that you can represent your brand as best you can. If you just focus on numbers, you’ll be very stressed and you won’t have any fun at the markets.”
Where to shop this season
A majority of the state’s holiday markets open for business this weekend. Some stick around until the holidays, while others only last a day or two. Explore the map below to find your local market.
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