Mythicon Magic: A Valentine's Vending Adventure
Last month, I received a surprising and delightful email from Mythicon—I was approved to vend at the event! After my experiences at Goblyncon, I knew exactly what I needed to bring: vegan and gluten-free treats that would wow the crowd.
The Challenge
This time, I set myself three goals:
Apply the batching techniques I'd learned from weeks at the farmer's market to reduce downtime
Use my brand new circular molds to create beautifully uniform cookies
Shape my thumbprint cookies into hearts for the perfect Valentine's Day touch
After several rounds of taste testing (my wife was a very enthusiastic quality control specialist!), I successfully converted my apple thumbprint cookie to a vegan version using almond flour as the base and eliminating eggs. The secret? The natural fat from almond flour combined with maple syrup provided the perfect stability. I also created a four berry thumbprint variety, giving me a versatile base for future sweet creations.
Baking Through the Night
The day before the convention, I knew time would be tight. Mythicon would be my largest audience yet, and I needed to bake as much as possible to meet the demand. After a full day as a DevOps engineer, I made a Costco run for supplies, changed into my baking attire, and dove into my second passion.
Before I knew it, 4 AM had arrived. Hundreds of cookies were baked, chilled, and packed—ready for the market!
Day One: The Whirlwind
The first day was electric. My wife was an invaluable assistant, adding her artistic touch to the stand with beautiful decorations. The response to the new vegan and gluten-free offerings was overwhelming—so much so that I completely sold out of the four berry thumbprints on day one!
I desperately wanted to run back to the kitchen and bake more, but after only four hours of sleep, exhaustion won. I headed back to the hotel room early to rest and strategize.
Day Two: Innovation Under Pressure
I woke at 4 AM and drove an hour to start baking more four berry thumbprints. During the drive, I brainstormed how to optimize my process to make it back by 11 AM. Then inspiration struck—courtesy of countless episodes of The Great British Baking Show!
My solution: set up two trays of ice cubes, place the hot cookie trays on one, and furiously fan chilled air across the setup. This rapidly cooled the cookies, allowing for quick turnaround and packing. It worked beautifully!
After making it back in time, I took a quick cat nap before enjoying the nightlife. The performances by the Ohio Burn Unit, Brinjal, Field of Embers, and Supaman were fantastic. Going on stage with Supaman was a highlight, and I even got a CD of his music! (Yes, I still have a CD player—when's the last time you used one?)
Day Three: Sold Out Success
On the final day, we sold out completely with two hours to spare! I spent the remaining time chatting with fellow vendors (and buying some treats), including a wonderful conversation with Renee and Craig from Golden Rose Cakery. They're delightful people, and I can't wait to connect with them again.
Reflections & Lessons Learned
Mythicon was an incredible experience. Seeing and hearing people's reactions as they enjoyed cookies I'd poured my time, energy, and passion into was revitalizing in a way I rarely get to experience. I can't wait to bake for my Fae-mily again!
What worked:
Ring molds created uniform, professional-looking products that were easy to pack
The ice cube cooling system was a game-changer for rapid production
Batching techniques kept production flowing smoothly
For future events:
Lighting: I saw several vendor setups with USB battery-powered lights that looked fantastic. Definitely investing in those!
Scale up production: With roughly 1,000 attendees at Mythicon, I barely had enough inventory after 10 hours of baking. For larger events, I might need to recruit my wife as a baking assistant. Thank goodness I've already created those recipe books!
Until next time!
