Transportation in the Furry Fandom

What I’ve learned

I have personally been to six furry conventions over my life, and am friends with quite a few vendors. Whilst I have never been a vendor myself, at my last convention I volunteered to be a Vendor Assistant. That is to say, I was attached to two vendors who I helped over the course of the con. I helped them build their stand, put up their stock, and tear it all down at the end.

Within that time, I learned many of the problems associated with vending in the furry fandom.

 

Firstly, there’s no single way for people to move their stuff around. Either they have to trust their entire livelihood to a stranger, who most likely do not understand the furry fandom. Or they are forced to transport their stocks themselves. Something that is not preferable due to the high costs of renting large vehicles and trailers. This also means that people who are not knowledgeable about logistics and packing are forced to learn on the fly.

This is especially difficult as many furry vendors are disabled. The two vendors I was attached to both have difficulties standing, and told me many others have similar physical ailments that makes the hard work of packing and long times out of the home for transportation even harder.

My solution

Anyone who has been to a furry convention knows how many vendors will show up to them, as they make up a central part of the event. Supporting out fellow furs’ businesses has always been a central part of the fandom’s culture.

I have been to cons across the country, and I saw the same vendors in Pittsburgh that I saw in California and Nevada. Even a look at this year’s Anthrocon shows hundreds of vendors who came from all across the US, Mexico, and Canada.

https://www.anthrocon.org/dealers-list-2024/

I propose a new solution that helps vendors from across North America. I will spend my year driving between cons in a box truck. Between conventions I can drive to visit the homes of vendors to pick up more stock, before driving on to the next.

An average month could bring me from AFC in Southern California, to AZFC in Arizona, then to Nevada for BLFC, and doubling back for Pawcon the next week.

It may seem like this is a solution that anyone could already do with any other courier service. However, I am a member of the fandom. Unlike any other courier service, I am very knowledgeable about the importance of their products, and the value of their art. This would lower the overhead of every vendor who we work with, as well as shirking the issues of packing and unpacking, as well the driving itself.

That is to say, with my service all the worst parts of being a furry vendor is handed off to someone who actually wants to do it.