The contents below were updated on 2024-10-06. Recent substantial changes and additions are in red.
Note: The below policies were written to apply to our physical, in-person Vendor Hall. In the case of an online Vendor Hall, anything below that could still apply does.
Attendee Code of Conduct
Despite their additional privileges, vendors, and assistants are still a form of an attendee. As such, they will be expected to hold themselves to the same standards with respect to the Attendee Codes of Conduct, in addition to those policies and codes of conduct found in this document.
Age Policies
Vendor Point of Contact
You must be at least 18 years old to be listed as the point of contact (POC) for a vendor booth. As set forth above, a parent or legal guardian must be the POC for the booth of children under 18.
On-Site Vendor Operations
Someone 18 years of age or older must be behind the table at all times while the hall is open to attendees. Children under 18 shall not be left unattended while running a booth.
Sold Content
Vendors selling, displaying, etc., mature or adult art must be at least 18 years of age or older. No children under the age of 18 are allowed to sell or display mature or adult art at any time.
Badge Policies
In accordance with the Attendee Code of Conduct, vendors must always wear their badges while in any convention space. Vendors are required to prominently display their badge while in the vendor hall, especially during vendor-only hours, setup, and teardown. For the purposes of this document and for the Attendee Code of Conduct, vendors are a type of attendee and will be handled as an attendee during most, if not all, instances.
Badge Sharing
No badge sharing will be permitted or tolerated at Ponyville Ciderfest. This includes but is not limited to sharing a single badge between multiple people simultaneously, badge passing, and sharing a single badge between multiple people at different times throughout the day or weekend. Each vendor and assistant must have their own unique badge.
Badge Identity
The badge you wear must match the table you are sitting behind. The badge you wear must also identify you personally and be distinguishable/unique from other badges, i.e., your badge name could be “Scribbles”, “John”, or “Scribbles Badge #1”, but it can’t be “Scribbles”, “Scribbles”, and a third “Scribbles” at the same table.
Access to Hall Outside Attendee Hours
You must have a vendor badge to be in the vendor hall during load-in and load-out or during vendor-only hours. Attendee help is not allowed.
When the Hall is closed to the public and vendors, entrance will require a member of leadership (preferably the Vendor Relations Department Head or Assistant Department Head), your Ponyville Ciderfest Vendor Badge, and a valid reason for entry. Denial of entry after hours is up to the discretion of the escorting volunteer and ultimately to the Vendor Relations Department Head.
Five Senses Policies
The following collection of policies refers to avoiding offending the five senses of anyone near, at, around, or next to your table.
Sight
Does it offend the sense of sight? No flashing or strobing lights. No mature or adult materials may be displayed in the Daytime hall. The tables and the spaces around them should be kept clean, clear, and uncluttered.
Sound
Does it offend the sense of sound? No loud music or sound. Artists should refrain from loudly discussing subjects of a divisive, mature, or adult nature, especially around children.
Touch
Does it offend the sense of touch? Displays should be stable and safe to the touch. No sharp or dangerous materials, tools, products, etc., should be easily handleable or reachable at the table. Anything reasonably expected to be handled by attendees, volunteers, guests, etc., should be kept clean and secured or dismantled if it is dangerous, such as bladed weapon-like props.
Smell
Does it offend the sense of smell? Tables, displays, and products should be kept clean, clear, and uncluttered. Spills should be reported immediately to convention or hotel staff. There should be no strong or dangerous odors emitted from your table or persons. The use of dangerous tools, materials, etc., that have to be used in a well-ventilated area and/or with special protective equipment and/or cannot be used safely indoors will not be allowed in the convention space. This includes chemical etchers, spray paint, bonding adhesives (E6000), and unfiltered laser engravers.
Taste
There should not be any food, drink, or technically edible products available to attendees in any way, shape, or form. This includes giving out candy, water bottles, toothpicks, pizza, mints, cupcakes, gum, and muffins. This policy applies even if you have the necessary licensing and certification to legally sell or resell food products in the state of Wisconsin. Extra care should be given to small products that can be popped into the mouths of small children.
Late Arrival and Cancellation Policies
Vendors are required to show up and finish their setup by the hall’s close on Friday night. Otherwise, their booth will be counted as a no-show and canceled without a refund. The convention can resell no-show/forfeited booths at a prorated rate for Saturday and Sunday.
There will be no refunds for booths canceled. Exceptions may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
No transferring of booths will be tolerated.
Vendors should make every effort to be in the hall the entire weekend. Vendors leaving early or arriving late will not get a prorated refund or any refund of any kind.
Vendors wishing to cancel their tables should do so as far in advance as possible to allow someone on the waitlist a chance to claim the space.
Bootleg/Art Theft Policy
All items for sale or potentially for sale must be made, created, designed, etc., by the vendor, or have express written permission from the original maker, creator, designer, etc., to sell or resell at Ponyville Ciderfest.
No reselling of bootleg or fake items will be allowed or tolerated.
Policy on Selling Blacklisted IPs
Do not sell intellectual property (IP) that currently have DNS’s (Do Not Sell orders) on them from creators. Ignorance of this policy does not constitute an exception to this policy.
Shopping Cart Vendors Policy
Vendors are prohibited from selling or reselling products that they clearly picked up from Wal-Mart, Target, Toys’R’Us, etc., on their way to the con. Proof of rights to resell must be presented on request.
Adult/Mature Art Policies
Mature or adult artwork or products are not permitted in the Daytime Vendor Hall, even if censored, stored under the table, etc.
Artwork or products involving, putting, or displaying children in adult situations will not be allowed or tolerated at Ponyville Ciderfest, regardless of how it is displayed. No exceptions.
All vendors in the After Dark Vendor Hall must provide opaque packaging for all adult/mature items sold. Failure to follow this rule may result in disciplinary measures, up to and including ejection from the After Dark Vendor Hall.
Acceptable Setups Policy
Vendors’ setups must be sturdy, easily assembled or disassembled without the use of power tools, must obey the above Five Senses Policy, and must obey the below Spatial Boundaries Policy.
While Ponyville Ciderfest allows table sharing, we ask that every artist at the table have their work approved beforehand by the vendor lead. Make sure you provide everyone’s work and information in the initial application. Alternatively, you are welcome to email the vendor lead if you want to add someone after you send in your application. Do not show up at the con intending to share a table with someone who has not been approved beforehand.
Policy on Use of Provided Materials
Each tabletop exhibitor booth – or simply, table – shall come with one table and two chairs per space. The provided materials are meant for use only by the vendor assigned to that space. Do not use, move, or otherwise interfere with another table’s provided materials. This means no stealing chairs, putting your stuff or trash on or behind another’s table, or plugging into power outlets or strips you did not pay for.
Policies on Theft
Ponyville Ciderfest is not liable for any loss or damage to any vendor’s property. Volunteers will make every effort to prevent theft, but ultimately, they are not liable.
The Vendor agrees to allow Ponyville Ciderfest and its volunteers to act as their agents to investigate on their behalf, but no guarantee is made as to compensation or return of any lost or damaged property. We strongly advise that cash and any small, highly valuable items be removed from the hall when it is not occupied and stored in the Vendor’s room or other secure space.
Weapon and Weapon-like Props and Goods Policies
No ammunition of any type, including shotgun shells, rifle rounds, or Nerf brand foam darts, is allowed to be sold in the Vendor Hall.
Any realistic-looking weapon props will need to be stored off the property or in the purchaser’s vehicle immediately after purchase. These props can not be brandished or even out in the open at Ponyville Ciderfest, even if they are peace-bound. The ruling of PVCF leadership or hotel security shall be the final word on whether a prop is acceptable, for sale or otherwise.
Spatial Boundaries Policies
The ceiling in the vendor hall is fourteen feet (14’) high. No display should come close to touching the ceiling or any hanging signs, lights, etc., that may be present in the hall.
No displays should extend beyond the limits of their table space and, therefore, should not encroach on another table’s display or space.
Tall displays should avoid turning into “sails” that could easily be blown over or down by the venue’s air conditioning and circulation systems.
Policy for Food and Beverages at Table
Food and beverages behind a vendor’s table should be for personal consumption only. Available for sale or otherwise to attendees, etc., is not allowed, as previously mentioned in the above Five Senses Policy.
Use of Convention Logos and Branding
Before using or selling logos or branding (including the mascots) that belong to Ponyville Ciderfest, its parent company, or its parent company’s other properties, explicit permission must be received from the convention’s leadership.
Policies Against Gambling and Games of Chance
You must have a Wisconsin State Raffle License in order to hold a raffle in the State of Wisconsin. Violators of this policy can be subject to prosecution to the fullest extent of the law.
To qualify to purchase a Wisconsin State Raffle License, your organization must be a local charitable organization recognized by the State of Wisconsin or a registered 501(c)(3).
All other forms of gambling are strictly prohibited.
Free drawings do not count as a raffle or a game of chance and are permitted.
Statement of Notifications of Changes
Ponyville Ciderfest and its volunteers will make every effort to notify vendors of changes to these policies but can’t guarantee such notifications. PVCF and its volunteers reserve the right to make reasonable changes with or without notice at any time.
Statement of Final Judgement of Rules and Policies
The Vendor Hall Department Head and Convention Chairs have the final say on any ruling or interpretation of the above policies.
Statement of Spirit of Document
If the exact wording of anything contained in this document does not quite apply, but the spirit of this document or anything contained within still does, then this document will still apply. Vendors are expected to follow, and rulings will be made in the spirit of this document.
Statement of Part Versus Whole
If any part of this document becomes void or unenforceable, the rest of this document shall still be valid and enforceable.
Failure to Follow the Above Policies
Failure to follow the above policies may result in disciplinary measures up to and including ejection from the Vendor Hall and convention without refund and revocation of all vendor badges without refund.
Statement of Agreement through Acceptance and Payment for Space
By accepting your exhibitor space and paying for it, you agree to abide by these policies and codes of conduct. This document shall act as a vending contract between you, as a vending attendee, and the convention.