Artist Back Alley Resources Blog

Flying with your booth is easy once you've done it twice. The first time, though, you have questions. Will security flag it? Does it fit the overhead bin? What if they make you check it? Here's the checklist that answers everything before you get to the airport. The Night Before Weigh your booth bag and product bag on a luggage scale Confirm carry-on dimensions with your airline (most accept 56x36x23cm, but budget carriers vary) Remove any scissors, blades, or tools from your booth bag and put them in checked luggage or leave them home Charge your phone and portable battery Print or screenshot your boarding pass and convention registration Your modular display kit fits standard carry-on at 56x36x23cm. No surprises at the gate. At Security Flat panels sometimes look unusual on the X-ray. Security might ask you to open the bag. This is NORMAL and takes about 30 seconds. Just explain they're display panels. They're not metallic, not electronic, and not restricted. In hundreds of flights reported by our vendors, none have had a panel confiscated. Keep connectors and hooks in a clear pouch so they're easy to show if asked. ABS and PLA look like nothing special on a screen, but loose small parts in a bag always get a second look. At The Gate Board early if your airline offers it. Overhead bin space fills fast. Your booth bag fits in a standard overhead bin, but you want it flat on the bottom shelf, not wedged in vertically where someone might stack a heavy bag on top. If the bin is full and they ask you to gate-check, your panels are rigid PP and won't break. But it adds time at the other end, so early boarding is worth it. On Arrival Grab your bags and head straight to the venue or hotel Do a quick count: panels, connectors, hooks. Confirm nothing shifted loose If you shipped product ahead, confirm it arrived at your hotel or pickup point The Return Flight Teardown is faster than setup. Panels flat, connectors in the pouch, hooks in the pouch, done. The BIGGEST return-flight mistake is buying merch from other vendors and running out of bag space. Bring a foldable tote for your personal con haul so it doesn't compete with your booth bag. Check the full kit range to find the kit that matches your travel style. Frequently Asked Questions Has anyone ever been stopped from bringing panels on a plane?Not that we've heard from over a thousand customers. The panels are non-metallic, non-electronic, and within carry-on dimensions. What if my airline has a smaller carry-on limit?Some budget carriers allow only 50x35x20cm. In that case, check the booth bag. The panels are rigid and handle the hold fine. You'll just wait at the carousel. Can I bring hooks and connectors in carry-on?Yes. They're plastic (ABS and PLA). No sharp edges, no restricted materials. Keep them in a clear pouch for easy inspection.

Mel does 22 shows a year. Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, plus a couple of interstate pop-ups that weren't on the original plan. She didn't start with a system. She built one out of necessity after missing a flight because her old display wouldn't fit through the gate. The Breaking Point Her first year was chaos. Two suitcases, a poster tube, and a tote bag stuffed with connectors that kept poking through the fabric. She checked everything. Oversized fees ate her margins. One show in Brisbane, the airline lost her display bag entirely. She spent setup morning building a makeshift booth out of cardboard and panic. That was the last time she travelled with a setup that couldn't go carry-on. The Switch She moved to a modular display kit the following season. Forty-six panels, flat, in a single carry-on bag. The first thing she noticed: she could pack the night before without dreading it. The second thing: she stopped paying oversized fees ENTIRELY. The panels doubled as print protectors. She slid her bestselling A3 prints between the flat panels and they arrived crease-free every time. No more poster tubes rolling around under the seat. The System She Uses Now Mel runs two bags for every show. Booth bag (panels, connectors, hooks, tablecloth) and product bag (prints sorted by size, stickers in a binder, pins on a display board that lies flat). The booth bag stays packed between shows. She restocks the product bag the night before. Setup takes her 20 minutes. Teardown takes 15. She's in the car before most vendors have finished rolling their banners. What Changed Beyond Logistics She applies to more shows now. Not because she has more time, but because the friction is gone. When packing takes 20 minutes instead of an evening, saying yes to a last-minute show stops being stressful. She added six shows to her calendar this year just because she COULD. That's the part nobody talks about. A better packing system doesn't just save time. It changes which opportunities you say yes to. Browse the full kit range and see which kit fits your season.

Every packing list you find online is four pages long and includes items like "positive attitude." Here's one that fits on a single page because it only lists things you can forget. Booth Hardware Display panels (count them before you leave) Connectors and hooks in a labelled pouch Tablecloth or fitted cover Small binder clips or clamps for the cloth Your modular display kit packs flat into a carry-on at 56x36x23cm. That covers your entire display structure in one bag. Product Prints (sorted by size, protected between panels or in sleeves) Stickers, pins, charms in individual bags or trays Print sleeves or bags for customers Business cards Price tags or a printed price sheet Money And Tech Card reader (charged) plus backup cable Cash float in small bills Phone charger and portable battery Extension cord or power strip (check venue rules FIRST) Comfort And Emergency Water bottle Snacks that won't melt or crumble on your product Painkiller, allergy meds, whatever you personally need Tape (washi for signage, gaffer for cables) Scissors or a small blade Zip ties (the universal con fix) The Things People Actually Forget A pen (you will need to write something, guaranteed) Bags for customers to carry purchases A mirror or photo of your finished setup for reference Your badge or registration confirmation That's it. Print it, laminate it, keep it in your booth bag. Check the full kit range if your current display doesn't pack this clean.

The vendors who look relaxed at setup aren't lucky. They just pack the same way every time. A repeatable packing system means you stop thinking about logistics and start thinking about sales. Here's how to build one. Pick One Bag And Commit To It Your modular display kit fits in a 56x36x23cm carry-on. That's your booth bag. Label it, keep it packed between shows, and never borrow from it for vacations. The moment your booth bag becomes a "sometimes" bag, your system falls apart. One bag for booth hardware. One bag (or bin) for product. That's the whole system for MOST vendors doing table shows. Create A Load Order Packing order matters more than packing skill. Heavy items go in first, fragile items last. For the booth bag: Panels flat along the back wall of the bag Connectors and hooks in mesh pouches, tucked along the sides Tablecloth rolled tight on top Business cards and price tags in a slim envelope on the very top Do it in this order three times and your hands will remember it forever. Pre-Stage Your Product Bag Your product bag is where most vendors waste time. They dig through everything looking for that ONE print size. Fix this with dividers or ziplock bags labelled by product type. Prints in one section, stickers in another, pins in a third. The FASTEST vendors at teardown are the ones whose product bag mirrors their table layout. Left side of the table goes into the left side of the bag. The Post-Show Reset Here's where systems die: you get home tired, dump everything on the floor, and two weeks later you're panic-packing again. Instead, unpack your PRODUCT bag (restock, count inventory) but leave the booth bag sealed. It's already packed for next time. Browse the full kit range to find the size that fits your table and your travel style. Frequently Asked Questions How long does this system take to develop?About three shows. The first time you're building the habit. By the third show, you pack on autopilot. What if I sell at different types of events?Keep the booth bag constant. Adjust the product bag. Your display hardware doesn't change between an anime con and a craft market. Should I keep a spare set of connectors?Yes. Toss five extra connectors in your booth bag and forget about them. You'll thank yourself when one rolls under a table and vanishes.