Help me, LJ-obi-wan, you're my only hope.

[valis2]

I NEED YOUR HELP.

I apologize for posting this without a cut. I hope you'll bear with me. During April/May I will be traveling across the country, stopping at many cities along the way, trying to sell some wares. I am already biting my nails about this because it will be a serious drain on my resources and a huge amount of driving and hard work.

What do I need? How can you help? Well, if you could just give me a moment of your time...

Please look at this list of states/cities and, if you live in or near one of them, or have lived in or near any of them, if you could list some affluent cities/suburbs/towns within the area I would be incredibly grateful. How does this help me? Well, I am going to be attempting to arrange shows in the meeting rooms of hotels, and if I can schedule it in an area that is more receptive to spending money, then this would be a good thing. Specifically I am looking for areas with populations of affluent women aged 25-55. Don't worry, I'm not cold-calling or selling vacuums door to door or annoying people (much). And if you can suggest any areas to avoid that would be helpful too.

Ohio: Toledo, Columbus, Lancaster, Athens
West Virginia: Charleston, Oak Hill, Beckley, Princeton
Virginia: Wytheville
North Carolina: Winston-Salem, Hickory, Statesville, Morganton, Asheville
Tennessee: Knoxville, Harriman, Oak Ridge, Cookeville, Lebanon, Nashville, Clarksville
Kentucky: Hopkinsville, Nortonville
Indiana: Evansville, Vincennes, Terre Haute, Indianapolis
Illinois: Danville, Urbana, Champaign, Bloomington/Normal, Peoria, Chillicothe, Rochelle, De Kalb, Wheaton, Chicago
Iowa: Davenport, Iowa City, Newton, Des Moines, Osceola
Missouri: Bethany, St. Joseph, Kansas City
Kansas: Kansas City, Topeka, El Dorado, Wichita, Wellington
Oklahoma: Blackwell, Perry, Guthrie, Edmond, Oklahoma City, El Reno, Weatherford, Clinton, Elk City
Texas: Amarillo, Vega
New Mexico: Tucumcari, Santa Rosa, Moriarty, Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Santa Fe, Grants, Gallup
Arizona: Chambers, Holbrook, Winslow, Flagstaff, Williams, Ash Fork, Kingman, Bullhead City
California: Apple Valley, San Bernandino, San Diego, Escondido, Santa Clarita, Santa Maria, San Luis Obispo, Salinas, San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco, Sacramento, Woodland, Redding, Yreka
Oregon: Medford, Roseburg, Cottage Grove, Eugene, Salem, Portland, Pendleton, La Grande, Baker
Washington: Longview, Chehalis, Olympia, Tacoma, Seattle, Cle Elum, Yakima, Toppenish, Grandview, Richland, Kennewick
Idaho: Nampa, Boise, Mountain Home, Bliss, Rupert, Pocatello
Utah: Howell, Brigham City, Ogden, Layton, Bountiful, Salt Lake City, American Fork, Provo, Payson, Nephi, Scipio, Aurora, Richfield, Emery, Cisco
Colorado: Grand Junction, Glenwood Springs, Eagle, Vail, Frisco, Denver, Boulder, Loveland, Fort Collins
Wyoming: Cheyenne
Nebraska: Sidney, Ogallala, North Platte, Lexington, Kearney, Grand Island, Columbus, Norfolk
South Dakota: Freeman, Sioux Falls
Minnesota: Worthington, Jackson, Blue Earth, Albert Lea, Owatonna, Faribault, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Wisconsin: Eau Claire

I would appreciate your help tremendously. I make my living as a salesperson, and I'm used to taking a bit of a risk, but this is the riskiest thing I have ever done in my entire life, and I'm really hoping that I can plan it out well enough to make it worth that risk. If you would rather email me, then please go right ahead, email me at valis2 (at) livejournal (dot) com.

*giant hugs* Thank you so very much, flist of joy.

Comments

[chaosdancer.livejournal.com]

I don't know what it is you're selling, but I wonder if if would be something that would go down well in Berea? We are the "craft capital of Kentucky" and handwork of all sorts is valued here. It's not super-affluent, but there are people here who aren't hurting at all. Would we be worth a side trip?

[valis2.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, I will only be driving through a teeny part of Kentucky...the very Western edge. I could not find Berea. Is it in the far Western edge?

[chaosdancer.livejournal.com]

Nope, more central - about 30 mi. south of Lexington. Well, shucks! It would have been fun to say hi.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I'll have to see what I can do. Perhaps I should include Lexington...I'll see if it looks promising!

[chaosdancer.livejournal.com]

There are some areas of Lexington that appear to be incredibly yuppie! There's a lot of old money down here, and a lot of horse breeders trying to make it into the big time. My dad used to be a horse person...I'd love to know more about it, though the beasts don't fascinate me the way they do other people.