For Another Year, Art and Wine Festival Bucks Bad Economy

With temperatures stretching into the 80s all Saturday and Sunday, around 150,000 people from around the Bay Area and beyond poured into the 40th Annual —dousing sangria, browsing aisles of vendors and tuning into a constant stream of live music.

Despite the economic downturn, they made more purchases this year than last, according to Oscar Garcia, President and CEO of the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce.

The festival sold 35 percent more wine and beer glasses than in 2010, and had around 600 vendors and exhibitors—slightly more than last year, said Garcia. Furthermore, all the spots for food vendors–who served everything from Greek to Thai barbeque–were completely sold out this year. 

“People are still very dollar conscious,” said Garcia while helping clean up after the festival on Sunday evening. “Vendors in the lower to mid-price range seemed to have more success than those with higher priced items.”

New and old vendors from near and far laced Castro Street, drawn by the crowds and vibrant atmosphere for the arts. Unlike many art and wine festivals, said Garcia, Mountain View’s only sells original work and products made by artist.

“This is the first year we’ve been here, and it’s quite impressive,” said Sonoma-based vendor Lesley Heller in between handing out samples of bread dipped in homemade olive oil on Sunday. “Yesterday was great; today’s slower.”

Her booth cost $350 for the weekend plus a small fee for a food handling permit. But by the end of Saturday, she had already made a profit.

Several of the vendors traveled from across the state for the weekend. For the second year, Paz Winshtein trekked from Los Angeles for festival, drawn to the “beautiful surroundings and good crowd.”

“You don’t need millions of people, just one good purchase,” said Winshtein, who was hoped to sell one of his larger paintings, between $300 and $600, on Sunday afternoon. “It’s about finding the right person.”

Vendor Tony Shimuzu returned to the festival for the second year from Coarsegold, a small town on the outskirts of Yosemite, to sell his handmade wooden signs.

“The amount of customers we get varies,” he said Sunday morning, unsure how much profit this year's festival would bring. “People are always watching their pennies.”

But the festival was not just beneficial for street vendors. Outdoor seating for many of the restaurants along Castro was overflowing, and several stores offered sales to pull in more customers. Businesses along Castro said the event helped them boost their foot traffic.

“People walk by, get samples, and see the inside,” said employee David Wachman, who handed out food selections from the two-month old restaurant all weekend long.

Up until three years ago, longtime retail manager Carol Horner saw the Festival detract business from the store. Customers would shop on the street instead of peering inside. But recently, that’s changed, with festival weekends serving as goldmines for the store, allowing them to rake in more sales.

Now, “the festival continues to bring us more lasting customers,” said Horner.

The festival drew in wide-eyed art shoppers, but also just people there for the ambiance, festivity and live music.

“Sometimes we buy, but not always. We just like to browse,” said Mark Stoklosa, a Mountain View resident who has attended the festival for the past three years.

He continued to watch dance performance in front of the civic center. “This plaza is unbelievable,” he said. “So much energy.”

Garcia said the exact number of money raised from the festival will not be available until mid-October, but that the signs of success were already evident.

“It was a very savory, crowd pleasing festival,” he said, raving about the selection of food and drink. "Even if your diet goes out the window."