Dealer’s Room FAQ
Note: DisCon III has a Virtual Dealer’s Room.
What, where, and when is Worldcon?
DisCon III, the 79th World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon), is being held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, DC from December 15-19, 2021.
Yes, but where will the Dealer’s Room be?
The Dealer’s Room will be in the Omni Shoreham Hotel along with the rest of the convention. The Dealer’s Room location is the Exhibit Hall.
No, seriously, where the bleep is the Dealer’s Room ?!?
The Dealer’s Room is on the same level as the Diplomat Room. If you go down the stairs in front of the registration desk, the Dealer’s Room is on that level.
There are signs pointing to the Derler’s Room, and if they are not clear then you should ask a passer by.
What are the hours hours?
- 12/14/21 Tuesday – Set-Up Only 12 Noon – 8 PM
- 12/15/21 Wednesday – Set-Up 9 AM – 12 Noon. Open 12 Noon – 6 PM, Dealer Only Access 6 – 6:30 PM
- 12/16/21 Thursday – Dealer Only Access 9 -10 AM, Open 10 AM – 6 PM, Dealer Only Access 6 – 6:30 PM
- 12/17/21 Friday – Dealer Only Access 9 -10 AM, Open 10 AM – 6 PM, Dealer Only Access 6 – 6:30 PM
- 12/18/21 Saturday – Dealer Only Access 9 -10 AM, Open 10 AM – 6 PM, Dealer Only Access 6 – 6:30 PM
- 12/19/21 Sunday – Dealer Only Access 9 -10 AM, Open 10 AM – 3 PM, Tear Down 3 PM – 7 PM
What does the District Of Columbia and the city of Washington require from me to be a dealer at DisCon III?
Each dealer should manage and pay sales taxes via the dealer’s account at OTR’s online portal at MyTax.DC.gov. A dealer who has not previously paid taxes in DC and does not have a MyTaxDC.gov account will be required to file a form FR-500 registration prior to establishing a MyTax.DC.gov account.
Dealers who don’t sell merchandise regularly in the District of Columbia will not be required to get a DC business license. Dealers who have an ongoing business presence in DC (e.g. a dealer who has a brick-and-mortar store in DC or who operates a DC-based online or mail-order business) should already have a DC license.
Each dealer is required to collect from each purchaser sales tax of 6% on the price of merchandise sold. Dealers will have to pay the collected taxes to the District of Columbia Office of Tax and Revenue (“OTR”).
You will see a prompt for an event number. Discon III does not have an event number because DisCon is a convention and not a “special event. Leave that space blank and you should be able to register without it. If later on you find out that you can’t register online for lack of this please find out the name and phone number of the OTR person who tells you that so our lawyer may address the issue.
What can I sell at this Worldcon?
DisCon III is about science fiction and fantasy; your merchandise should reflect that focus. If you are unsure of whether your merchandise is appropriate please email and ask! Over the years Worldcons have seen both flat and 3D art, clothing, costumes, props, jewelry, games, t-shirts, makeup, nail art supplies and collectibles as well as books, comics and graphic novels.
What can’t I sell at this Worldcon?
These include, but are not limited to:
- personal services (tattooing, body piercing and similar)
- unlicensed/bootleg merchandise (INCLUDES 2D ART)
- food and/or drink for immediate consumption
- things on fire. Unlit candles, torches, helpers and incense sticks are acceptable; do NOT burn any of these in your space.
This list will be updated as we find out more. Other convention facilities have prohibited stickers, balloons, glitter and chewing gum and we may be subject to any of these. Please email me if you have any concerns about your merchandise. There are items that you can’t sell at this Worldcon and if you are found to have forbidden items for sale you will be directed to remove them from view or you will be removed from the room without a refund. DisCon III staff decisions are binding and final.
I can’t make it but I have a friend who can take my space. Can they just come instead of me?
No. Subletting is not permitted. DisCon III reserves the right to approve dealers for the Dealers Room and will remove dealers who were not approved to be in the room without refund. Often there is a waiting list for space and we will fill from that list to balance the room. However, if your friend is approved as a Dealer AND there is no one on the waiting list or they sell the same category of item it could work out to where your friend could come in your place. This will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Please email dealers@discon3.org if you have concerns about this issue.
This does not mean that you can’t appoint an agent to sell your items in the Dealers Room. If you send someone as your representative to sell the merchandise you were accepted into the room with, let us know who that person is and we will update your paperwork to reflect this information.
Can I share space with another dealer at this Worldcon?
Yes. The application will direct you on how to accomplish this.
I sell adult items (marketable to those 18+). Can I be a vendor at this Worldcon?
Maybe. The Dealers’ Room is balanced to provide attendees with a range of merchandise that is generally deemed to be appropriate to our genre interest. Your merchandise should reflect that. If you are selling adult items (this includes drawings of naked people and BDSM items) you MUST agree to the following:
- It is your responsibility to ensure that children do not have access to any adult items. This can be done by checking ID before allowing patrons to look in an enclosed box or area or some similar setup.
- If we hear or see that you have adult items that are easily visible to children, you will receive one warning (since your definition of adult items may be less strict than some of our attendees) and will be expected to rectify the situation immediately after receiving your warning.
- If you require a second warning DisCon III staff reserves the right to either mandate how you rectify the situation or to remove you from the Dealer’s Room without refund.
I sell weapons. Anything special I must do?
Yes. Weapons can only be handled by customers who are 18+. All sold weapons must be securely wrapped for customers prior to leaving your table. No brandishing, waving about or sparring with weaponry is permitted at DisCon III and this applies to Dealer’s Room merchandise. No firearms or ammunition for the same may be sold in the DisCon III Dealer’s Room.
I sell music. Anything special I must do?
Yes. Please plan to play well with your neighbors by providing headphones for your listeners OR make sure your neighbors aren’t inconvenienced by your volume. The DisCon III staff reserve the right to limit your sound levels to headphones.
I sell food and/or drink NOT for immediate consumption. Anything special I must do?
Yes. If you offer samples of your merchandise you must supply a trash receptacle convenient to your space for your patrons to dispose of any garbage. If you use anything to heat your samples it must not use an open flame. This section will be updated further as more information becomes available.
I plan to have an event at my table in the Dealer’s Room that might attract more people than usual traffic. What do I need to do to accommodate this?
The DisCon III Dealer’s Room allows for attendees to peruse and purchase merchandise of interest in our genre focus. Your planned event should reflect that. Contest and raffle prize awards, autograph sessions, and special sales announcements are all events. The Dealer Room is also for ALL dealers to interact with and sell to customers without interference from other dealers. In order to ensure an orderly experience for all you must provide the following:
- A description of what you’re planning to do that includes the date, time and duration of your event with at least 30 days’ notice to the Dealer Room Coordinator. The cut-off for this is November 15, 2021.
- An assessment of what traffic impact you anticipate from your event.
- What you plan to do to manage this. This can include tickets to attendees to stagger traffic flow, providing for extra staff to move attendees through your event efficiently, and similar. If you have no plan your event won’t be allowed.
Your plan is subject to change as well as approval by the Dealer Room Coordinator. If your event generates traffic that interferes with normal commerce in the room the Dealer’s Room Coordinator may require that you relocate the event or terminate it. This is both a courtesy to other vendors in the area and to ensure the safety of all members in the exhibit hall. All decisions on events in the Dealer Room by the Dealer Room Coordinator are binding and final.
The event(s) I want to have can’t be planned 30 days in advance. Is there another way to make this work?
Maybe. Most likely you will be required to purchase another space next to your own at the regular cost to act as a “holding area” for those attracted to your event while they participate (or wait to participate) IF you want to have this event in the Dealer Room. There will not be space in the Dealer Room to accommodate lines that extend past your own space and you should not expect to block other dealers, exits or aisles for your event. You may use that extra purchased space outside of your event(s) to conduct sales but during your event that space will need to be cleared to accommodate any traffic you generate. Plan accordingly. If your event does not involve ANY merchandise sales (includes books) and lasts less than 1 hour you may request to have your event located outside the Dealer Room without extra charge (most likely in the Fan Table area) and you will be accommodated if space is available at the time you request.
I would like to have an announcement of my event in the Dealer Room over the PA system. Can I do that?
Only if your event has been approved in advance with 30 days’ notice. Constant announcements distract attendees and aren’t desirable. Other than emergencies PA announcements will be kept to a minimum and most likely on a schedule.
You are also NOT allowed to make loud announcements of your event(s) from your space as that makes it difficult for other dealers to interact with customers. If you are found to be doing this you will be removed from the DisCon III Dealer Room without refund.
Will there be Internet connectivity and/or electricity for Dealers and what will it cost?
Wifi will be available, but it will be slow. Each “island” of tables in the exhibit hall will have a couple outlets, but they are shared by all the vendors. If you would like to have power at your table, it will cost a minimum of $125.
Fill out this form and email it to andrea.seemangal@omnihotels.com (the email mentioned in the PDF is wrong). It would be better to order in advance; you can request electricity in person, but it will cost more.
I need to park a large vehicle or truck. Where can I do this closest to the hotel?
https://www.unionstationdc.
What is the deal with hotel rooms?
The convention hotel is sold out of rooms. We regret that there wasn’t a way to make hotel reservation information available to dealers; however, this convention has been severely challenged by both losing the prior main convention hotel and the ongoing COVID-19 situation. If you require a hotel in the area there are a number of hotels off Connecticut Ave NW that had availability as of mid-July 2021:
Windsor Park Hotel – .6 miles south of the Omni Shoreham on Connecticut Avenue.
The Normandy Hotel – .6 miles south of the Omni Shoreham on Connecticut Avenue.
Churchill Hotel – .7 miles south of the Omni Shoreham on Connecticut Avenue.
Washington Hilton Hotel – .8 miles south of the Omni Shoreham on Connecticut Avenue (across Connecticut Avenue from the Churchill Hotel).
Both VRBO and AirBnB operate in Washington, D.C. Use the Omni’s address of 2500 Calvert Street NW, Washington DC, 20008 to search options close to the action!