Vendor Agreement

Wakandacon Vendor Hall

Terms and Conditions

1. Wakandacon agrees to provide 10 ft by 10 ft space and if rented, 6 ft tables which will be located in the area designated “Marketplace” (Riverside AB). Wakandacon agrees to make said tables and exhibit space available to the Vendor by no later than 11AM on Friday, August 14th for setup. Vendor agrees to vacate The Sheraton Grand Chicago hotel premises by no later than 6PM on Sunday, August 16th.
2. Wakandacon will provide two (2) Expo Hall/Exhibitor Badges. These Badges allow you admission to the Marketplace inside Wakandacon and all other spaces and events in Wakandacon. For events with special ticketing, vendors will purchase their own tickets.
3. Wakandacon makes no representations as to the number of attendees and/or customers who will be in attendance.
4. Subletting of tables is not permitted.
5. Vendor shall be responsible for the actual setup of its displays. Wakandacon shall not be liable for any loss or damage to Vendor’s property or for any personal injury suffered by Vendor or any of its agents. Vendor will hold Wakandacon and The Sheraton Grand Chicago harmless for any personal injury or damage to goods that may occur.
6. The following activities are prohibited in the Marketplace at all times: Smoking or any burning of objects; vaporized chemicals and diffusers of scents; sales of food or beverage products that are not pre-packaged; consumption or possession of alcoholic beverages or illicit substances, sales of bladed weapons, sales of 18+ material.
7. All vendors shall have a signed copy of the Wakandacon Vendor Contract (this document) on file with Wakandacon. No vendor shall be allowed to sell merchandise or services at the convention without having a signed copy on file with Wakandacon. No party shall be allowed to sell merchandise or services outside of the space deemed “Marketplace” or in these areas outside of the given hours.
8. Vendors may play audio devices at low volume. Wakandacon reserves the right to determine the definition of ‘low volume.’ Furthermore, Wakandacon reserves the right to determine what audio content may be played during the hours of operation of the Marketplace. Any content played must not fall within our definition of “prohibited materials” as defined earlier in this contract.
9. All vendors must have begun set up of their tables on Friday, August 14^th, 2020 by 2 PM, or send written notice of reason for being late no later than 1 week before the event. Booths which have not begun setup at that time (and those for which we do not have a written notice for) may be resold to the waitlist at the sole discretion of Wakandacon.
   1. Vendor agrees to hold Wakandacon harmless for any lost investments or revenues as a result of either (a) unclaimed or (b) cancelled tables.
   2. If Wakandacon is cancelled because of an Act of God or other event beyond the control of Wakandacon, and the event cannot be rescheduled, there will be no refunds.
   3. Any breach of the provisions of this paragraph 10 due to communication failures will be handled in a best faith manner.
10. The Vendor agrees to comply with all municipal, state, and federal requirements, if any, in connection with all sales, including but not limited to any sales or other tax laws. Vendor will be responsible for all filings with state and local ordinances.
11. All vendors will obey federal, state, and local laws and ordinances regarding the sale of material which, intentionally or unintentionally, infringes upon the trademarks or copyrights of another party. Any vendor selling material which infringes upon the trademark or copyright of another party may be ejected without warning and without refund. Wakandacon reserves the right to inspect and/or eject questionable material at any time. This includes, but is not limited to, the following products:
    • Bootlegged videos
    • Bootlegged (burned) audio CDs, VCDs, and DVDs
    • Burned or Bootleg video games

    Wakandacon takes no responsibility for any infringing material and will fully comply with all requests from license holders and law enforcement to inform vendors of infractions. Vendors hold all responsibility toward licensed material and having written documentation on-hand of proper license permissions.

12. Vendors shall not display material which is deemed offensive or inappropriate. Wakandacon has the sole right to determine what is or is not offensive or inappropriate. Vendors who continue to display material which has been deemed to be offensive or inappropriate may be ejected without warning and without refund. Furthermore, vendors shall not sell any “adult”-deemed material at the convention, in compliance with Wakandacon policy, including but not limited to DVDs, illegal substances, and other adult material usually not for sale to customers under 18 years of age. Vendors who sell such materials may be ejected without warning and without refund. Failure to comply is immediate grounds for ejection without warning and without refund. Wakandacon reserves the right to determine if the material in question is “adult” in nature.
13. Vendors are expected to follow the same rules of behavior as the rest of the convention attendees, including during off-hours. Any Vendor ejected from the convention during those hours must leave immediately and retrieve their items the following morning.
14. The Marketplace will be locked overnight. Under no circumstances will it re-open until the posted time the next morning.
15. Vendor is responsible for providing its own insurance, if desirable, to protect Vendor and Vendor’s property from damage, loss, theft, harm or injury. Wakandacon will not obtain insurance on Vendor’s behalf. Vendor is solely responsible for its own company exhibited material, goods, samples, and other property.
16. The Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel will lock the Marketplace after hours. Neither Wakandacon nor The Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel, however, are responsible for any loss or damage to Vendor’s property which may occur. Each exhibitor is responsible for safeguarding its goods, materials, equipment and exhibit at all times. Perimeter guard service will be provided by Wakandacon for the exhibition period, but neither the guard service nor Wakandacon will be responsible for loss of or damage to any property.
17. Vendors shall keep all designated areas clean and will not tape, nail, tack, staple or otherwise fasten to ceilings, doors, floors, glass, columns, painted surfaces, fabric or decorative walls. Damage resulting from the improper and/or unauthorized installation of materials will be charged directly to vendor. Glitter is prohibited. Vendors are asked to use only masking tape or pins in fabric panels to hang temporary decorations, and refrain from using staples, nails, tacks or other forms of tape. Vendors are not to place stickers, paints, or deface venue materials in any permanent fashion. Signs, banners and flyers may not be posted on venue property. All space occupied by a vendor must be surrendered in the same condition as it was at the commencement of occupation. The vendor is responsible for removal of excess debris, bulk quantities of printed material, floor covering, all fixing/anchoring material including adhesives, carpet-tape, physical-anchors and any item other than that which can be easily removed by broom sweeping. Fixing/anchoring material, excessive booth materials and/or literature left in the booth at the end of the published exhibitor move-out date that are not labeled for outbound shipment will be considered abandoned and deemed as trash. The exhibitor will be charged for the removal and disposal of these items. Charges may include labor and dumpster fee assessed by the general contractor.
18. All displays, chairs, tables and merchandise must be maintained within Vendor’s designated area throughout the hours of the convention and may not be dismantled prior to the closing of the convention.  If you break down your space prior to the end of the show you will be fined. All booths must be manned at all times. Wakandacon will not be held responsible for any issues arising from an unmanned booth during show hours. Further, assignment of space and accommodations will be by show management only. We will try to accommodate special requests but cannot guarantee location.
19. Selling of items by Vendors on convention grounds, which includes the stated event location and adjoining facilities, their parking lots, other than the Marketplace or any other designated area noted by Wakandacon is NOT allowed during the weekend of any Wakandacon event. This includes the selling of items inside hotel rooms, lobby, park, parking lot, or its facilities (outside of specified Vendor rooms with full payment). Vendors who fail to comply will be ejected without warning and without refund.
20. Vendor will hold harmless Wakandacon and event facilities or any of their respective officers, agents, employees, members, representatives or affiliates, from any liability, damage, loss, harm, claim, or injury to property or person of the Vendor, Vendor officers, agents, employees or other persons, whether caused by the negligence of Wakandacon or event facilities, or from theft, fire, water, accident, or any other cause whatsoever.
21. Wakandacon reserves the right to make changes to or amend this contract and has the final say on all matters pertaining to the use and function of the Marketplace during the run of the show.
22. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of all information distributed by Wakandacon; however, up-to-the minute information is not always available. With this in mind, Wakandacon, The Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel and their contractors or agents make no warranties as to the precise accuracy of floor plans issued in conjunction with or pertaining to the exhibition.
23. Members of the media with Wakandacon and Press may photograph, videotape or mechanically record the exhibit floor. Vendors may not deny a reasonable request to photograph or videotape an exhibit.
24. A smoke-free policy is enforced and in effect during installation, meeting operation and dismantling hours. Designated smoking areas will be provided and located out of doors by The Sheraton Grand Hotel in accordance with Illinois state law.
25. All vendor matters and questions not covered by this vendor agreement are subject to the decision of the Wakandacon staff. This 2020 vendor agreement may be amended at any time by Wakandacon and all amendments shall be equally binding to all parties. In the event of any or all amendments or additions to these rules, written notice will be given by Wakandacon staff to vendors.