Tupelo Flea Market Shows Local Interest in MMA

I will be the first to say that I was at the very least "skeptical" about whether or not to place a booth at the Tupelo Flea Market on October 9th and 10th; however, the event proved to be a very good learning experience where we met a ton of MMA fans. This was our first market appearance since I began with TBJJ but all in all it was a very good show. The traffic was very good and the interest shown in TBJJ and Amory MMA was astounding to me. I truly thought that people would trickle in from time to time but we had someone at the booth almost the entire time we were open.

I have to say that the difference was made entirely by the fighters. I have done a lot of trade shows and I generally know what to expect; but I didn't expect to have the entire complex come to a screeching halt when the fighters began sparring. That "POP" of the mitts and gloves drew people to the booth like moths to a flame. I heard other vendors complaining (jokingly) that when the pops started, everything else stopped. I have to admit it was true and it was a phenomenon that was unexpected by me. The guys put on a great show, we signed up 41 new people for the newsletter (almost double our goal), added a large number to our blog, had numerous people promise to come to a class at either TBJJ or Amory MMA, and I understand that last night, one of the people did indeed show up at class in Tupelo. It was also great to see so many little kids get on the mat and spar with the fighters. The guys did a great job of being patient and working with anyone who wanted to get on the mat with them. It ended up being fun for everyone. So the event was an overwhelming success.

We were there to promote both gyms along with the gym in Corinth, Paragon, and to promote the fights that are coming up on October 17th at the Isle of Capri Casino in Lula MS. Make your reservations now by calling the Isle at 1-800-the-Isle or visit www.isleofcapricasinos.com.

I will be posting some pics and videos of the event over the next couple of days. Keep a look out for them. Until then, let me say a special thanks to everyone that came out and helped. Thanks to: Jeff Chambers, Tony Palmer, Haley McLemore, who helped with the set up, Mark Romano, Chris Gates, Grady Hurley, Juice Madrid, Scotty, & Eric from Amory, Cody Floyd, Joe Milligan, Isaac Ware, Brian White, Jon Price, from TBJJ, and everyone else that participated.

A special thanks to Cody and Isaac who stayed all day Saturday and did a fantastic job with the kids. Big cudo's to Jeff Chambers and Alliance for making sure this happened.