BLADE Show West
Prepared for: Susan & the BLADE Show West Board
Prepared by: Tim & Rowen
Date: February 2026
The Situation
Your current site (bladeshowwest.com) is built on WordPress with Beaver Builder and works well for its purpose. Grace has done a great job keeping things running — the countdown clock and Exhibitor Info tab are solid additions.
Rather than a full site rewrite or building dedicated per-show sites from scratch, we're proposing targeted improvements to the existing site that make it easier for your team to manage, more professional for attendees and exhibitors, and ready to scale as your shows grow.
Option A — Backend Tune-Up
Recommended Starting Point
Make what you have work better.
1. Exhibitor List Integration
- Move the exhibitor list from a linked Google Sheet into WordPress itself
- Searchable, filterable list right on the site (attendees can find exhibitors by name or category)
- Your team updates it from the WordPress dashboard — no spreadsheet links to manage
2. Interactive Floor Plan
- Replace the static PNG with a clickable floor plan
- Attendees can tap a booth to see the exhibitor name and details
- Easier to update year-to-year
3. Analytics Upgrade
- Your current Google Analytics (Universal Analytics) was sunsetted by Google in 2024
- Migrate to Google Analytics 4 so you're actually collecting usable data
- Clean up tracking scripts for faster page loads
4. WordPress Maintenance
- Security audit and plugin updates
- Performance pass (your site loads a lot of third-party scripts)
- Ensure backups are configured and working
Option B — Show-Ready Template System
Everything in Option A, plus make it easy to spin up per-show content.
5. Per-Show Page Templates
- Instead of building a whole new site for each show, we create a template system within your existing site
- Each show (West, Texas, Atlanta, BTAC) gets its own section with its own exhibitor list, floor plan, schedule, and ticketing
- Your team fills in the template — no developer needed each time
6. Exhibitor Self-Service
- A simple form where exhibitors can submit their info (company name, description, logo, website)
- Submissions go to your team for approval, then auto-populate the exhibitor list
- Reduces back-and-forth emails during registration
7. Modern Page Editor
- Transition from Beaver Builder to WordPress's built-in block editor (Gutenberg)
- Easier for your team to make content changes without specialized knowledge
- No additional plugin costs
Option C — Full Digital Experience
Everything above, plus premium features.
8. Exhibitor Portal
- Exhibitors log in to manage their own booth info, upload photos, update descriptions
- Dashboard shows their booth assignment, event schedule, and logistics info
9. Attendee Features
- “My Schedule” — attendees bookmark exhibitors and events
- Email/SMS reminders for show dates and early bird tickets
- Post-show feedback collection (feeds into Google Business reviews)
10. Integrated Ticketing
- Replace the Universe widget with a tighter integration
- Track ticket sales data in your own dashboard alongside exhibitor and attendee info
What We're NOT Proposing
- Rebuilding the site from scratch (unnecessary — WordPress is the right platform for this)
- Taking over day-to-day content updates (your team keeps full control)
- Changing your branding or design language (unless you want us to)
Timeline
| Option | Estimated Delivery |
|---|
| A — Backend Tune-Up | 2–3 weeks |
| B — Show Templates | 4–6 weeks |
| C — Full Experience | 8–12 weeks |
These are flexible and we can phase the work however makes sense for your schedule and budget. The October show gives us plenty of runway.
Next Steps
- Board reviews this proposal (2/18 meeting)
- We answer any questions — happy to join a call or meet in person
- Pick a starting point (A, B, or C) or mix and match
- We scope the details and get started
We're local, we're flexible, and we want to make your shows easier to run — not harder. Looking forward to hearing from the board.
— Tim & Rowen
Scarab and Squirrel Forge
Prepared for: Brynjarr (Ron) & Isis
Prepared by: Tim & Rowen
Date: February 2026
What We See
Your current Wix site costs $480/year and it's doing the basics, but it's also getting in your way:
- Adding new products is a hassle. Your header literally says “FINALLY, I have some new stock” — posting items should be quick, not an event.
- No real checkout flow. You list PayPal, Zelle, and Venmo in the header and tell people to email for arrangements. That's friction that loses sales.
- Your best selling point is buried. Forged in Fire, Season 9 champion — that should be front and center, not in a paragraph halfway down the homepage.
- Reviews are manual. Customers have to email you, then you copy-paste. Only 2 reviews on the site right now.
- No video support. You mentioned wanting to add videos — Wix makes this harder than it should be.
- You're paying $480/yr for this. We can do better for less.
You own the domain. That's the important part — we just swap what's behind it.
Phase 1 — New Site + Real E-Commerce
Get off Wix, start selling properly.
1. New website on a modern platform
- Clean, professional design that matches your craft
- Mobile-friendly (a lot of knife buyers browse on their phones)
- Fast loading — no more Wix bloat
- Your domain stays the same, we just point it to the new site
2. Stripe + PayPal checkout
- Real “Add to Cart” → checkout flow
- Customers pay with credit card (Stripe) or PayPal — their choice
- You get notified instantly when an order comes in
- No more “email me to arrange payment”
3. Easy product posting
- Simple form: upload photos, add a name, description, price, hit publish
- You can do this from your phone if you want
- Mark items as sold/available with one click
- Categories (knives, classes, damascus billets, commissions)
4. Shipping label integration
- When an order comes in, generate a shipping label right from the dashboard
- Tracking number automatically sent to the customer
- No more manual email back-and-forth
5. Your story, front and center
- Forged in Fire champion badge/callout on every page
- Video embed support — post your forge videos directly
- Your journey from SCA chisels to ABS Apprentice — that's a story people buy into
Phase 2 — Customer Engagement
Make it easier for customers to find you, trust you, and come back.
6. Customer reviews that work
- After purchase, customer gets an email asking for a review
- Reviews post to the site automatically (with your approval)
- Can also feed into Google Business reviews
- No more copy-pasting from emails
7. Simple CRM
- Open source, no monthly fee
- Track your customers: who bought what, when, contact info
- Send email updates when you have new stock (“Hey, new knives are up!”)
- Commission tracking — who asked for what, design notes, status
8. Blog / Video gallery
- Easy video uploads from your phone or YouTube/TikTok embeds
- Blog for forge updates, class announcements, show appearances
- Helps with Google search rankings (SEO)
Phase 3 — Full Automation
Optional
The “set it and forget it” setup.
9. Order → Label → CRM → Notification pipeline
- Customer orders → you get a notification
- One click: print label, mark as shipped, customer gets tracking
- Order filed in CRM automatically
- End-of-month: see your sales, top products, repeat customers
10. Class booking system
- Customers book and pay for classes online
- Calendar shows your available dates
- Automatic confirmation and reminder emails
- No more scheduling over email
What This Saves You
| Wix (Current) | New Site |
|---|
| Annual hosting cost | $480/yr | ~$50–100/yr |
| Payment options | PayPal/Zelle/Venmo (manual) | Stripe + PayPal (automated) |
| Adding a product | Navigate Wix editor | Quick form, publish |
| Customer reviews | Email → copy-paste | Automatic after purchase |
| Video support | Limited | Native embeds |
| Shipping | Manual | Label generation built in |
| CRM | None | Included (open source) |
You save $380–430/year on hosting alone, and you get a site that actually works for you instead of against you.
Payment Structure
We have a couple of ways we can handle this:
Option 1 — Flat Fee
- One-time build cost per phase, you own everything
- Maintenance and updates billed as needed
Option 2 — Lower Upfront + Small Transaction Fee
- Reduced build cost upfront
- A small % per transaction is configured directly at the Stripe and PayPal level
- It comes off automatically before the funds hit your account — nothing to track or manage
- Ongoing maintenance, updates, and support are included
- We only earn when you earn
Happy to walk through the numbers in person and find what works best.
Timeline
| Phase | Estimated Delivery |
|---|
| Phase 1 — New Site + E-Commerce | 3–4 weeks |
| Phase 2 — Reviews + CRM | 2–3 weeks after Phase 1 |
| Phase 3 — Automation | 2–3 weeks after Phase 2 |
We can start with Phase 1 and add the rest as it makes sense. No pressure to commit to everything at once.
Next Steps
- Meet at Coldfire Brew Pub — March 1st, early afternoon
- Walk through this proposal, answer questions
- Agree on scope and payment structure
- We get to work
Looking forward to it.
— Tim & Rowen