Working the National Airsoft Festival (NAF) 2025

Another year, another National Airsoft Festival (NAF) - and once again, it delivered the kind of weekend that reminds you why you put in all the hard work. From equipment mishaps to fantastic customer interaction, it was a busy, rewarding few days at Zero One Airsoft.

Preparation Woes – The Jetboil Debacle

Let’s get the bad bit out of the way first - my prep this year wasn’t exactly flawless. For various reasons, I completely forgot to pack my Jetboil, which meant no way to cook. Not ideal when you’re camping out for several days. I ended up making a roughly two-hour round trip to Go Outdoors, only to find their website stock levels were completely wrong; they didn’t have the Jetboil in stock after all.

Thankfully, I managed to grab an MSR Pocket Rocket 2 instead. It saved the day and at least meant we could cook our own breakfasts and dinners without being completely reliant on food vendors (though I have to admit, we did indulge in those a few times too).

Early Birds Everywhere

We arrived on Thursday afternoon, and I was honestly surprised to see just how many other vendors were already fully set up and trading. No time to waste - we got straight to work setting up, and within minutes, customers were already stopping by to browse. Managed to make a few early sales before we’d even finished putting everything out, which was a nice little bonus!

Great Support from CSW / Vortex UK

One of the best parts of the weekend was catching up with Chris from Country Sports Wholesale / Vortex UK. As always, he brought along a great range of gear, including Vortex optics, Edge Eyewear, and DLX products. I always recommend Edge Eyewear. Personally, I use the Sharp Edge model when playing, and the Hamel Polarised when I’m out fishing or driving. If you haven’t seen the durability tests Chris has done on these, check out the links below. They speak for themselves:

 

Community Vibes and Happy Customers

A big part of why I love the National Airsoft Festival is the people. It was fantastic to catch up with returning customers and meet plenty of new ones, too. There’s something really satisfying about helping someone find exactly what they’re after, then having them come back later to say thanks and tell you how well it’s worked out for them. Those moments really make the long days worthwhile.

Sunshine, Dust… and a Lot of Cleaning

The weather was spot on this year, hot, sunny, and thankfully no rain. While that made for a more enjoyable weekend overall, it did mean dealing with a lot of dust. Between cleaning cabinets and keeping stock from getting coated, we stayed pretty busy. But let’s be honest, I’d take the dust over torrential rain or high winds any day.

Facilities Upgrade

Big shoutout to the organisers for improving the festival facilities. The addition of showers is a massive win. I know they were introduced last year, but in 2024, I couldn’t take advantage because they weren’t open early enough. This time, they were spot on.

The toilets were also much cleaner than in previous years. It’s the little things like that which make a big difference when you’re living on-site for a few days.

Sales Goals & Delivery Delays

While we had a solid weekend overall, I’d be lying if I said we hit our sales target. We fell a little short, and part of that was due to delays with our courier, which meant some of our Vector stock didn’t arrive in time. That limited what we could take and, unfortunately, left a few gaps in our display.

Wrapping Up

Despite the rocky start and a few logistical challenges, the 2025 National Airsoft Festival was another great event to be part of. Massive thanks to everyone who visited the stand, had a chat, made a purchase, or came back to share their feedback. It’s the people who make these weekends special.

Looking forward to doing it all over again next year - hopefully with better prep (and a Jetboil)!