I am part of the committee putting on a Quilt Show....Oct. 3-4, 9-6, Wichita Falls, TX....
www.wichitafallsquiltguild.org....(in case you live nearby!!!) and it has been extremely difficult getting vendors this year. Our show is not large and not small, and we did get enough vendors to fill up our available spaces, but it wasn't easy. Perhaps the folks in charge of the shows you are talking about had the same problem? I would guess that we contacted hundreds of vendors, and we started asking over a year before our show. Many had quit going to shows that are our size, many had decided it was too much trouble to pack up and go places, some were just not in business anymore, and some just said no. (In case you are curious, we will have 16 vendors....listed on our website and we have over 100 quilts....like I said, not large show, not small show.)
I know that getting vendors just isn't as easy as it used to be....
Dina