Hosted by our parent nonprofit, the Foundation for Community Driven Innovation in partnership with MOSI, AMRoC Fab Lab and Scoutlier, Gulf Coast MakerCon returns to in-person fun and learning on May 27, 2023. The Memorial Weekend event is FREE and open to the public!
Gulf Coast MakerCon is Tampa Bay’s oldest and largest maker festival! The event provides an
opportunity for everyone to join together to share resources, learn a craft, hone their skills, find career and academic opportunities, try new tools and innovations, and to showcase the amazing creativity in all of us.
GC MakerCon started in 2012 as Tampa Bay Mini Maker Festival and was first held at the University Area Community Development Center just down the road from where AMRoC is now located. In 2014,
we turned the event into an independent maker festival and held it at the Florida State Fairgrounds for the next couple of years.
The last big in-person MakerCon festival was held in 2018 at St. Petersburg College in Seminole and drew over 3000 people. We took a hiatus in 2019 to launch AMRoC Fab Lab and were all ready to host a big event in 2020 – but we all know what happened then. In 2021 and 2022 we held smaller virtual and hybrid events and this year, we’re ready for some in-person maker fun with Gulf Coast MakerCon 2023! (You can check out our full history here and photos of past MakerCon events here. )
Hosted in and around the Tampa Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI) educational building, we’ll have a combat robotics tournament, arts and
crafts vendor and exhibitor, a variety of interactive displays and demos, soldering and make-and-take activities, and much more. While the event is free, registration is highly recommended and all pre-registered guests will be automatically entered for door prizes (must be present to win).
Exhibitor fees are as follows:
- $10 refundable fee for educational exhibits with no sales or small fundraisers only
- $75 fee for small local crafters selling home-crafted or locally made items
- $150 fee for large vendors, suppliers, resellers
Exhibitors will need to supply their own tables and chairs.
So follow along here and on our social media for Maker Spotlights and event updates, and if you want to share what you make, register today at GCMakerCon23.eventbrite.com
If you’re interested in being an event sponsor, please get in touch via our contact page.