I contacted a company yesterday who are organising a 20th century fair in NY later this year.It is a very upmarket vetted fair with no doubt some very rich customers shopping there.The reason I say this is because the "starting" price for a stand/pitch there is $30,000 rising to $60,000
How the hell do you outlay that kind of cash for 4-5 days selling and yet be expected to turn a profit.Obv you can seing as there are plenty of dealers on board already.
Someone at this fair is going to get screwed and its not just the guy organising it 🙂
I guess this throws up a question which I spoke recently with my father (antique collector ) about.I asked him if someone walked into a top end antique dealers today and bought a table and chairs for $150,000 but decided the next day to sell the same table and chairs by auction could they expect to get 50% of their money back ?
He says he would expect them to get 50% or less,with less being the most likely outcome but that they should expect a positive outcome in the long term (10years+).
I think most people here are different to the clients the fair I mentioned are expecting.Obv we prefer to hunt ourselves,we are looking for bargains,investments and value for money.What is the difference between us and them ? Is it a decorator or just that they have less time and way more money ?
resoning
Hi there
Take it from me that the main reason for doing a fair is foremost to be seen and spread the word.
secondly it is to make money. while it is not always guaranteed that you recover what the outlay is the long term investment in a fair is what I personally am after.
I have been invited to a fair here in the UK with a tag price of $14000 but have to reject due to time restarints.
but next year you will find me there again as I beleive it to be worth while even if it takes me 6 months to recover the outlay.
Hi Simon,
As a fellow UK...
Hi Simon,
As a fellow UK dealer I agree with your comments. My main priority is to gain extra exposure, meet potential 'new' clients and build up some business far beyond that of the show. If you sign up for a fair expecting to make a large profit your usually in for a shock!
If you make a profit from the show and sell a load of stock then everyone's a winner! 🙂
In spite of other considerations....
including long term interests etc. etc. I have to agree with Killian's spontaneous reaction. The 30 to 60K is of course based on a profit sharing basis. The organizers know how much a good dealer can make during a show of this kind (we all seem to be more than willing to answer all the questions they put in their(not there) questionaires) and pricing is based on making it just profitable enough to get the space filled. There seems to be enough money around to make a turn-over that allows the participants to make a profit...This is how capitalism works.
Thank you jonnymiller for the icon-link.
Risk assesment
is more the issue here as to grow your business you need to take a risk.
In my 13 years running my business I have repeatedly taken large chances.
These included defending my shop against the local government, which was a risk that cost me £150.000. The end result was for the good of all other shops here in the UK albeit that they hid and sat on the fence while I risked my business and livelyhood in defending what I see as a DAMN GOOD BUSINESS.
The show is somethings similar in that I risk ££££ to make a long term exposure and commitment to my existing customers and the new ones I will meet.
My risk taking has taken this business from a £85K a year turnover in 1994 to this last year with £300k.
I work my ass off but I also take risks every day.
So Killian to you I will say this. My clients in Ireland are all complaining that no one is doing anything remotely like us! Take a risk
Simon
I am not sure Simon...
that this is only about risk taking. Yes most businesses include a certain risk, some more than others. But in this case it seems to be about one business (the show organizers) not taking any risk, and the other (participants) taking all the risks. There is a good solution in the possibility to get organized as a group of participants and deal directly with the show facility management. Most large shows are not organized by professional show organizers but by an association of interested companies. That keeps the prices of space reasonable and most importantly it eliminates some hurdles for young companies with limited financial strength.....
By the way congratulations for an steady average growth of over 11% a year
20%???
If a business did 300K and a booth was 60k for a five day fair would your really risk 20% of annualized revenue for five days of exposure. 60k could generate a lot of year round exposure. I would agree that the risk seems all piled up on the participants and very little on the organizers
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