HAVING PROBLEMS GETTING INTO FAIRS WITH SIDESHOW

HEY GUYS I NEED A LITTLE HELP FROM ALL THE SIDESHOW OWNERS OR OPERATORS....I HAVE A NEW SIDESHOW MUSEUM OVER 50 EXHIBITS NICE DISPLAYS AND STILL HAVING PROBLEMS GETTING BOOKED INTO THE AREA FAIRS.. REASON BEING...THE PAY ONE PRICE AT THE GATE AND FAIR BOARD DOESN'T WANT PEOPLE PAYING FOR SOMETHING ELSE INSIDE..I SEE RIDES WITH SIGNS THAT STATE ADMISSION $ 2.00 ...NO ARMBANDS. BUT THAT'S OK...IN THEIR BOOK.... HAS ANY ONE ELSE HAD THIS PROBLEM.. ANY WAY TO GET AROUND THIS DILEMMA......ANY IDEAS THE FAIR BOARD PASSES ME TO RIDES STATING THAT THEY DON'T WANT TO STEP ON TOES OF THE CARNIVAL BOSSES... AND THEY SEND ME BACK TO FIREBOARDS....

 TWO YEARS BACK FAIRS HAD A SNAKE SHOW AND GIANT RAT SHOW BOOKED AND THAT WENT WELL....CAN SOMEONE HELP ANY IDEAS ARE APPRECIATED....THANKS GREG

Our two cents worth Greg, and in internet Capital letters are screaming so I can see your frustration.

We are veteran food vendors with several single grind shows, a 100ft banner show, and over 300 gaffs

we have 40 years in the business so again we know much and learn more

Our knowledge is now that most carnivals use the POP at $15-$25 and most fair goers
bring $30 which leaves nothing left over for shows and food

From the fair promoters side, they want their parts of the POP, no beefs from shows, no
beefs from ASPCA or PETA, so short with them, they get % from each armband and no hassles also many fairs have been burned by not so good shows this also holds true to the carnival owners, they want all the money, and the million dollar ride will take the place of several shows

Again we have several shows that will most likely stay in the lot this year because of this

Hope others will respond to your quest.

Hogrustlerbrands

See Greg, it all revolves around the money, you want to make money, the fair wants to make money and the carnival wants to make money, 

Most the time the carnival is the winner and calls all the shots as to what the fair wants or accepts on the main midways, but independent spots can be also very expensive. Most state fairs are $100 or more a foot and carnivals can ask what they want cause as Mr. hall states they have many rides and are most time not interested in a show taking 100 or 200 front feet, on the other side, they can sometimes place a 10 or 20 foot in between a ride or two, but again keep in mind $200 a foot or 50% of your take plus another 1K worth of dings so a 10 day spot could cost you $5K or more for just 20ft just to the carnival, so $500 a day to break even...on a $2.00 show that's 250 people just to break even. Being past and current food vendors we have days in excess of $12K on a good day with one trailer in a good midway location but look to gross 12K on a show would be 6,000 or more customers in a day, on a POP day it wont happen so yes unless you want to loose large sums of cash, most smaller fairs, festivals offer good rewards. Pay $100 for three days and gross $3k.

Hope the year is good for you.

Hogrustlerbrands

My partners and I present the 'WORLD OF WONDERS' SIDE SHOW AT MAJOR FAIRS AROUND THE COUNTRY, I HAVE BEEN DOING THIS FOR 66 YEARS. ONE PROBLEM YOU MAY HAVE IS STATING TO THE FAIRS THAT YOU HAVE A SIDESHOW.

A sideshow is a 10 in one. A show that has ten live human attractions in one show. You seem to have a museum. Not a sideshow so you are not using the terminology that the fair people understand. The carnivals don't care what you call it, They are just interested as to how many feet of space you want to rent, Also most carnivals have more rides than they have space for at most of their fairs and don't want to give up space to anyone else, since they get all the money for the rides.

They may rent you space, but in most cases you wouldn't gross enough to pay the rent, I suggest you try booking local events and festivals, until you have a few years of experience, before you tackle the fair industry.

Sincerely, Ward Hall

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