Everywhere I’ve gone this month, the conversation seems to be about the intersection of Entertainment and Commerce in the Festival or Theme Park world. Permanent parks and themed environments are not entry-level venues, whether speaking of crafts, services, or food & beverage sales. Too often participants leap into an investment in a park or festival… Continue reading Things to think about before launch
Tag: Growth
Playing by the Numbers, part 2, None of your Business
Ok, let’s see, …..where were we? ….poker…matchsticks…20 pounds of quarters….profit/patron, cost/patron and patron/vendor ratios…big pies…..and little pieces. Remember? If not, you can refresh your memory by reading ‘playing by the numbers, part 1’ It’s a funny thing about numbers. When you ask someone the time of day, a baseball score, or the age of their… Continue reading Playing by the Numbers, part 2, None of your Business
Playing by the Numbers, part 1, Patron/Vendor Ratio
Editor’s note: This is the first installment in Al’s series that uses metrics to determine the financial relationship between vendors and festivals.Following articles will end up with internal links here (Part 2). It’s high-season in the outdoor festival business, but we’ll get them to you eventually. I love to play poker. When I was a… Continue reading Playing by the Numbers, part 1, Patron/Vendor Ratio
How to Grow a Festival, Part Two
In part one of this conversation, I mentioned that because a festival is an experience, it is the responsibility of the participants at a festival to help create real growth. But what about those shows where the participants are doing everything they can, but the Festival Management drops the ball? It happens. Someone doesn’t order… Continue reading How to Grow a Festival, Part Two
How to Grow a Festival (part one)
What is it that makes festivals work? We like to throw the responsibility onto the Promotions and Marketing Departments, but a festival is an experience. Real growth in a festival is the responsibility of everyone involved. A couple of business truisms should be considered here: 1. It is easier to sell to existing customers. However… Continue reading How to Grow a Festival (part one)