Associate Director

Is It Time For Entertainers To Increase Fees?

By Robert Smith, Associate Director

Robert Smith Presents, LLC P.O. Box 65122 Albuquerque, NM 87193

Fairs are going to think I’m awful for writing this. They may think I’m greedy. They may even decide not to hire our company. I’m going to say something that every entertainer and attraction provider in our industry needs to hear.

It’s time to increase fees.

Over the last several months I’ve spoken with two dozen entertainers around the industry. The conversations have been around the impact of inflation on their businesses. What I’ve discovered is that the model many entertainers are using is simply not sustainable. It’s increasingly likely that our side of the fair industry is going to see a contraction over the next several years with more and more performers exiting to retirement or just flat out going out of business.

When we listen to the news we’re told that inflation is running somewhere around 8.3%.

Certainly one of the biggest costs for any of us is the price of diesel to move our shows down the road. Most of us are still paying anywhere from 60% - 130% more than we were in January of 2021.

Diesel isn’t the only factor we’ve got to look at. All of us across the board are paying far higher prices for energy, groceries, durable goods, food costs for concessionaires, health care, rent and now interest rates are skyrocketing.

Yet many acts are still charging $600/ day for three 30-minute shows.

Our industry is a delicate balance. Fairs want to plan spectacular events that draw the public to come enjoy a day or two of fun and learning with their families. But they have very real budgets to consider.

Likewise, entertainers want to make a living doing what they love and bringing joy to and creating memories for people across America. They too have very real budgets to consider.

Coming into convention season every attraction in our industry should have a serious look at the internal workings of their businesses and consider a 10% 25% increase in their fee.

How Fairs Can Stretch Those Budgets If Performers Increase Fees?

If you’re a fair manager or board member, you’re probably reading this thinking, “that guy is out of his mind.” Fair enough. But we’ve all had conversations at trade shows so let’s not be bashful about how the process tends to work.

You’re interested in a given act. You ask an act how much the price is, they say $1,000/ day for 3 shows. You immediately turn around and offer a much lower price. The act may reluctantly accept. You think you’ve scored a killer deal and walk away thinking you’re a tough negotiator.

The act feels like they got taken to the cleaners and now feels a sense of resentment.

It seems many in our industry approach negotiation as a competition rather than a collaboration.

Performers are going to be increasing fees. You’re going to want to negotiate. So how can you stretch your budgets with prices going up? Approach the negotiation as a collaboration.

Cooperative Buying is the Unlock for Negotiating Better Fees.

Let’s revisit the scenario above only we add in a cooperative buying element.

Take three fair managers, each with 10day fairs running consecutively between February and March. The longest distance between each of them is 3 hours. They’re interested in an act that runs $1,500/day. They get together and collectively approach the act. They let the act know they’re all willing to book on the spot if they can get $1,350/day. The act happily commits at the lower price.

Each fair saves 10%. The act now has 30 routed days booked. Everybody wins.

The difference in the two scenarios is how the buyer approached the act. The first scenario was approached as a competition, a challenge to be won while the second scenario was approached as a collaboration.

This is a rocky time for all of us in our beloved industry. Convention season is going to be gut check time as we book for 2023 and beyond. As those discussions take place, is it a ridiculous idea to approach those negotiations as a collaboration rather than a competition?

Agri-cadabra..........................325 Aim High Canines .................920 Forza Entertainment .............439 Artists & Attractions....... 815-821 ..........................825,27,29,31,33 Belmont Magic Show ............841 G.L. Berg Entertainment .......601 The Birdman..........................403 Bleacher Rentals...................209 The Johnnie Bubar Show......640 Paul Bunyan Lumberjack ......619 Cale Moon Country Ent.........616 Capitol International ..............712 Cowboy Circus, D. Grant ......327 Disc-Connected K9s .............416 EMC Tickets..........................317 Etix ............................704,6,7,8,9 Extreme Illusions & Escapes 337 Fair Publishing House......606,08 Fearless Flores Circus .....200,02 Firefighter Show....................316 FunTagg................................201 Goat Island Petting Zoo ........204 Great American Ent. .............212 Liz Gregory Talent Agency ...713 Haas & Wilkerson Ins......519,21, .........................................618,20 Harmony Artists...........701,03,05 Hot Glass Academy ..............219 J International Mgmt. .......543,45 .............................547,642,44,46 Dale Jones Entertainment.....605 K/O Fairground Planners .536,38 Lady Houdini .........................725 Dennis Lee Show..................637 McGowan Allied Ins. ........434,26 Mobile Glass Studio ..............731 North Pole Productions .........400 Pirate Man Dan .....................233 Reithoffer Shows, Inc............614 Robert Smith Presents..........638 Saffire...............................428,30 Sensational Murcias..............243 Shawnee Services ...........844,46 Specialty Insurance Agency..645 Spectrum Weather Ins ..........715 Staats Awards.......................621 Stilt Circus.............................324 Triangle Talent ............627,27,29 ..............631,33,724,26,28,30,32 Variety Attractions, Inc, ...800,02, .........................................804,06 Vortex Weather Insurance ....229 Whirley-Drink\Works! .....445,447 David Yugar Productions ......240

KAREN & JIMMY BAND It was great seeing everyone out having fun with local, live music at BayFest. I had a blast on stage, filling in on drums with KJB.

The KJB set started off with a beautiful blue sky and lots of sun. Several songs in, we performed a CCR a song, “Have You Ever Seen The Rain”. Well Mother Nature heard it and decided to tease us. A dark cloud rolled in with threatening wind. But that didn’t stop the fun. Nope, we continued and it never rained on Anna Maria Island. Over in Bradenton, it poured.

Mojo Sound did a great job with sound production. Thank you AMI Chamber Of Commerce for another great festival.