Topic: Are there too many glass fairs in the UK?

[yelooc]

I am told that the new Dulwich glass fair was very badly attended. Is this telling us something? With two a year in Gaydon, Cambridge and London; thats a glass fair every two months. This is looking like an over sold market.

Graham

[aa]

Like everything else it depends on whether you are buying or selling.  Fairs are actually a very effective way to expand the market as a whole as well as the knowledge base. The level of attendance at any particular fair may depend on a variety of factors. Date, timing, location, clashing with other events, political mood, news breaking, can all have an effect on the success of a fair. Plus of course that elusive science - marketing.

Sometimes contacts are made that bring in excellent business later, even when sales seem slow. Nevertheless, a fair is like a party - if you don't reach a critical mass with attendance you don't get the buzz and atmosphere that engenders a feelgood factor. A room full of exhibitors all waiting to pounce on one or two buyers is not conducive to good business!

However, it can take several years before a fair gets up to speed.

Btw there is also the Northern Glass Fair to add to your list!

[Lustrousstone]

What Northern Glass Fair? It vanished after Haydock last year, but it wasn't exactly heaving.

[KevinH]

One factor that may well have negatively affected the Dulwich fair was the weather - it was quite wet that day in many parts of the country!

[Leni]

The morning of the Dulwich fair was awful, with heavy rain and gale-force winds - they even issued a Severe Weather Warning for the south-east!  This might have put a lot of people off traveling.  However, we went in the afternoon and it had brightened up considerably.  The venue was superb!  Great big windows which really let in loads of sunlight when the sun finally came out. The glass really glittered! 

I was sorry it was poorly attended, but hope that the next one will be better, as we really felt it was an excellent fair

[Quackers]

I considered going, but realised it was just not that simple to get to from Norfolk.  I think fairs like Cambridge will be better as they are out of built up areas and the travelling/parking is that much easier.  Assuming you have a car of course but since we don't have anything resembling public transport here that is a given .

[nigel benson]

The points made by Adam are all valid and I agree with his posting.

Whilst I take your point about travelling Tim, the parking space at Dulwich College was not a problem. Unlike previous London fairs held at Battersea and The Commonwealth Institute, for instance, it was also free. However, the high entry price (£7.00 - with reductions if an advert was shown) may also have affected the number of people who came along. I understand from the organisers that the admission price in April is to be pegged at £5.00.

Btw I had a customer brave the weather all the way from Southampton!

Nigel

[Pip]

I might be on my own here with this point however I have to admit to being rather miffed at paying an entrance fee to attend a fair.  I can appreciate that the organisers have overheads to claw back but I personally believe this should be done through other means like advertising opportunities and the fees charged to the exhibitors. I don't believe potential buyers should be charged an entrance fee of any sort and I'm not a miserly person - I think it's a cheek and will adversely affect attendance.

[Quackers]

I might be on my own here with this point however I have to admit to being rather miffed at paying an entrance fee to attend a fair.  I can appreciate that the organisers have overheads to claw back but I personally believe this should be done through other means like advertising opportunities and the fees charged to the exhibitors. I don't believe potential buyers should be charged an entrance fee of any sort and I'm not a miserly person - I think it's a cheek and will adversely affect attendance.

I understand your point of view Pip, but as a stallholder/exhibitor at plant fairs/shows I would say that many events are already pushing what they charge to stallholders.  And I expect that stall fees at collectable and antique type events are a lot higher than they are at plant shows.  I have dropped several events over the last year or two because they pushed the stall fees up too much, it is easier to sell online than go all over the place with the van.  The end result of course is that the range of stalls decreases and events become filled with cheap tat as the specialist stalls are usually the first to disappear.

When I started going to fairs with plants about 11 years ago and the average then was £10-£20 or 10% for a 4m pitch.  Now several events are asking for over £100 for the day, still with a 4m pitch, when plant sales and prices have remained unchanged.  Effectively the pitch fee has increased to 40% or more of the takings on a poor day, I have even failed to take the pitch fee at some event lately .  Those that charge percentages have gone up too, fairly typical is a £20 deposit paid 6 months in advance and then 15% on the day.  As I say the actual amount of cash that I take in the day has remained largely unchanged over those 11 years, in many cases the takings at a show have dropped significantly, I know one nursery who have exhibited at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show since it started and in the first few years they took £35,000 in the week - last year they took £6500 over a longer show (it has been stretched by 2 days) and with significantly higher costs.  Okay that all relates to plants but I would guess that glass etc isn't too far removed :huh:

Oh, and if anyone thinks there are too many glass fairs, just look at how many flower shows/fairs/sales etc there are nowadays

[Leni]

Bearing in mind the fact that I often go to glass fairs and buy only one or at most two items, I am personally more than happy, as a 'punter', to pay an admission fee! 

I understand that organisers have to recoup their costs and that if they charge stall-holders too much they will be unable to attract enough of them.  I realise that I have to pay for the pleasure of browsing through all that beautiful glass, usually in pleasant and comfortable surroundings, even though I may not be able to afford to buy all I would like. 

Even 'jumble sales' (although there aren't so many of those these days!) have always traditionally charged a small admission fee!