Pay to exibit?

[crankedup]

Rougham now want to extract an crisp tenner from your wallet for each show you attend to exhibit your PJ. Am I missing something here for without our PJs its not much of an show IMHO. Bloody cheek, I will take my PJ elsewhere, I mean its not even an charity is it.

[Simpo Two]

Rougham has consistently failed to recognise that the cars are in integral part of the show and help to attract visitors. Perhaps money is tight and they have no choice but to charge £10; ultimately you have to decide if the show is worth £10 to see even if you're part of it.

Most other shows are free for exhibitors, and IIRC Duxford only charged us £9 last year, and is about 4,000,000 times bigger...!

Darren and I are drawing up the events list for 2010 and Rougham was in it, but perhaps we need to think again. As well as the cost, every year there seem to be issues with the general organisation, having to drive over muddy/dusty fields etc.

[Shortie123]

We had this problem when trying to arrange CotG, because the show has become more popular we have had to increase our spending..... i.e 1 porta loo is £75 for the day and this year we'll have to provide a min of 4 as well as the use of the loo's in the main building. Our public liability insurance is the best part of £250 for the day and we have no-where near as many risks or as big an attendance as Rougham. I know we have opted to charge exhibitors £1 BUT we did also add in that we'll be doing a cash prize draw of £100 and the entry fee in essence gets you a "free" draw ticket.

I know Manningtree had this problem too a few yrs ago they tried charging exhibitors £3 each and there was a boycott of the show as the feeling was "we are the show yet you want to charge us to be there!!"

TBH tho i do agree that £10 admission IS a bit steep, at least CotG will only EVER be no more than one measly pound.

[Simpo Two]

Shows need to recoup costs but there are also:

1) Entrance fees from general public
2) Ground rental from ice-cream vans, burger vans etc
3) Ground rental from trade stands
3) Raffles, competitions etc

I don't mind paying a small amount if it's a good show; the main thing from my perspective is that we shouldn't have to pay the full admission. My favourite example is Lavenham - very popular, good variety, well organised and free to exhibitors.

[crankedup]

If you put on an show it has to be good enough to attract an attendance that will at least cover costs. If you have to start charging your exibitors as well then you may as well pack it in. I think rougham charged 5 quid for an exibitor last year, I exibited at the Ploughs to Propellers and frankly it was ste imo. Small show, vehicles on display which had been manufactured in the 1960's and very few trade stands worth looking at. To top it all an modern fairground blasting out disco music!! not quite the 1940's it advertised.Time for an new adventure for me elsewhere.

[Shortie123]

I guess what helps our cause (Cars on the Green) is that we only cover our costs and then anything else left over goes to Charity (Which this year happens to be St Nicholas Hospice and Bury MS Society) so its not as though the excess money is getting put into someone's pocket to have fun with.

[Simpo Two]

To be slightly fair to Rougham, getting WW2 planes to display isn't cheap - other shows don't have this aspect to cover.

[crankedup]

Simpo Two said:

To be slightly fair to Rougham, getting WW2 planes to display isn't cheap - other shows don't have this aspect to cover.

Sorry John, I disagree, if the organisers want aircraft they should factor the cost into the admission fees. If the cost is still beyond feasibility they could consider jointing with another organisation and alternate the venues perhaps? Do the aircraft owners get charged to exhibit also, no I don't think so. It seems its just us car owners that the p**s is being taken out of. It would be cheaper for an car exibitor to join the paying public for the day. Incidently I have written to Rougham expressing my viewpoints regarding the issue. Me! peeved? I'm not overconcerned about missing out on the show so much as the organisers must think that car exibitors are an bunch of nitwits.
Gresenhall museum have the Lancaster and Spitfire + Hurrican display and they do not charge exibitors and the museum is far smaller than Rougham in both visitors and display area. Think I better stay there then

Edited by crankedup on Friday 12th February 16:43

[Stella Artois]

crankedup said:

Simpo Two said:

To be slightly fair to Rougham, getting WW2 planes to display isn't cheap - other shows don't have this aspect to cover.

Do the aircraft owners get charged to exhibit also, no I don't think so.

However, landing fees can be as much as £300 per light aircraft. Escalating into the 1000's for larger aircraft..... it costs to land.

[Simpo Two]

crankedup said:

Do the aircraft owners get charged to exhibit also, no I don't think so.

No, the venue has to pay them to display. P-51s ain't cheap to run!

crankedup said:

It would be cheaper for an car exibitor to join the paying public for the day.

I didn't know that. That's definitely wrong. But I always thought they weren't interested in the cars - perhaps this is their way of getting rid of them?

Edited by Simpo Two on Friday 12th February 18:17

[FazerBob]

the reason that I, and many other kit car owners, stopped going to the Donington show was the entry fee.
I really don't agree with paying to be a big (biggest) part of the attraction.
I will however be attending CotG again this year, regardless of the entry charge, as the organisers are only trying to cover their costs, and not trying to make very big profits, as was the case with the Donington organisers.

[crankedup]

My mindset completely changes when an show like Helmingham ask for an donation or charge clubs to exibit. I, like most here I would assume, are happy to dip into the wallet when its charity. Perhaps all car shows will go this way. I had no idea it cost such huge money to run.land aircraft

[BliarOut]

I won't pay to show. Ever. I'm quite happy to put a car on show at my own expense, but to actually pay to attend? Who are they kidding

I hope it fails spectacularly on general principle.

[Ferg]

I do lots of shows in a year and have never paid to exhibit my car.
Last year I did Hedingham Castle Classic Car Showcase, simply because it's 2 miles away and I'm a Hedingham boy. No entrance fee, my daughter paid half entrance as a passenger.
I invited a friend to come along as her children quite like these sort of things and when she arrived I discovered that the 'Family Ticket' cost her £26!! One adult, 3 children under 14....

This year I have registered for CotG and as mentioned above I have been informed of the £1 charge. To be honest I'll take each case on it's merits. £1 is such a small amount and the show looks a very friendly affair so I'm more than happy. I understand there is no public entrance fee.
I went to Rougham once and was so unimpressed that I wouldn't go again.

[Simpo Two]

crankedup said:

I had no idea it cost such huge money to run.land aircraft

I wasn't sure how much exactly, but found this: www.channel4.com/community/showcards/S/Spitfire_Ac...

'Pete Kynsey : The RAF do operate some Spitfires and Hurricanes as part of the Battle of Britain memorial flight but no help is given at all to civilian owned aeroplanes like Carolyn's. The running cost of a Spitfire is between two and three thousand pounds an hour and the owner has to find that from somewhere'

[eccles]

Stella Artois said:

crankedup said:

Simpo Two said:

To be slightly fair to Rougham, getting WW2 planes to display isn't cheap - other shows don't have this aspect to cover.

Do the aircraft owners get charged to exhibit also, no I don't think so.

However, landing fees can be as much as £300 per light aircraft. Escalating into the 1000's for larger aircraft..... it costs to land.

It would be interesting to see where it costs £300 to land a light aircraft! It didn't cost that much to land an airliner where I used to work.

The landing fees at Rougham seem to me to be about typical for that kind of airfield in this part of the world, and are a fraction of the cost that you quote!

http://www.roughamairfield.org/Pilots%20Informatio...

[Simpo Two]

I suspect those are the landing fees for private aircraft, ie visitors arriving by light plane - not the display aircraft.

Think of it this way - if you want a Spitfire or Mustang to put on a private flying display for your birthday, they don't turn up and do it for free, you have to pay them. Rougham will be paying the display aircraft to display, then have to claw it back from the visitors.

[Stella Artois]

Its not the actual landing that you pay for John, its the fire cover, controller, emergency services etc. Irrespective of what aircraft. Even military aircraft that use civilian airfields have to pay too.

[Simpo Two]

Yebbut - £10 is neither here nor there in the running cost of a warbird. My point is that Rougham as an organisation have to pay many thousands out in all sorts of costs, and therefore have to recoup them somehow - from stand rentals and people coming in the gate. As to whether charging display cars £10 is essential to balance the books, I don't know; you'd have to ask them.

[Stella Artois]

I agree with Dave, exhibitors shouldn't have to pay, as without them, there would be no allure for joe public, to an extent.