Whats happened to the game fair.

[max151]

As a regular visitor to the Scottish Game Fair at Scone Palace.Im thinking of giving it a bye this year as its becoming a bit boring to say the least,Same old thing year in and year out and to be charged £16 for two small burgers was a bit of a rip off.These traders need to be given a wide berth and some new country pursuits need to be included in the event.

[humperdingle]

Haven’t been for years and for the same reasons… £40 or so for a couple of tickets, then astronomical prices on pretty much everything when you’re in.

Not a great value day out tbh

[decoy1979]

15 minutes ago, max151 said:

As a regular visitor to the Scottish Game Fair at Scone Palace.Im thinking of giving it a bye this year as its becoming a bit boring to say the least,Same old thing year in and year out and to be charged £16 for two small burgers was a bit of a rip off.These traders need to be given a wide berth and some new country pursuits need to be included in the event.

I don't think it's the fault of the traders, food vendors pay ridiculous prices for the pitch so have to recoup there costs somehow, in fact all traders will probably be paying silly prices and then the organisers charge the likes of you & I silly money to get in, they then probably struggle to attract new pursuits/traders etc due to these costs.   

[oldypigeonpopper]

Hello, that's the reason I stopped going to the UK game fair, the smaller ones like highclere are just as bad, even the shooting show next month will be a miss, it's just a shame most fairs have gone this way, suppose I could always go to the countryfile show 🤔🙈🙈🙈🤮🤮🤮

Edited January 24, 2023 by oldypigeonpopper

[Scully]

I laugh when I hear people moaning about a lack of ‘bargains’ or ‘there’s no good deals’ at game fairs or shooting shows. 
Everybody exhibiting their goods and chattels is there for one reason and one reason only, to make money. Even the organisers are doing it for the same reason, to make money. 
Your pitch can cost a grand to start with, then there’s admin’ fees, plus all manner of upgrades which can make your stand at least 2k before the doors even open.
Then there’s staff to pay, plus accommodation for you all, plus food, plus travel, fuel and the logistics of getting all your gear there, display assembled and then unassembled. 
I get contacted from various ‘affordable’ art fairs, where the cheapest stand in London is over £1200 for a 3x2mt pitch. Then there’s my accommodation over 3 nights, travel costs there and back plus getting all my gear there and back. 
Sales aren’t guaranteed and you’ve got to go some before you see a profit. 
Doing outside bars for a mate during summer, folks complain about the price of the drinks ( doesn’t stop them coming back time and again though ) and constant comments about ‘you lads must be making a killing’. Well the staff certainly aren’t; there’s 14 of us covering two burger vans and a bar, all on minimum wage. Still adds up for the boss though, who has had to fork out in advance for three pitches and all his stock. If it rains he’s well out of pocket, and it has happened. 
I’m doing an art fair again this year. First one was just at the start of the pandemic. I paid for a smallish stall and accommodation for four nights which came to around 900 quid. I’d already paid 350 for framing. We spent another 300 on food, plus fuel there and back and I didn’t make a single sale. Exhibitors blamed the uncertainty of the circumstances for the lack of sales. 
However, I attracted a couple of galleries and subsequently sold work as a result, so it wasn’t a complete waste of time and money.

Commercial Galleries however charge commission of 40%+VAT, sometimes more, so it’s dead easy to price yourself out of a sale. 
Anyone wonder why ‘there’s no bargains to be had’ ? 

[Dave at kelton]

I love Scone as it feels more homely and a good atmosphere. I was disappointed last year that some of the original exhibitors, gunsmiths etc were lacking. Can’t make it this year for other reasons.

[Bigbob]

Surprised they get away with calling Scone a Game Fair , Its a country Fair at best very little for shooting hunting no terrier or lurcher show As well as your entry fee they now charge you for parking  then rip you off for food 

[Scully]

1 hour ago, Bigbob said:

Surprised they get away with calling Scone a Game Fair , Its a country Fair at best very little for shooting hunting no terrier or lurcher show As well as your entry fee they now charge you for parking  then rip you off for food 

Take your own food? 

[Bigbob]

When i did go to Scone we would take the kids as a family of fou trot round buy what we wanted watch the terrier show , come out light a disposable barbecue and have a picnic and watch all the cars queuing up and trying to cut each other up to get out , the kids enjoyed it as much as the fair . Nodays a lot of the stalls have dropped out even with postage its a lot better than buying off the internet 

[Stonepark]

£25 a ticket this year but includes parking......

[JohnfromUK]

I haven't been to the Scottish, but used to go to the CLA (and now BASC) nearly every year - but haven't now been for about 4 years.  Various points;

• The CLA 'gave up' because they couldn't see a way not to lose money ........ despite high cost of entrance and high stand fees
• Many traders have stopped going - citing high costs, but there are still lots there - perhaps less 'sporting' and more 'lifestyle'?
• The last few times, the fishing part has been very sparse and disappointing - and that was part of the enjoyment for me
• Food costs don't bother me really because they are optional - you can always take a sandwich, or if eating out trying the food (which can be good) is part of the experience - I guess you accept the costs
• To buy anything major is a pain (especially if the weather is unpleasant) as it can be a very long walk to carry any purchases back to the car
• Although the current (I'm on BASC only here) venue of Ragley has reasonable traffic arrangements (and is very convenient for me!), game fairs have had several disastrous traffic snarl ups in the past - people remember queuing for hours on a hot day.

I think the problem now is that with the internet and related 'mail order', margins for traders have become very tight.  I guess some traders still think it is worthwhile as there are plenty there - but my impression was it was more a 'lifestyle' thing rather than a sporting (shooting and fishing) event now.  On a personal note, I have no interest at all in seeing luxury cars with high 6 figures price tags, helicopters, etc. and whilst it might be nice to view log burners there, you can do that just as easily at a showroom - but presumably the vendors get enough trade for it to be worthwhile?

[Bigbob]

We used to go to Scone done the midlands a few times and Lowther but not interested any more they became to greedy and lost a families revenue 

[BlaserF3]

I went to Scone once thick mud due to a lot of rain, never went again. Lowther used to put a good clay shoot on, Penrith club set the targets, which had a lot of variety and was a good day out. If you shot there admission to the rest of it was free, you just walked through a gate. Happy days 😄

[marsh man]

Part of the attraction for us going to the early C L A game fairs was seeing different parts of the country , we didn't move far out of our county until one of the boys bought a car and then three or four of us would go each year to wherever the fair was held , most of the venues had stately homes and the countryside was far different to our flat areas .

The fairs were brilliant as we could see racks upon racks of guns , some of the best gun dogs we were ever lightly to see working , W A G B I stands that were like a small fair in itself , you only had to leave a small donation for a drink of your choice , and stacks of other events going on .

Then as the years rolled by they were still good but not excellent and more and more of the smaller ones were springing up and were getting more and more commercial stalls creeping in , slowly but surely they were becoming a bit boring with the feeling that all the fair wanted was your money , the entry fee was getting more , car parking charge was getting silly and the cost of fuel getting there and back was also getting beyond the joke .

So the big ones are now history and if we do go to any then we just stick to a local one for a day out and even they are now on the decline , the glory days of the fairs are now gone forever , or if they haven't then I think they soon will be .

[Lloyd90]

On 24/01/2023 at 16:12, Scully said:

I laugh when I hear people moaning about a lack of ‘bargains’ or ‘there’s no good deals’ at game fairs or shooting shows. 
Everybody exhibiting their goods and chattels is there for one reason and one reason only, to make money. Even the organisers are doing it for the same reason, to make money. 
Your pitch can cost a grand to start with, then there’s admin’ fees, plus all manner of upgrades which can make your stand at least 2k before the doors even open.
Then there’s staff to pay, plus accommodation for you all, plus food, plus travel, fuel and the logistics of getting all your gear there, display assembled and then unassembled. 
I get contacted from various ‘affordable’ art fairs, where the cheapest stand in London is over £1200 for a 3x2mt pitch. Then there’s my accommodation over 3 nights, travel costs there and back plus getting all my gear there and back. 
Sales aren’t guaranteed and you’ve got to go some before you see a profit. 
Doing outside bars for a mate during summer, folks complain about the price of the drinks ( doesn’t stop them coming back time and again though ) and constant comments about ‘you lads must be making a killing’. Well the staff certainly aren’t; there’s 14 of us covering two burger vans and a bar, all on minimum wage. Still adds up for the boss though, who has had to fork out in advance for three pitches and all his stock. If it rains he’s well out of pocket, and it has happened. 
I’m doing an art fair again this year. First one was just at the start of the pandemic. I paid for a smallish stall and accommodation for four nights which came to around 900 quid. I’d already paid 350 for framing. We spent another 300 on food, plus fuel there and back and I didn’t make a single sale. Exhibitors blamed the uncertainty of the circumstances for the lack of sales. 
However, I attracted a couple of galleries and subsequently sold work as a result, so it wasn’t a complete waste of time and money.

Commercial Galleries however charge commission of 40%+VAT, sometimes more, so it’s dead easy to price yourself out of a sale. 
Anyone wonder why ‘there’s no bargains to be had’ ? 

 

Quite simply then, they are unviable. 
 

Paying £1200 for a tiny pitch where you then have you sell your good well over priced just to make your money back results in traders not bothering to go and the public not bothering to go, one is making no money and the other is getting no bargains.

The proof is in the pudding. 
 

Some of the best ones I have been to have been in old barns etc where the traders get the pitch for cheap or free and people get some good deals. 

[Scully]

5 hours ago, Lloyd90 said:

 

Quite simply then, they are unviable. 
 

 

But you don’t ‘overprice’ your goods, otherwise you’ll simply price yourself out of a sale. You just have to hope you make enough sales at an affordable price. 

[JohnfromUK]

13 minutes ago, Scully said:

But you don’t ‘overprice’ your goods, otherwise you’ll simply price yourself out of a sale. You just have to hope you make enough sales at an affordable price. 

The trouble with this is that in this day and age, you are not competing with the big(ger) shops who do mail order (Uttings, Powells etc.) but with all of the internet traders.

From a pure "personal economics" viewpoint - go and view, try, feel the quality (or otherwise) of prospective purposes at the fair(s) or shops ........ then search around and buy by price on the internet. 

I'm lucky - I bought most things (guns, sleeves, cartridge bags, cleaning kit etc.) in good quality 30 to 50 years ago - and they are still going strong, so now I only need the occasional 'wear out' item!

Edited January 29, 2023 by JohnfromUK

[Scully]

58 minutes ago, JohnfromUK said:

The trouble with this is that in this day and age, you are not competing with the big(ger) shops who do mail order (Uttings, Powells etc.) but with all of the internet traders.

From a pure "personal economics" viewpoint - go and view, try, feel the quality (or otherwise) of prospective purposes at the fair(s) or shops ........ then search around and buy by price on the internet. 

I'm lucky - I bought most things (guns, sleeves, cartridge bags, cleaning kit etc.) in good quality 30 to 50 years ago - and they are still going strong, so now I only need the occasional 'wear out' item!

To an extent, yes, but as a RFD you don’t shove 50 quid on the price of a gun at a show; it is the same price it was back in your shop or on your website. You simply have to weigh up your chance of making sales to what you hope will be a much wider audience who are there specifically looking for ‘something’, ( which presumably is the reason they’re there ) to outweigh your set up costs. 
Dealers can’t really price any of their wares at inflated prices because there’ll always be someone to point out they can get it cheaper online. 
Food, drink and some other items are different matters altogether. 
Speaking for myself, my work is unique, so I do actually have the option to put up my prices if I feel the outlay merits it or the occasion can stand it. 

[Dave at kelton]

On 29/01/2023 at 18:26, Scully said:

To an extent, yes, but as a RFD you don’t shove 50 quid on the price of a gun at a show; it is the same price it was back in your shop or on your website. You simply have to weigh up your chance of making sales to what you hope will be a much wider audience who are there specifically looking for ‘something’, ( which presumably is the reason they’re there ) to outweigh your set up costs. 
Dealers can’t really price any of their wares at inflated prices because there’ll always be someone to point out they can get it cheaper online. 
Food, drink and some other items are different matters altogether. 
Speaking for myself, my work is unique, so I do actually have the option to put up my prices if I feel the outlay merits it or the occasion can stand it. 

It is also a form of advertising. One specialist dealer in hammerguns reckoned the cost of a stand was better than several colour ads in the magazines. People remembered him and came back at a later date. Also have to factor in the universal use of the internet. Very easy to reach an international audience at relatively little cost and no need to cart your stock halfway across the country.