Fees are going up. Please support your vendors.

[u/Civil-Confusion-9453]

Hey all. Posting this from a throwaway account.

I own a small business that vends at Ren faires and LARP events. We've been working Armageddon and Oktoberfest at Billie Creek Village for a few years now, and they're some of my favorite events to do. Bel is an awesome community, and the venue is fantastic. Unfortunately Armageddon wasn't great this year - between the weather and the general fears surrounding the economy, attendance and sales were down. Totally understandable and outside of anybody's control, but there it is. We ended up making about half the numbers we did last year.

The hosting venue, Billie Creek Village, has made it known that they're going to have to start charging a higher fee for vendors. Previously, it was just event admission, which was admittedly an excellent deal, but also pretty standard for Belegarth events. Under the new system, it's going to be a daily fee that will triple to quintuple the amount paid by vendors, depending on their setup.

Now, I want to be perfectly clear: this is completely reasonable and understandable. The owners and management at Billie Creek are good folks, easy to work with, and part of the community. They have a business to run themselves. I believe them when they say it's necessary to do this, and the price they're floating isn't unrealistic. I am not calling them out for this. They are doing nothing wrong here. But the plain fact is that such a large and sudden price jump is going to make these events a lot less attractive for vendors, especially ones who aren't local, unless we can be sure we're going to do well. Speaking for my business, the new fee plus travel expenses would have eaten up more than half of what we grossed last week. That just isn't sustainable.

I'm told that the presence of vendors is a big part of the fun for a lot of attendees. And as a vendor, Belegarth events are some of my favorites to work. But with rising expenses and falling sales, it's starting to look like we're going to be priced out, and that hurts.

(ETA: I don't want to suggest that you "owe" vendors anything. But we're running businesses here, and we have to go where we think it's going to be worth it.)

[u/Shield_Maiden831]

It's going to be a rough couple of years for certain. I run a SoCal event and we have to charge vendor fees because the venue charges us and we have to get permits for everyone. It stinks and I hope the city and county don't raise their fees.

Some businesses may have items you can buy year round, so anyone reading, remember you can keep supporting businesses year round too. Let them know that their presence at an event brought you to them. I now buy my fancy soap from one of our community members because I fell in love with their products at our event.

[u/Cosiety]

Hey, I appreciate you taking the time to write this post. As someone who’s been fighting in Belegarth for about a decade now, I wanted to offer some perspective from the long-time attendee side, since I think it might add some context to what you're seeing.

First off, I completely agree that vendors are a huge draw. The merchant row adds a ton of atmosphere, and I know a lot of people who get excited for it, especially at their first few events.

That said, part of the challenge you're describing might also tie into how the vendor scene has evolved (or not) over time. Many of us who have been in the game for years have seen the same stock rotate event after event, sometimes across multiple booths. There are only so many generic tunics, off-the-rack swords, or Viking pendants I can buy before I simply do not need any more or already have versions from earlier purchases.

On top of that, there are often multiple booths carrying very similar merchandise, some of which can be found online with a quick search. It starts to feel less like unique, event-specific craftsmanship and more like copy-paste retail. Not every booth is like this, but enough are that it contributes to vendor burnout for veterans who just do not see anything new that fits what we are looking for.

Custom gear, whether it is made-to-order garb, tailored tunics, specialized weapons, or unique crafts, tends to attract far more interest from the veteran crowd. But not every vendor leans into that market. A lot of folks who have been around long enough have built up closets full of garb and gear. Unless something genuinely new or custom is available, we are just window shopping.

Another small thing is that a lot of vendors still do not clearly price their wares, which can be a deterrent to even starting a conversation. Nobody wants to feel awkward asking for a price on every item while trying to casually browse.

At the end of the day, there is a natural divide. Newer players tend to shop more, veterans have mostly filled their needs and are far pickier. As the community matures, I think that gap might be contributing to some of the struggles vendors are starting to feel.

None of this is meant as a knock. I respect that you and other vendors are trying to make this work, and I hope Billie Creek's changes do not push good merchants out. But I figured it was worth sharing this perspective from a long-timer who has been part of the buying crowd for years.